I've been diagnosed, now what?

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I was recently diagnosed with ASD type 1 (Aspergers) which I had to go private to get a diagnosis as my GP's knowledge extended to putting me on a waiting list at the hospital that doesn't exist. So now I'm wondering what I should do next....

I know I need to figure out medication for my anxiety but my GP doesn't understand it and I can't go back to private as it costs $400 a visit.

I just don't really know what to do next, ever since I've started reading books about it I can now tell when it's affecting my family and it's just making my anxiety worse

So if you have any advice on what I could do, I would appreciate it so much, thank you.

I'm on the same boat right now man. I'm trying to figure s**t out and figure out how to keep a job. I think when it comes to any mental illnesses, if it's affecting money-making skills, you know you have a problem.

I understand how you feel Henry, I'm scared of work so I've gone back to complete my studies as I've found every work place I ended up in I was bullied for my differences but I didn't know until a couple of weeks ago what those differences were. I freeze up in interviews now, because I know once I get into that job if I leave because of the bullying I wont be able to afford rent because they don't give you government support while looking for another job if you leave of your own choice.

One time I was bullied just because I injured my shoulder at work because I have hyper-mobility from my EDS syndrome which means I need more time to train up my muscles to be able to lift heavy things but they got me lifting heavy things which wasn't part of the job description.

Pretend you were never diagnosed, and move on with your life.

It will save you a lot of over-thinking.

Medication for your anxiety will not do anything about the cause or root of that anxiety. We have to learn to affect our families less, and our families have to learn to be less-affected. All of that takes time, patience, commitment, perseverance...and such is the life of an Aspie, at least as I happen to know it.

I wish it was that easy to find the root cause of my anxiety but before I got the diagnosis for Asperger's my doctor first diagnosed me with generalized anxiety because it seems to be every day problems that get me into a panic. I used to be on medication for that which was working but my sister commented one day that it made me seem out of it so that put me off of taking them. I understand where you are coming from but as one actor commented about with her anxiety I can't remember who exactly but she said "You wouldn't deny a diabetic their insulin so why isn't that similar for those with anxiety?" so that's why I'm going to look into it

I deal a lot with anxiety and always had an aversion to all and any medication (I won't even take paracetamol, for example). But with my anxiety and depression I had to accept that some chemical assistance was required. No, they do not remove the root cause of the anxiety. They might however help remove the worst effects and lift you to a physical/mental state where talking therapies and the like can be of more use.

However it turns out, good luck!

Good deal, and I also have a GAD diagnosis.

Thank you yeah I'm currently a student and end up finding myself crying in the middle of exams. Though I would like to ask, my doctor has no real knowledge of Asperger's so should I trust his help with picking out medication for the anxiety? Or do you recommend trying to find a different doctor that has some knowledge of Asperger's for help with figuring out the medication. I know he has knowledge of people with Anxiety because he's who first diagnosed me with Generalized anxiety disorder a few years back and was helping me with it but now that I know that it sits along side my Asperger's does that mean that different medication is required?

I agree with this advice. You are the same exact person now that you were before the diagnosis. So do whatever you did to survive before. Nothings changed.

Um no. You have heard the cliche about doing the same thing over and expecting a different result. Yea you survived but likely it was with a lot of misery without knowing why. You still are the exact same person but before you had a lot of wrong ideas about who you are. Now you have the information, use it. Less bad is still an improvement over the status quo.

I'm in the same boat too. I have GAD, panic disorder, and OCD in addition to Autism/Aspergers. While not everyone needs meds for anxiety, they have changed my life for the better. I take Celexa once a day and it helps calm my mind. I also have Lorazepam for panic attacks.

However, now I am like what do I do. I was just diagnosed last week with autism and I feel like my world has been turned upside down. As for the unable to work thing, I started my own business and do online college because I couldn't function as a "normal" student with a "normal" job.

You may be able to make changes to your lifestyle to reduce stress. Now that you have been diagnosed it is much easier to guess what causes stress. Most likely the same things that affect other people on the spectrum. But nothing affects everyone on the spectrum. It should be pretty easy to figure out on your own, without expensive professional assistance.
Some common causes of stress.
Noisy clocks
Excessively bright lights
Excessive noise
Changes in routine.
Multi-tasking.

Well, I took the methodical approach following my diagnosis last November. My default in any case when confronted with new information that pertains to me is to research everything about it; so far I've read a few books, attended a reading group for autistic people (had an awesome time too: ending up discussing soviet era conspiracies, ) and of course, joined this forum.