More about my "Total Nightmare" evaluation

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People who are not autistic frequently don't understand why the label is so important to someone on the spectrum. As we are usually very pedantic it really, really matters to us if something is not as it should be. So if you have AS but are misdiagnosed with something else, even if it's another spectrum condition it can be something highly bothersome at a very deep level.

We also frequently have a deep need for justice, so being misdiagnosed is an injustice which it's very hard to get past.

Then there is the obsessive part of our nature, you can't focus on or move past that misdiagnosis or failed diagnosis. All the above three can have a negative effect on mental health - the last thing you need when you are on the spectrum.

People also say the label doesn't matter, but it really does when it comes to what support you get. If they deem you as less on the spectrum than you are you will likely get less help. Because people have coping skills doesn't mean they don't need the help. If you are on the spectrum and they say you're not, that's even worse for obvious reasons. This help can be health-related, or reasonable adjustments you need because of having a recognised disability at either work or in education.

There also could be insurance reasons it's imperative people have the correct diagnosis. Maybe it could also affect benefits.

If you become a parent, being on the spectrum puts your child automatically at higher risk too, so if they deny you are autistic when you are, that has a serious knock-on effect on recognising risk in your children and them being picked up early.

Certain types of supported/special housing may not be available to you without the diagnosis.

Certain therapies, which may be available to you as either autistic or NT, can potentially be geared towards you being autistic if it is identified, such as CBT. Some therapies just plain don't work on many autistic people, so if you have co-morbid anxiety or depression and did not get the ASC diagnosis you should, if you are one of those people you could face endless useless therapies that make you feel even worse at the end than when you started. You need to know the correct point you are coming from.

Then of course, there is the self-identity issue, recognition of who you are, validation of why you are the way you are.

If you wanted to contribute to autism research as a participant, if they did not diagnose you, you cannot validly do so. Which is a shame for research.

Labels are very important for lots of reasons.

Stuff like this make me think that psychiatric problems aren't taken as seriously and it's no wonder that some people think that they aren't real.

When people go to the doctor for physical problems doctor's have no problem with "labeling" them then. When I went and got diagnosed with cancer the doctor didn't hold back from telling me I had cancer or said that we'll do chemo and radiation to treat the symptoms but not call it cancer because a label doesn't matter.

If I were to go to get a diagnosis and they wouldn't give me one to me that means nothing is wrong and I wasted my time.

Ok, fair enough about the importance of labels to the autistic person. I've already argued with my sisters plenty of times about why I don't have Asperger's and am probably best described as a nerd who (most likely) used to have social communication disorder. But I was also trying to say (in my imprecise non-autistic way) that even the "right" label isn't necessarily specific enough. If the therapist just says "you have Asperger's/high functioning autism," that only means that you have substantial social and sensory challenges and need for routines and repetitive behavior. It doesn't say exactly what those challenges and needs are, how severe they are, and how to deal with them. One Aspie may have problems with fluorescent lights, while another might love them and find them mesmerizing; one might not be able to process verbal and auditory information well at the same time, and another might not be able to process auditory and tactile information well at the same time.

Yes, precisely this!