Autism's lost generation

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You guys are totally overlooking the benefits of these drugs. I take several. The consequences have not been grave.

I understand what you mean. I was 45 when I first realized I was on the Spectrum and 47 when I got diagnosed. I had an exact job history like yours and kept trying and failing for about 25 years. It also cost me my education and many relationships. You can't get the years back. You just have to go forward and make your life as good as you can with your knew understanding. There really is no real good in looking back except to help you make a better future. That is all you can do. But you are still young and you still have a great life ahead of you if you learn to respect who you are and what your challenges are and be open about them so that you can compensate for them and accentuate your strengths. It is not and will never be easy but it does not have to be all bad.

I have no issue with people who take those drugs if they work for them and don't have horrible consequences. I really believe that if that is what works for you and it helps you without hurting you than you should take them. What I had an issue with was that what I felt and interpreted Cyberg to be saying is that if a patient has horrible side effects from psychotropic drugs it's basically the fault of the patient for accepting to take them in the first place when they were prescribed. Many people do have horrific side effects to psychotropic drugs and some of them are permanent. Many people are able to take them and they get help from them and don't suffer the horrific side effects. I would never take them because I don't want to chance it. But I have no problem with others taking them if they feel it's right for them. I do have a problem with blaming the patient if the patient suffers side effects from trusting a doctor and taking them.

Now, Cyberg, I may have misunderstood you. Please correct me if I did.

When I was seeking out my diagnosis last year, I saw one psychiatrist who actually told me, "You have emotions so you can't be Autistic. Autistic people don't have emotions." I quickly found another doctor, a competent one, who diagnosed me correctly.

LOL, so true. One of my friends told me they are friends with a refugee family, not Syrian but refugees still, and they had a similar conversation. The refugee family had sponsors to pay all their expenses to bring them to the US, they were given a home, given work, and given medical insurances and set up to succeed with whatever they needed. This refugee family was shocked to hear that our mutual American citizen from birth friend, who also happens to be disabled, and who has a disabled American citizen from birth husband and 4 kids, and manages to squeak by with a piddly no paying job, has no insurance and can't afford some of the basic necessities that they were given without question.

Oh for sure. Sometimes the doctors don't realize the power of these drugs. I was once prescribed a valium derivative in my teens (the '80s, go figure.) I took them like candy and then ran out. The withdrawal was such that I will never touch them again.

They're idiots. I fear I will never cross paths with a competent psychiatrist again.

Goodness, that is really rough.

Having a nice, shiny new ASD diagnosis at age 50 leaves me feeling believed, understood, but still forgotten.

The only "adult services" for ASD are geared toward those who have guardians (parents or supported living staff) to attend their needs of grocery shopping, transportation, remaining aware in waitingrooms so they get to all their appointments, self-care, etc.

For those of us highly challenged with variable awareness, strong sensory sensitivities plus with weak neurology (meltdowns a-plenty), wandering, bolting, and non-verbal shutdowns, we need respectful, understanding ASD specialists to teach us how to read situations so that we can manage errands in our community to get our needs met, without meltdowns, bolting, non-verbal shutdowns, etc.

We need appropriate supports in place for adults who may need picture schedules to know how to shower when we're very shutdown, OT to help regulate our nervous systems to lessen meltdowns, and many of the interventions supplied for kids.
There's a gap in ASD services for adults trying to live independently ... and that gap is huge!
Nobody ever says to someone who's blind at age 42 "Well, you seem okay enough... you don't need any services." Nobody leaves you hanging, instead, you get training, to live safer and more independently.
We need ASD supports like this for autistic adults, too. Sensory sensitivities? Meltdowns? Shutdowns?
Someone needs to teach us how to navigate our communities with strong sensory sensitivities paired with fragile neurology..

We do better when our challenges are supported.

Yeah, I really wonder about some of them. Even though they are that bad, they make so much more money than I could ever make. I wish I could make that much.