What does a diagnosis actually do?

Post Reply New Topic

I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome a few months ago.

Isn't it just useless?
Nothing in my life has changed...
My life is too busy to participate in any therapy, not that I believe I require anything.
I don't think I require any correction to my behaviour.
To me, it's normal and will always be.
I've never experienced anything else that I can benchmark to.

I think it's best for someone like me to just ignore it.
The diagnosis has been absolute trash for me.

Yeah, I've read Tony Attwood's book maybe fifteen times now since my diagnosis. Sure it makes sense but it just seems too coincidental... It's just not right... He seems to be missing a lot of points or maybe it's just the way I'm reading into it...

Plus the behaviours described in the book don't seem to be unusual... Are they? I'm soo confused at the moment.


Anyway, I don't require a psychiatrist, psychologist or mental health professional to tell me the obvious... Why do they even bother?

Last edited by clandy on 29 Apr 2010, 5:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Hi Clandy,

If a dx has made no difference to your life, well, shelve it for later. A dx is only a word unless there is something that needs "to be done about it". If you are happy and experience joy anyway, then a dx is going to mean very little.

On the flip side, I suffered massive burnout and ended up in my favourite psych ward at the end of 2007. A dx was imperative. It just so happened that after 2 years of intensive therapy since, that AS has been dx. For me it was very important as my health care professionals needed some direction in treatment, so I could recover and claim my authentic self.

A dx is only as important as what you do with it. If it changes nothing, pay little attention to it.

Take good care,

Mics

It depends on the situation. If you were in school (I am guessing you are not) you might get special considerations (ie note taker, extra test time, ability to take tests in a room alone without distractions for instance). If you were having trouble in the work place it might help you to understand how you approach things differently, discover you think and learn differently. BUT since you AREN'T having problems like these..it's pretty much just for you. Like my Dx. I knew I was for a few years (I was always "odd" but since my dad was too I just figured I was "like him") after I met my husband and he told me what it was and that he suspected I had it too. I was just like you, "well, this is normal IMO" and went about my business.

Then we moved from everyone and everything I had known for the last 15 years.
Then we had our son.

Those two things threw me for a loop and I was not dealing. So that's why I went and got a Dx so I could figure out once and for all how I think and why. Just for myself. It's helped me approach being a mother, wife, and general person differently. And with more success in less time compared with other changes I've gone through in the past.

Maybe it seems pointless now, but it's good information to have for the future? When approaching life changes or big things? At least, that has been my experience so far.

Haven't read the book you refer to, but am curious to. What is it called?

Last edited by Gigi830 on 30 Apr 2010, 12:45 am, edited 2 times in total.

It gives you a little piece of formal evidence if you ever need it for legal, insurance or disability purposes. That's it really.

See my above post from a few minutes ago.

What does it actually do? It gives you a piece of paper to show your shrink or doctor for insurance purpose.

Otherwise, like one poster said, you just hold onto it in case you need it in hypothetical situations:

If you get reprimanded at work for a silly social thing like wearing the wrong color shoes or having a wrinkly shirt, you can pull out your "get out of jail free card" and maybe get off easy.

If you have a meltdown in a public someday, you can show it to the police to let them know you aren't a homicidal maniac.

If aliens visit earth and wish to annihilate all lower forms of life, you can show them that you are more highly evolved XD

The main use I've found for my diagnosis is as a bolster for my self esteem. It's also been handy for claiming disability benefits - I doubt I would be eligible without a formal diagnosis although it's difficult even with one.

You're right though - the thing I've found most frustrating is that there's no help out there for people with HFA, nor is there anything we can do ourselves. The people who diagnosed me charged £1000, gave me a report thingy and I never saw them again. I was expecting there to be some kind of programme, you know, teach yourself social skills or the like, but nothing like that exists it seems.

As for reading, I found Uta Frith's 'Autism' very good and if you're of a scientific bent, Baron-Cohen's 'Mindblindness' is interesting, it hazards a theory about how most people develop a theory of mind and therefore why autistics find it so hard to do.

The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome - Tony Attwood.

The book itself felt like it was running through my life as a child again.
The first read is quite unpleasant... (At least for me because it was too real)

that's hilarious!

I find that my DX is useful, because I get the specialized services and products that I need. I have a job counselor who helped me find the job that I'm working at. I live in a subsidized apartment, and I get free disposable undergarments delivered to my place, once a month. I'm a bit more affected than most people here, because I'm HFA, but I still don't believe in a cure.

I only seek a diagnosis when I need help. I needed a job and I thought I'd get into some social skills program. The diagnosis got me onto disability and the disability services helped find me a job.

Learning that you have AS really takes a huge weight off your shoulders. Suddenly you're not as weird as you thought you were and there are others just like you. It also gives a reason if you are slightly behind in skills. I don't rush off to be social now. I have actually learned more since my diagnosis than I ever had in my life. That's all I do. Sit around and research or spend time with my special interests.

First, as you say, you haven't experienced anything to compare it to, so how would you know whether or not your behavior is normal, unless someone calls it to your attention? And since it 'seems normal' to you, would you believe them? You don't list your age, but I'm guessing you're still well under 30 and still don't have a clear idea what the people around you think of your behavior. If you specialize in something rare and valuable, you might not ever need your diagnosis. Employers might tolerate your eccentricities (and if you were DXd, you do have them) as a trade-off. You might even go into business for yourself, but if you have the Executive Dysfunctions common with AS, that may or may not work out for you in the long term.

If, on the other hand, you're not holding a unique talent card, you may find yourself frequently unemployed and eventually homeless. Neurotypical folk find those who seem 'different' to be irritating and somewhat disturbing, so they don't tolerate them for very long. If that turns out to be the case, you may need that diagnosis for a whole bunch of things you won't be able to live without. Disability Assistance and stuff like that.



Uhm...if they weren't unusual they wouldn't be symptoms of a DISORDER. See, that's why Attwood lists them in the book, because to average folks that stuff is weird. Don't get me wrong - those things don't seem all that unusual to me, either, but I've gotten enough "What the f*ck is wrong with you?" looks in my life to know that regular folks don't think like I do.




Mainly so when other people come at you like they're going to beat the crap out of you for being different, thereby annoying, you can hold it up and say: "Hey, my brain is made differently, I can't help it, leave me alone!" That way they will know why they're beating the crap out of you.

As an adult, I don't think it does anything. For a child, it could be important because it opens doors for any special educational needs you may have.

a referral to a specialist - free

a diagnosis - a few hundred bucks

your health, your self esteem, a fulfilling career and relationship - PRICELESS


Speaking as someone who has lived more than half of my life expectancy never knowing what was "wrong" with me, 20 years down the road you will appreciate being diagnosed, now.

Feel lucky. Because you are

Ok, from what I'm reading it seems like it probably is a disorder...

For months since my diagnosis, I've been thinking it doesn't exist.

I was at a point where I would be spending a few minutes each day trying to disprove the diagnosis. Prior to my first post here, I have been only discussing the issue with myself and have been going around in circles, undoubtedly due to my biased opinions...


I still pretty much regard myself as in the "mainstream", which is clearly a product of being able to observe those around me. My sister is able to tell me what is appropriate and what isn't. Some of my close friends are also able to tell me if something I'm doing is strange. However, they have never told me I'm not normal and therefore I've regarded what I ordinarily do as normal.

A diagnosis can open the door to treatment for various symptoms of AS such as social phobia, which can be treated with SSRIs/SNRIs or CBT. This to many can be very imporant.

Also, a diagnosis can help you with some unfavorable situations at school/work/etc. For instance, someone who is forced to speak in front of a classroom and suffers of the social phobia associated with AS can be excused from having to take part in such activities.

Another important factor is that some people can apply for various benefits, or an extension of their benefits due to the fact that they suffer of AS. For instance, in Canada, mothers who have autistic children can receive benefits that pay for special courses designed to better the lives of the latter, improve their symptoms, and even provide amenities such as Autism Dogs.

Lastly, and to some most importantly, having a diagnosis can just allow the person to breathe.. to have answers to many of the questions they have. Having a diagnosis (or suspecting a diagnosis) can also direct the person to various autism-help websites/programs such as WrongPlanet itself. In essence the diagnosis can help clear a lot of the confusion surrounding one's psychological states.