Is it difficult to get a dx as a high functioning adult?

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I am wondering about getting a dx as an adult. I am positive my husband is aspergers, like beyond a shadow of a doubt. I just dont see how he DOESNT have it.

However, looking at the criteria to get a professional dx you have to have so many things out of each catagory. My husband is SO MUCH better now then he used to be in alot of areas, where he does still struggle, but not nearly as much socially because he has taught himself to act a certain way. Technically he does have the criteria out of each section but for instance the social catagory, it is mild now.

1.Severe impairment in reciprocal social interaction
(at least two of the following)
(a) inability to interact with peers
(b) lack of desire to interact with peers
(c) lack of appreciation of social cues
(d) socially and emotionally inappropriate behavior

He cant read peoples faces or inflect in the voice. I have to tell him when someone is being a certain way. He tries to interact with peers at work but they think he is stupid or weird. He is quiet now because he doesnt want to say something stupid. So its hard to say YES, he has inability to interact when they are just being mean to him. He isnt socially inappropriate because he is quiet to avoid something inappropriate. He is much more self aware now by being told what is appropriate and what isnt so he tries hard to ask people how there weekend was even when he doesnt care just to be nice. SO I guess I just cant say these things are severe imairment anymore because he is aware and tries. From everything I have read, people with AS can teach themselves things (like my husband staring at peoples faces saying make eye contact, make eye contact, make eye contact, he does it with constant reminder).

Anyways, how does a professional dx go about dxing a adult who has obviously learned some things and taught themselves what is appropriate.

I know that there is some childhood stuff they go by. My husband was in speech therepy until 5th grade because he and his brother couldnt be understood and had there own language and accents. He rocked back and forth. He had few friends as he had narrow interests which were not popular (d and d and video games was life) Anyways, I dont know. I want him to go when he gets insurence this year, but we will still pay some. I dont want to go if its going to be a waste of money because he doesnt exhibit SEVERE symptoms anymore (although some of this symptoms that are not social I would consider severe)

From reading many of the threads on adults who have been diagnosed later in life, it does seem very difficult. Some spent quite a long time pursuing the process, navigating through many doctors who rejected AS as a diagnosis due to their having learned coping mechanisms and heuristics over their decades.

I would be willing to bet that a person with AS who has managed to hold down a job, get married, and such, would find psychiatrists much more ready to diagnose them with something like Social Anxiety Disorder or Bipolar Disorder or ADHD or somesuch. Because, at this point in life, the most visible signs may be the comorbidities attached. It does seem more common, from reading many threads on late diagnoses, to see such diagnoses.

It may be due to these comorbidities being more easily identified than the AS which produced them, and it may also be because from the standpoint of a psychiatrist these alternative diagnoses provide a better chance of treatment and support in their community.

A psychiatrist may think, "He shows clear signs of social anxiety. He may indeed have AS. But if I diagnose him with Social Anxiety Disorder, I can ensure he will have the resources to treat his anxiety. I may not be able to do so if I diagnose AS."

I don't really know how to make this process simpler. It seems to be much more subjective than a childhood diagnosis, with a lot of factors obscuring things.

You may want to look at the threads for adult diagnoses, and ask the members how it worked.

I am in my 50s. Last November, I referred myself to a psychologist who specialises in ASDs and who was warmly recommended by a leading international expert in the field.

The psychologist got me to complete an AQ Test, then he interviewed me for 2 hours, then a week later he got my wife to complete the AQ Test about me, and then finally he saw the two of us together for an hour. After that, he told me the diagnosis. I then went to my GP to get a formal referral so that I could continue seeing him about emotional and sensory issues.

It is true that many of the symptoms are less in older people, but the most common residual symptoms are sensory sensitivity, and I have plenty of that. I also have plenty of issues with anxiety, and he is working with me at present to reduce my anxiety levels, which has been really great.

For me, the key was seeing a psychologist who specialises in ASDs, an expert who knows what to look for in adults on the spectrum.

I was diagnosed in 5th grade but ignored it and tried to be "normal" in many ways (while not others, sometimes simply because I was oblivious to certain behaviors) for the entirety of my adolescence. Since hitting adolescence it has been an intense urge. Some people on here have questioned my diagnosis, but over time I've become a lot more aware, socially and of myself, and I know I have a better idea of whether or not I have it than someone who only has a few paragraphs to base a complex diagnosis upon.

And HERE'S the Catch-22: If I do have it, then I would be more likely to know. But if I don't have it, I would be equally likely to say "Oh yeah, all of this sure sounds like me". I can FEEL I have it, and I KNOW based on knowledge of myself and my entire life up to this point. Many of my Aspieisms were broken by years of people treating me as though I were normal yet inadequate. This probably has something to do with why it's hard to diagnose adults.

I think I had repressed this memory, I've never had something come back to me this vividly but my parents forced me to take swimming lessons at a center for the disabled. Here's the kicker: there were maybe five kids with other disabilities (like Down Syndrome) and a bunch of 2-4 year olds. It was one of the most humiliating things I ever had to do, and there are plenty of other symptoms I struggled with that were stomped out in ignorance.

Frankly, just getting a Dx as an adult is hard enough due to the lack of qualified professionals who know how to spot AS in adults.

Being on the "mild" end of the spectrum only makes it that much harder.

I was formally diagnosed this past January at age 53. It was a foregone conclusion in my mind so I basically compiled as much information and presented an overwhelming case to the psychologist. He didn't even go the full 6 sessions planned before he concurred.

The key was finding a practice the was receptive to diagnosing adults AND doing my homework. You really need to find a practitioner that understands autism and does not have a bias towards diagnosing "only" children.

Does your husband want a diagnosis? It is not necessary if you aren't seeking services or documenting employment issues. I got mine for a combination of personal and practical reasons. I would like to finish my degree and maybe do some graduate studies, but I burn out really easily so getting a diagnosis will allow some accommodations at the university.

It can be expensive. If your insurance does not cover it, expect to spend at least $500 and as much as a few thousand depending on your location (New York city seems really expensive, where I am it was under $1000).

When I was diagnosed, they took into account my current symptoms and also my past symptoms. I was still high-functioning during my childhood, but less so. I'm unsure of how much weight current symptoms vs. lifetime symptoms are given, though, so I'm unsure of how difficult getting a diagnosis would be.

A better question to ask would be "is it necessary?" Much like you've described your husband, my father clearly has Asperger's. However, he has a great career, a great family (not trying to toot my own horn ), and he is very happy with his life. He knows he has Asperger's, but what good would an official diagnosis do? It's not free, and it would just be telling you what you already know. He doesn't appear to need the legal benefits an official diagnosis would give. If he wants it for some form of closure or validation, by all means, do it. But if he is fine without it, there's really no point.

I am as "high functioning" as any adult can be. I am in the top % of earners in the US, own many properties, have succesfully raised 2 kids, etc... etc...

Got called Aspergers in a few moments of meeting with a shrink for grief counselling (I wasn't even there RE ASD). It isn't tied to how well you "function" in society but to the way you present. Apparently I present very much ASD.

I would do it, then. From everything you've said, it sounds like he is very likely to receive a diagnosis. He sounds like he has more social troubles than I do, and I never doubted that I would receive an official diagnosis.
Why do you think your relatives deny it? I don't understand that at all; I'm usually good at figuring out the reasoning behind attitudes, but that just seems completely irrational to me.

It's definitely not stupid at all that you are the most concerned about people thinking your husband is stupid. You know him, so you know all of his positive qualities and you know he's intelligent; it's only natural to want everyone else to be able to see those qualities too.

When I was living in British Columbia (yes, I'm Canadian), I checked into an adult dx. But the bit of the healthcare system that did ASD diagnoses said "Well, it's not like we have any services for adults on the spectrum, so we just don't bother doing adult diagnoses."

I'm now living in California. I understand I could go to UCLA for a formal diagnosis. I also understand that it'd cost $4400 and my insurance probably wouldn't cover it. I don't have $4400 lying around, and if I did, it'd go towards a new bigscreen TV, a good Blu-ray home theatre setup, and boxed sets of DVDs like the complete Twilight Zone and World at War and so on.

If insurance would cover it, though, I'd love to get a formal diagnosis, just for completeness' sake. (And I should check with my health insurance, just in case they would cover it....)

I wasn't even pursuing a AS diagnosis when I got it. I have been in counseling my whole life for anxiety and OCD issues. At one point, the counselor just said oh by the way I am changing your diagnosis to include aspergers. I didn't even know what aspergers was at the time.

Two of my sons doctor's picked me out for AS at his introductory sessions. Only took them an hour.