First stage diagnosis

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Visited a Psychologist for the first time today to get a diagnosis for AS, she was more pre-occupied with my OCD which i think is quite mild.Worse still the only AS specialist she could contact is a child Psychologist which will require the presence of my mother who i am not very close to. What is the point of taking your mother when she could not see anything wrong in your childhood.I am 37, psychologist has prescribed Parotexine for OCD how very predictable and disappointing.

Is their no specialists for adults seeking AS diagnosis?

Stripey...I am going through the process myself right now...it is not easy to find a specialist in AS who treats adults but there are a few...where do you live?I got the name of the psychologist from online web site from an AS group in my city.I would reccomend that approach.I have very little faith in a psychologist who is neither interested in or familiar with "adult AS".I would hesitate to take any medication, unless it seemed essential for my survival(ie if I was suicidal and felt anti-depressants could prevent me from taking my life)until you see someone whose judgment you trust. I have heard many people who do have AS say that many medications make their traits more pronounced...(which seems to make sense to me if your OCD is nurological and not chemical??)

For me, this has been a very long and drawn out process(thankfully I have persurverance...lol)
I think I will be somewhat "cynical" whatever my DX...affermitive or not,because that is my nature.
But I would not except it at all if I hadnt chosen someone who at least is familiar with AS.I was always told that all my problems where caused by my depression...I am not depressed any more and still have many of the same issues, so now what?

I wish you luck and try not to get to discourged...When I asked my general Physician for a referal to this specialist...she was very rude,tried to bribe me(in my opinion)with an increase in my anti-depressants which she then withdrew when I said "OK but I still want to see the specialist"then she made me call her for three days just to get my original dose filled...because she never called into to renew it....talk about passive-aggressive...botomline...I got my referal and am looking for a new general physician...she is obviously a very unbalanced person...maybe needs an increase in her anti-psycotic meds(bitter rebutal)

Hi, my doctor is very understanding about my aspergers, he prescribes me Clomipramine which helps with my obsessive thoughts, and I have been going to an aspergers support group every fortnight, my doctor has never asked me to see a psychologist or psychiatrist yet.
Simon.

maybe she thought you were looking to get diagnosed with As? i mean if she's a licencesd psychologist she has to know what As is. when i got my dx i had to bring in all of my school records to the doctor for him to go over them, i just couldn't meet with him for an hour and get a diagnosis that easily.

So much about AS is geared toward children. I sometimes wonder if they expect us to disappear the minute we reach 18.

Psychologists do not know enough about AS. There is a very fine line between AS obsessional issues and actual OCD. Do you find your OCD symptoms distressing, or do they interfere with your life? If not, it might be good to consider with your psychologist whether these symptoms really require treatment.

The diagnosing Psychologist will want to speak to someone who knew you as a child. They need to know that your symptoms have been lifelong, and are not something new. Is there anyone apart from your mother? Your father, an older sibling, another friend or relative?

Can you substitute your Mum's presence through the use of school records and reports?

@Tally, I agree with you that there the literature about AS is largely geared towards children. That's one aspect which is discouraging me from getting a diagnosis. I also remember watching a special hourly talkshow where the topic was autism, and I would say over 90% of that program was around children. Autism isn't just a childhood condition.

I went to an adult learning disabilities neuropsychologist recommended by my college. Maybe you would have more luck searching for an adult LD specialist? I think they often see patients with AS. The neuropsychologist got input from my mother during the clinical interview, mostly to ask her about my behavior in kindergarten. A kindergarten report card with notes from the teacher indicating that there is a problem (in my case I was so shy I refused to speak to the teacher for half a year) shows the same thing. I also had to take a battery of neuropsychological tests for the diagnosis. I think the testing is good because it makes the diagnosis more objective than if it were just based on discussions with a psychologist.