would i call myself self-diagnosed?

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ok, so, let me just start out with this: i don't have a professional diagnosis (as of yet).

however, i have had multiple people agree that i have it including my therapist and mother.

i'm going to include a passage about why i'm confused and i'll try to space it if it gets too long (reading huge blocks of text isn't easy)

anyways, from the time i was little, my mom (who was in medical school at the time and worked at a hospital later), suspected that i had autism. i mean, i showed a lot of symptoms and traits of it, so it didn't just come from nowhere. she didn't want to get a professional diagnosis for me though (i think she felt confident enough that i had it to not pursue one; she did the same thing with my brother's add/adhd). she enrolled me in physical therapy for toe walking and motor skills, occupational therapy, and small groups to help me socialize

she didn't tell me until a short bit ago, though. i was always really confused why everyone always commented on me being "weird" or "quirky" or "different" and the like. around 2012, after someone told me that they "thought i was autistic" so i looked it up, and everything fit me and explained so much! i began to compile info on it and build a file.

this year (within the past month actually), i went to my therapist and asked her if it was a possibility. she told me she had definitely considered it before but we ran out of time and couldn't discuss it further. the next appointment i brought my folder in and gave it to her and after reading through it she told me she would discuss it with my mom.

she did, and the outcome was that they both agreed i have it, but they didn't think that me getting a professional diagnosis would be necessary, but that i pursue one in the future if i needed it.

so, would i call myself self-diagnosed, professionally-diagnosed, or is there some grey-area in between that i would fall into?

Why do they not feel that a professional diagnosis would benefit you now?

I do not know the answer to your question. I was "diagnosed" by a psychiatrist in 2011 and everyone has taken me for autistic since then. It is basically agreed that I am autistic. It has been on my medical record for years. But this year it was realised that I do not have an official diagnosis, from an autism specialist. Thus, now I am awaiting an official assessment, by an autism specialist. But it could take up to a year as there is a long waiting list in my country. Thus, in the mean-time, what am I? I do not know or care.

I do not think the difference ultimately signifies, I am sure there are many others in the grey-area between self-diagnosed and professionally diagnosed.

i don't know, my therapist just told me neither of them see the point if they already know...

i guess i'll just stick with autistic and if someone asks i'll tell them??

That sounds like a good solution. To be honest, it rarely arises that someone asks who diagnosed you, etc. You self-identify as autistic and that is the main thing.

ok, thank you for your help!

no matter who you speak to, it's self finished until you get a professional diagnosis

I'm in the same boat. I was told a professional diagnosis wouldn't benefit me, so there's no point despite the fact that it's very likely to be the case and treatment seems to be effective so far.

The label doesn't really matter if you don't need government benefits and treatment seems to be helping. Although, some of us don't like the ambiguity

Depends on who you are interacting with. I describe situations like yours as "unofficially diagnosed". If you want benefits or accommodations for ASD you can not get them without a diagnostic report. You do not need a paper if you are just for telling people you know. The next question is how knowledgeable is your therapist about how Autism Spectrum presents in people of your age and gender?. Mom's opinion is irrelevant.