What to expect after being diagnosed with a form of autism

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There are a few things to expect after being diagnosed with Aspergers or autism.

The first is it will be harder to get treatment for anxiety disorders or depression because doctors will think you are only suffering from the some of the symptoms of autism spectrum

The second is if you are still in school staff will treat you differently and might assign an aide to you if you are having a little bit of trouble, this can at times be embarrassing in front of your classmates at times.

The third is doctors and therapists and other such officials will rarely decide you don't have autism or Aspergers if you don't have any symptoms beyond what a normal person will have at times.

I've read some posts on wp about the first point, that therapists attribute all problems to autism, and sometimes the person believes all their problems are due to autism too, instead of anxiety and depression which are treatable.

The second is also true in the idea that school people treat diagnosed students differently, may consider them less capable, and the kid may get stuck with an aide who may be helpful at first for some problems at younger ages, but eventually the kid will grow out of the aide, but the parents will keep insisting for the aide, or the school will, and overall I think an aide could ret*d a kid's development of executive function, emotional regulation, social skills, these things that are important for independence in adulthood. Also, the kid will be singled out as the one who has an aide.

I have read about the third on often, so perhaps it is not even rare that some doctors will disagree with existing autism diagnosis, which is a big problem if the person can only see that doctor for therapy, and the doctor doesn't take autism into account during the therapy.

Autism isn't in the GP/Doctors mandate and many don't understand it themselves, they will refer you to a psychiatrist/consultant, so the third paragraph is very accurate in my experience, though I was diagnosed at a very young age and they are still skeptical, even if it is detailed on a medical certificate. I told them about my depression and anxiety, it does vary from day to day, which is not enough to prescribe medication for it, it needs to be all day every day, a constant burden on your day-to-day life. They say my diagnosis is gone. They have cured my autism. It would seem.

Too soon for me to tell for sure - my diagnosis became formal only a couple of weeks ago. But I am sure that the amount of awareness of autism that a doctor/therapist has, the better the outcome is likely to be. The CBT I've been receiving since diagnosis is a notable improvement, having changed to a counsellor who takes my autistic traits in her stride, and doesn't make the same old assumptions about my thought processes. I also have more a more realistic idea of what therapy might achieve - counselling time is limited, and this helps me to make the best of it.

At the moment, I definitely feel more positive since diagnosis - mind you, up was pretty much the only direction I could go from where I was before. I feel like it puts me in a better position to advocate for myself. It might also make it easier to spot early signs of depression and anxiety before they turn into a crisis - which has been a recurrent problem for me since adolescence. But I do realise how much of this is down to the good fortune of having a very good relationship with my doctor, and services provided free of charge through the NHS (the UK public health service). I also learned a lot more about autism in places like this than I did from the formal assessment - advice from people who have "lived" what they're talking about is essential, with or without a formal diagnosis.

The second point, about school, I would not want to comment on - childhood diagnosis barely existed when I was at school, and I don't want to get into "what if's" about how life might have been had my condition been recognised earlier.

Yes. A friend of mine now attributes everything to my sensitivities, even if it's something that would be crazy-making to a totally NT person also.

It's like that saying "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're NOT out to get you." Sometimes something is objectively true when everyone is trying to say it's just your subjective weirdness. I live on a major roadway and have a lot of traffic noise 24/7 that my windows don't block even when closed; the level of noise is something even NTs remark on and wouldn't want to live with. But a friend who hasn't even visited thinks it's just me hearing the noise as loud because I'm over-sensitive. Er, nope, not in this case.

This is why, if you have any control over who knows your diagnosis, DON'T tell 'em. There are some entities that are going to have to know, but if you have anyone in your life that isn't going to know unless you tell, them, sometimes the best policy is not to volunteer the information. Often times they will just turn it against you one day.

1. This doesn't seem to be true at all. Spend enough time on forums and groups like this and you'll soon realise that a lot of people here are currently or have previously been treated for conditions such as depression and anxiety. If someone has anxiety or depression they have anxiety or depression, it doesn't make a difference if it's a byproduct of ASD, if it's treatable it's treatable.
2. With regards to the school systems I am familiar with, the assignment of an aide is based on need. Those individuals who have learning difficulties/disabilities will often have one assigned to them. The purpose of this is to help the student get the best they can out of an education, sometimes this can make them the subject of ridicule from other less-pleasent students but the role of a schools is to provide its students with an education not to ensure their popularity.
3. Most Doctors aren't too knowledgeable about ASD and that's perfectly understandable as it a highly complicated subject and thus the need for specialists in that area is required. If someone thinks they may have been misdiagnosed, it's a possibility they have, it's also a possibility they haven't. The only way to find out is to be reassessed, a Doctor won't give a diagnosis without a proper investigation and so you shouldn't expect them to drop a diagnosis without equal investigation.

^^
1) Yes, indeed. As part of my evaluation, they were very careful to maintain clarity between the innate autistic characteristics and the traits of mental illness. I have a feeling that this is probably the most valuable information I gained from the evaluation. I wasn't looking for them to tell me where I should point my life next - I wanted cold, hard facts that would help me day-in, day-out.
3) One thing I always make clear with a new doctor, is that if they are uncertain, I am fine with them letting me know that, and I won't hold it against them, just so long as they try their best to help me find someone who might know better.

As far as disclosure goes, I've been pretty cautious in my private life so far - just the people who have seen me at my worst in the past, enough to know that there was something that needed explaining. With the doctors and psychiatrists, I had them mail my evaluation report to each other. When folks are trying to treat something that exists only in your head, your description of it is the only thing they've got to work with - rash maybe, but I don't have an awful lot to lose at this point in my life. Of course, healthcare varies a lot from place to place - my experience of evaluation seems more positive than many I've heard of. Maybe my age has something to do with that too.