Does anyone else place more value on a self diagnosis...

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...than a diagnosis made by a "professional"?

After doing a lot of research on AS, I've come to the conclusion that I probably have it. I am reluctant to get diagnosed by a professional because it's not necessarily something I'm comfortable having on some record for everyone to know about. Also, I don't really believe that in one or two hours a professional would get to know me better than I know myself when it comes to traits associated with AS.

I'm also not too keen on the DSM-IV definition since it seems like it can encompass a relatively wide group of individuals. But it's not like I have a better one, so I guess it will have to do.

It just seems to me that reading about it on your own and thinking about yourself as you read is the most accurate way of knowing if you fit the symptoms or not. Someone who hasn't known you can't possibly know if you have AS better than yourself if you are well educated on AS, can they?


(This is my first post. If I'm doing anything wrong, please tell me. Sorry if this has been asked a lot before, but it's important to me to ask.)

Welcome Hopmagnet!

I'm self-diagnosed and confident in my self-diagnosis. I'm 38 years old and very intelligent and have researched the subject thoroughly and I don't think anyone can tell me anything I haven't found out for myself. I can't get diagnosed in this country (UK) anyway. I have tried, but doctors just don't know about the autistic spectrum here.

Although I got "officially diagnosed" recently, I've come to the concluson that the REAL experts on AS are the ones who have it. We tend to be extremely introspective, logical and research such topics to death. We are also brutally honest with ourselves. While a diagnosis from a professional gives you the benefit of his or her more extensive training and a more objective perspective, I think that a self-diagnosis is just as meaningful if you're completely candid and thorough in your analysis.

Someone mentioned AS to me several years ago, and in turn I mentioned it to my psychiatrist. He blew it off and said I was bipolar. He had known me for about an hour.

I could give you all the many reasons why I (and my family members) know he was wrong, but I don't think I have to. I am confident that I am firmly on the autistic spectrum, whether I want to be or not.

I'm pretty sure I don't want a "professional" diagnosis either. After several disappointing experiences, I have lost much of my faith in "professionals". I can do my own research.

I've never been to a professional doctor, either. But years of being "the odd one", not feeling like others, not connecting with most people, and being told i "walk to the beat of a different drummer" made me wonder what IS different about me, and how so.
Doctors cost alot of money for someone who is uninsured. Also, how would i explain everything from infancy to my present age without taking nearly forever? And if i am able to function in the world ( ie: stay employed, pay my bills) then what would a formal diagnosis do anyway except make it harder to GET insured later on? The reason i came here is because of what an exboyfriend told me he thought after reading something about Asperger's on the internet.

Welcome to WP Hopmagnet
No-one knows you as well as you do. Having done the research, and objectively come to the conclusion, the results speak for themselves. The difference with a 'profesional' DX is that these are often given when the individual has a documented history of dificulties, and the profesional being well informed of the diagnostic criteria; (given that the criteria was not agreed upon until 1994)
I am 37 and only recently found out that I do meet the criteria, after much research and objective appraisal. I have sought to have this clarified by a profesional, and thus far they have agreed with my self diagnosis. This was my decision to do this, but I do not see that it will devalue my initial diagnosis, I am just seeking an profesional opinion.
I don't see that a self diagnosis is in any way inferor to that done by a profesional. As i said, no-one knows you as well as you do, and a profesional opinion is just that, a profesional opinion.

I certainly give self-diagnosis more weight. I was professionally diagnosed, but it was only after I figured out for myself whether that fit that I really believed it. I think at this point I know more about autism than the doctor who diagnosed me.

I am self-diagnosed, but definitely possess some of the traits. I have very strong interests and some considered unusual in type and intensity. I also have a seizure disorder (not full blown epilepsy) that is fully controlled with medication. Also, I have been aware of being different from others all my life.

First Welcome to WrongPlanet.
As for self diagnosis, you find that many of us reached our conclusions about ourselves
after some very long, careful, and intense research and soul-searching. I know I have.
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#617364
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#452181
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#452397
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#452511
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#496788
http://www.wrongplanet.net/modules.php? ... ht=#512898

Last edited by richie on 13 May 2007, 9:52 am, edited 1 time in total.

You could trust a psychiatrist .. but then again ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b30iwhEw9ho

or you could take a look at this, straight from the horse's mouth:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P6_FwpV ... ed&search=

Or, if you choose to think for yourself rather than looking at clips I found online, I guess you could come to the conclusion that we are all different and the diagnosis is all in our heads (no pun intended)

Last edited by costre on 13 May 2007, 9:46 am, edited 1 time in total.

You have to be careful wishful-thinking and over-subjectivity don't interfere with a self diagnosis.

I dunno. People don't seem to have much respect for psychologists or psychiatrists on this board, and maybe they've had experiences that justify that, but don't forget that a psychologist has had four years of college majoring in psychology, plus five years of intensive graduate study of psychology culminating in an enormous research paper. Can they make mistakes? Sure, because often the lines are blurry between different conditions, or people may have difficulty reporting their feelings and symptoms accurately. Are there bad psychologists out there? Of course, just as in any profession. And just like someone with cancer who sees an oncologist, it is better to see someone who has a specialty in whatever's you've got, Asperger's or anything else.

I do think people here tend to forget that when you denigrate psychologists as a whole, you're claiming that you know more than someone who has had nine years of schooling on that topic. Do you know more about Asperger's than a given psychologist does? Quite possibly, as they may not have had much experience with it. Or at least you know about your personal experience with the condition. But people seem to paint with a broad brush here, and not trust psychologists in general, which I don't think is fair. My parents are both psychologists, they are both very familiar with Asperger's, and I'm sure if any of the people on here who don't trust psychologists would visit my parents, they would be very impressed.

Agreed. Has anyone here ever heard of "Med Students' Disease?" It's when students are brand new to medical school and while reading about all these different diseases, some of which have some symptoms which are rather common, they become convinced that they suffer from one or more of these diseases. I think it's easy for someone who is shy, introverted or whatever, to seek refuge in a self-diagnosis of Asperger's, because I think a lot of people will meet some of the diagnostic criteria, especially if they have some degree of social anxiety. Not to mention that once you've got your mind set on a particular diagnosis, it's easy to notice other things about yourself that fit the diagnosis- like sensory problems you never knew you had. It's just too easy to pathologize perfectly normal sensations and feelings once you've gotten yourself into the mindset of a particular disorder.