ASD diagnosis in Denmark - why do they avoid diagnosis?

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Hi there,

I've been in the mental health system as a patient for a bit over 1.5 years in DK. For more than half a year now, I've been discussing with my psychologist the possibility of ASD being at the root of my anxiety and depressive symptoms, and she has mostly agreed that it sounds very plausible. Yet, despite me asking for it several times, nor she or the psychiatrist have ever done any structured screening or used any standardised tests with me, and every time I mention diagnosis they shrug it off. My general practitioner has even suggested not having a diagnosis may be best because it won't impact my life insurance, or my chances when looking for a job if I need to.

I have asked my GP if there is any other route I could follow to go through a proper diagnostic process, even if it's something I'd have to pay for. He doesn't know of any official, public or private, system where I could get screened. Only recently my psychologist has pointed me to the autisme forening, in case they could be of help. I've contacted them but still haven't heard back.

I'm really at a loss, and have no idea what to do. For one, I'm trying to be the most stubborn mo-fo I can be and I'm being persistent when voicing my needs, but for another, I just feel about giving up. If there are any others in here with similar experiences, and particularly in Denmark, I'd highly appreciate your input.

I am not from Denmark but one option if they agree is getting an "unofficial diagnosis". What that means is you are assessed and they give you their professional opinion but no diagnostic report is written. With nothing on the record, you can not be discriminated against specifically because you are autistic. This gets you the certainty to go forward knowing who you are. You will not get any benefits or supports if you so need, and you can be still screened out because of your autistic traits with no legal recourse.

It has been the case that autism has been missed in female patients and all the attention placed on conditions which can actually be the consequences of Autism in its various presentations.

Not all professionals may expect to find it in adults if not already diagnosed in childhood.

Still more may only know of the presentations described by Kanner, presentations which are possible to spot in early childhood but in fact only one part of our spectrum.

There are people out there who will assess privately. Some specialise in women. Some can work by serviced such as Skype as well as face to face. Some concentrate on identifying any cognitive profile which is autistic, then assess whether it has created sufficient difficulty to qualify for the "Disability" part of clinical diagnosis procedures.

Many diagnoses started with the patient's own suspicions which they followed up by research, which has sometimes helped the person doing the assessment to make the judgement calls.

The self knowledge from an assesebt can be very useful.

Another way to convince your clinicians to pursue a diagnostic assessment is to show them a recognized screening test score. One such screening test is the University of Cambridge Autism Research Centre's Autism Spectrum Quotien (AQ) test. Here is an auto-scoring version of the test republished verbatim by Wired magazine: ( https://www.wired.com/2001/12/aqtest/ ). The only change with the test is that the stated threshold score of 32 has been updated over the years since its original publication from 32 to 28, then 35 or 36.

So, you might convince your clinicians to pursure an assessment if your AQ score is over 32.

Good luck with whatever choice you make.

Doctors often have a bias against what they cannot cure or for which there are no resources available for help.
Adult ASD typically falls in this category.

You see this with MS vs ALS. There are treatment options for MS. Nobody likes to give an ALS diagnosis.

I chose a psychologist with expertise in ASD and he tested me thoroughly. When my psychiatrist didn´t believe me, the psychologist wrote the psychiatrist, who called back to hear more.
That´s when he accepted and freed me of old, wrong labels.
I´ll send you a PB.

Yes. At least LaBianca has a good reputation. Kollerup I found to be a bit on the arrogant side and rigid about results in AQ an EQ test. Actually I think, that women on the spectrum is kind of a new area to him.
I know someone, who "has" LaBianca. She is seing her, but therapy is with LaBiancas nurse.

LaBianca has loooong waiting lists. I think somebody did some "footwork" for my friend who is her patient now. I´ll look into it and see, if I can find othersolutions. Otherwise, you could do as I did. I shall give you the names of the psychologist. I started with a referral because of depression - and I was depressed - but I also chose that particular clinical psychologist to find out, if I indeed am an aspie.

I must say: Congrats .
Neither I understand why it is so difficult in Denmark.
Money?