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Autism evaluation

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Brainiac42
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13 Aug 2022, 7:18 pm

I had my autism evaluation, and I will get the results back August 31st. He had me answer a lot of questions, and do multiple tests. One of the tests was a digit span test to test my working memory, I did poorly. Another was giving him my own definition of a list of words. I was unsure what the one was for. Another was the reading the mind in the eyes test. I got 26/36, but it took me awhile to answer them and used deductive reasoning. I will report back with the results either way.



Brainiac42
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13 Aug 2022, 8:21 pm

What I find a tad concerning if they didn’t ask me anything about my childhood except for school.



DanielW
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13 Aug 2022, 8:32 pm

They didn't ask me a lot about my early childhood, but I had a lot of that type of information in my school and medical records. My testing took a few days, how long did your testing session(s) last?



Brainiac42
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13 Aug 2022, 8:50 pm

DanielW wrote:
They didn't ask me a lot about my early childhood, but I had a lot of that type of information in my school and medical records. My testing took a few days, how long did your testing session(s) last?


It took 2 hours, but he also got my chart from my therapist who I’d been talking to for around 4 months, and my fiancé who I’ve lived with for 6 years filled out a form.



kraftiekortie
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14 Aug 2022, 7:53 am

Good luck.

I hope you get your wish.



Double Retired
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14 Aug 2022, 11:28 am

I hope you get a diagnosis that pleases you.

My diagnosis was Autism Spectrum Disorder, Level 1 (Mild) with an additional comment that I also met the criteria formerly associated with Asperger's Syndrome. That evaluation did make me happy—it explained so much.

I was able to provide information about my very early childhood for the evaluation. I think that was what allowed the Asperger's Syndrome observation which, I think, requires that early language development was not delayed. I'm not an expert but I believe the DSM-5 criteria for ASD do not include anything about early language development.

I found the evaluation process to be kind of fun. But I try not to get too specific about it here because I would not want to affect how someone else acts if they later get an evaluation.


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Brainiac42
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14 Aug 2022, 2:56 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:
Good luck.

I hope you get your wish.


I’m not sure what I wish. I guess if I don’t get diagnosed with Autism I will wonder why I am the way I am still.



Brainiac42
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14 Aug 2022, 2:58 pm

Double Retired wrote:
I hope you get a diagnosis that pleases you.

My diagnosis was Autism Spectrum Disorder, Level 1 (Mild) with an additional comment that I also met the criteria formerly associated with Asperger's Syndrome. That evaluation did make me happy—it explained so much.

I was able to provide information about my very early childhood for the evaluation. I think that was what allowed the Asperger's Syndrome observation which, I think, requires that early language development was not delayed. I'm not an expert but I believe the DSM-5 criteria for ASD do not include anything about early language development.

I found the evaluation process to be kind of fun. But I try not to get too specific about it here because I would not want to affect how someone else acts if they later get an evaluation.


Thank you. My development was normal says my mom, and I believe that. I did have issues with school, with things like tying shoes and buttoning things, I was behind other students, and had meltdowns where I threw things and had to take deep breaths. I also had very particular interests. I forgot to mention any of this to the evaluator. I just told them I struggled in school. We will see.



r00tb33r
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14 Aug 2022, 3:01 pm

Brainiac42 wrote:
if I don’t get diagnosed with Autism I will wonder why I am the way I am still.

Yeah, that's the concern to me too.



DanielW
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14 Aug 2022, 3:21 pm

Brainiac42 wrote:
kraftiekortie wrote:
Good luck.

I hope you get your wish.


I’m not sure what I wish. I guess if I don’t get diagnosed with Autism I will wonder why I am the way I am still.


Being officially diagnosed has its positives and negatives. However it turns out, you're just "you" regardless of the label. Being "you" is OK :-)



kraftiekortie
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14 Aug 2022, 3:23 pm

I didn’t mean to sound dismissive in any way.

I was sensing that you wanted an autism diagnosis to provide yourself with clarity.

I’m sort of glad I had a clear diagnosis from a very young age.



Brainiac42
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14 Aug 2022, 4:15 pm

kraftiekortie wrote:
I didn’t mean to sound dismissive in any way.

I was sensing that you wanted an autism diagnosis to provide yourself with clarity.

I’m sort of glad I had a clear diagnosis from a very young age.


Oh no I didn’t find you dismissive at all. I’m just not sure. I think a diagnosis will make me feel less like a failed NT and explain some things, so I think I’m hoping for that.



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15 Aug 2022, 8:15 pm

I hope that you get the answers you're looking for.


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autisticelders
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16 Aug 2022, 2:21 pm

the waiting before the test and again after the test were the hardest parts for me. actual test results and reports were very helpful for self understanding and understanding a lot of the "whys" of the past. I got diagnosis at age 68


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ASPartOfMe
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17 Aug 2022, 9:40 am

The eventual results may not be you are autistic or we don’t know. It could be another condition which would also provide clarity.

Poor working memory is a feature of executive dysfunctioning common on the spectrum.


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Brainiac42
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19 Aug 2022, 11:04 am

ASPartOfMe wrote:
The eventual results may not be you are autistic or we don’t know. It could be another condition which would also provide clarity.

Poor working memory is a feature of executive dysfunctioning common on the spectrum.


That’s very true, thank you for that. I have a weird feeling they are going to diagnose me with ADD/ADHD possibly in addition to, or maybe even by itself. I’m trying not to have any expectations and answered everything with no ideas in my head of autism, just as myself.