In pursuit of diagnoses

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Well I never got a real chance to discuss anything with my psychiatrist the other day. He talked at me and I looked at his zen garden. Someone suggested that I go to a neurologist but I do not know what to say to begin with! And the only two places that I can currently afford to go are the healthcare for the homeless center and a local university hospital. (I live in Richmond Virginia by the way if anyone has had any luck here.) I am estranged from my family so having their help is out. I have no friends. I honestly do not know where to go or how to go about bringing up the subject.

Wow, that is a tough decision to make, to get a diagnosis. It will be just as tough to follow through on. But good luck. My recommendation would be to go to the local uni hospital and see if they have anyone there who is studying and/or researching on/about autism and/or AS. I don't really know though - the thing is that (iirc) usually the costs are not covered by insurance plans. So it is doubtful that your coverage (medicaid, i'm assuming?) would pay for it. Especially if they had no one and had to refer you to elsewhere.

I guess if you go to a research facility thats doign studies on people with HFA and/or AS and manage to find someone who is looking for volunteers, that could be a vrey easy way to get a free diagnosis. Transporation could prove to be very expensive though - also not sure how you'd find one of these places/studies to begin with.

In terms of diagnoses, I say, "Gotta catch 'em all!" You should seriously asking your psychiatrist to consider other diagnoses in addition to Asperger's syndrome like an anxiety disorder, a mood disorder, schizophrenia, a few personality disorders, and so forth. The more, the merrier.

Very amusing Neant but I was being serious. And I already have been diagnosed with a mood disorder, bipolar II.

I suggest you get the person who works with you to consult with someone who works with autistic people. Here is a link to a list of clinicians:

http://www.aspergers.com/asplist.htm

There are 3 in VA. It may be that some resources in neighboring states would apply since a consultation could take place via phone. The national institutes of mental health has an ongoing autism research project and if you go to their site you may find some other resources.

Good luck

Based on our experiences with our AS daughter, I agree with Neuroman. (I also have AS, self-dx.) People (including psychologists and psychiatrists) tend to see the world through their own filters, and if they don't have experience with ASD diagnoses, they will probably fit you into some other box they *are* familiar with.

When Ghosthunter first went to Vocational Rehab, the social worker asked why he was there. He said he could get jobs but never keep them and he thought it was because he was HFA. One of the first things they did was pay for a evaluation. They had a list of people who they had worked with before and would send him to one but GH had someone in mind (who he met at a Asperger's support group) so the state contacted her and set up the appt. GH had no insurance at the time.

I know you were thinking about Vo-Rehab, twitch. Did'nt that work out for you?

BeeBee

for me, my offical diagnoses cost me $800. I was able to afford it because I was able to use money left over from my student loans to pay for it. Finding somekind of public assistance would be the best thing for you in seeking a DX since private services are expen$$$ive.

If you go to a neurologist you should still make sure they work with autistic people, because I had to go to a neurologist once (before I was "officially" diagnosed, in the midst of diagnosis, and I did not mention it to him because I felt uncomfortable self-diagnosing). I doubt he knew the first thing about autism; he just tested me for signs of a brain tumor and/or stroke. He also suggested I might look into electroshock therapy again based on my reactions/behavior in his office (I had been recommended electroshock at one point).

I was diagnosed by a psychologist who was familiar with it, and she has even said in my reports that I probably don't need therapy or medication, because history has proven (for me) they tend to create more problems than they solve. I think it would depend far more on the experience and generally outlook of the clinician way more than their official title (neurologist, neuropsychologist, psychologist, psychiatrist, etc.)

Thats why I wanted to find someone who specifically knew about AS.