Help!! Trying to get a professional diagnosis.

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Hi friends! I discovered Aspergers a few months ago and the more I learned the more my whole life made sense! I finally found some clarity and was able to make sense of all the things I do, the choices I've made, and why others treat me the way they do. I was like a huge weight has been lifted and all I want to do is learn more about the condition and how it relates to myself so I can start focusing on how to finally become a more productive person. I have zero support system and the only family I have rolls their eyes at the mention of autism. I don't have aspergers, I'm just lazy, I just don't listen, that's an easy cop out they'd say. I feel so strongly that I need a formal diagnosis if only for my own peace of mind that I sought out a private psychologist who specializes in autism spectrum disorders and I am paying a lot of money out of pocket for an evaluation. I asked all the right questions I think. I made sure he had experience evaluating adults on the spectrum, and specifically adult females. I know there are challenges in diagnosing aspergers in an adult who has been practicing hiding their symptoms for 30+ years. This psychologist acknowledged that he was aware and experienced in diagnosing adults and the differences found in women on the spectrum so I decided to move forward with the evaluation.

Now I'm freaking out that I've made a mistake and I've wasted my money. I spoke briefly with the Doctor for less that 20 minutes in regards to a few symptoms I thought may be related to aspergers, then he walked me over to the receptionist and scheduled me for a 3 hour appointment for a short cognitive test and the MMPI-2 test. This is a self-administered personality test with 561 true/false questions, many of which don't apply to me or are ambiguous. Halfway through the test I got very frustrated and stopped. I asked the receptionist if there would be anything else involved in the evaluation because I didn't feel like this test was going to give an an accurate picture of who I really am or the things I'm dealing with/have dealt with my whole life. I asked if the doctor was going to meet with me again to talk with me more specifically about my issues and my history dating back to childhood. They told me that's what we were supposed to have talked about during our brief initial consultation. I told them I had not had the chance to bring up more than a few things and I just want to be sure he has a clear picture of all the connections I'm seeing. They said there was one more test they were going to administer and they could book me for 30 more minutes with the psychologist to go over the other things I wanted to talk about. This doesn't seem right no me, or am I over thinking it? I wonder if this is standard procedure in evaluating autism. I don't need the diagnosis for anything but piece of mind but I'm worried I've wasted my money on a doctor who isn't taking me seriously. Does anyone have suggestions for how to approach my 30 min appointment with him to make sure I get across all the things I want him to know? In my own research I've compiled more than 10 pages of symptoms with examples and it's overwhelming just to look at. I brought it to my first consultation but he wasn't interested in it. How do I seperate out what is most important for him to know? Has anyone else gone through this before?

I hope he takes into account that you are getting flustered and not communicating well since ASD involves not communicating well. The important thing might be that you did write a detailed report and your reaction to him not reading it.

Whatever the result ask him why and report it back to us.

The psychologist who diagnosed me went through a bunch of personality tests toward the end of our sessions too, basically to rule out various personality disorders. So maybe that's standard procedure?

Hang in there - it seems like he's taking an impartial, scientific approach to your testing, but that's his job, and maybe it's just his style to be aloof and distant. He follows a rigid diagnostic procedure, and bases his judgment on standardized tests, and doesn't allow any extraneous information (such as your notes) to influence his decision.

I agree those personality tests are ambiguous. I was glad that my psychologist asked me the questions in person, because then she could see my reaction, when I wasn't sure what a question meant. (Especially questions asking "what would you do" in various situations - am I supposed to say what I would want to do, according to my true nature, or what I actually would do, because I've learned it's the socially acceptable thing to do?!)

I have no advice about what to say to him in your next session, because I'm terrible at that sort of thing myself. I guess my own instinct would be to trust that he knows what he's doing, and let him come to his decision in his own way. It seems to me that if you consistently score 'Aspie' on various online tests, then you probably will on his tests too?

I hope you get your answer soon... Let us know how it goes!

There are threads on this from recent weeks in the General Forum which may interest you. Many women have encountered diagnostic issues, and it is good to know that your experience is not isolated. Also maybe have a look at the AWN website (Autistic Women's Network) as they have addressed this there amongst other information. And you will find various topics on WP which may resonate with your current situation, such as the way that women on the spectrum can present very differently from men on the spectrum. Have a look around, your experience is very familiar here..

I think this kind of problem with tests is very common in people with ASDs and may be common in other types of neurodivergence as well.

Until I discussed it here, I thought that was more or less my personal issue, but a lot of people have it.

When you are asked to choose between three or four answers to a question and none of them is accurate, typical people just pick the one that is the closest to the real answer. Some of us find this almost impossible because to pick any answer from the choices would be a lie.

I might include a note explaining why the question could not be answered as written.

This concern for accuracy is typical of a large subgroup on the spectrum and I think a competent diagnostician would know this. Some might see it as an extension of the problem of focusing on the detail and missing the "bigger picture," though I dislike this oversimplification because of it's intrinsic inaccuracies.

Thank you everyone. I feel a little better about it today. I've put together a short but concise list of my most prominent symptoms in the order of what is affecting me most in my current life. I have scored high on the online tests. 148/200 on the Aspie Quiz and 38/50 on the AQ test. What worries me most is that the psychologist I'm seeing hasn't done anything that seems to be related specifically to Aspergers. I'd feel better if there were rating questions like on a scale of 1-5, but true/false are very difficult for me. I got so frustrated I had spent 3 hours and only finished half the test, I had to stop 4-5 times and once ending up in complete tears over it. Just watching me would have given them insight into my struggles but I was alone in a closed room with the door shut. I left an emotional wreck and cried the whole way home. I'm just frustrated with the whole process.

One suggestion that I have seen, that might be relevant for your second visit, is to make a concise list of specific impairments or difficulties caused by the traits you think might be signs of autism. Don't specify that you think they are autistic traits, because some doctors reject any effort at self-diagnosis, but give the doctor a list of functional problems.

e.g.,

I have trouble answering the phone and making calls because I don't know what to say to people.

I have not been promoted at work because of some kind of office politics that I don't understand.

I have a very constrained social life because it's so difficult to make friends or sustain friendships.

People misunderstand me and attribute intentions to me that I don't have.

I find the behavior of others erratic and mystifying.

I can't work in the office when they change the lights because of the quality of the new lighting system.


Let the doctor have some actual issues from your life like this, and then draw conclusions from them.

Yeah, I was wondering if maybe that was part of the test... Ask someone with attention & focus problems, who is confused by social rules, to spend 3 hours on a personality test, and see if they self-destruct? In which case, you passed!

Hang in there the tests are long but everything you've done is literally being watched. How you respond and how you ask questions is being judged. Finish the test and keep going everything you're doing is helping them determine your situation. Even you running off lol

It is interesting what Adamantium says about the multiple choice questions. I had to complete the Ritvo Adult Autism Diagnostic Scale as part of my assessment and the majority of the questions I was compelled to write notes in the margin explaining how I had interpreted or tweaked their original statements in order to come up with an answer. Luckily I have very small handwriting!

There was one point in mine where the psychiatrist (I was diagnosed by a psychiatrist and psychologist, both specialists) suddenly leant forward in his chair towards me and stared into my eyes. It really freaked me out. I wonder now if that was some sort of test to see how I'd react?