Psychiatrist agrees I have AS - diagnosis or not?

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So, today I and my mother had a meeting with a psychiatrist who specializes in Asperger's. He thought that I have a mild form of Asperger's, just as I had expected. Concerning my AS, he confirmed what I already knew.

So, now I have:

He is ready to write a formal diagnosis for me, if I choose so. The disagreement is about whether I should get a formal diagnosis or not.

Mum is outraged that he will sign a diagonsis for me without any further investigation. She fears that the dx will have horrific effects. She claims that not telling insurance about this formal diagnosis is a crime, and that they will give me lower, or none, compensation if I get into an accident.

EDIT: Clarification: She says that they would reduce compensation if i get into an accident and insurance knows about my diagnosis.

(I find that argument pretty weak; she should not expect the worst. She is talking like she expects me to ever need thousands of euro from insurance. ) She says that I wont be able to hide my diagnosis for my future employer. I argue that should be no problem, since I'm most likely going to seek a job in the IT business, where a lot of aspies are employed already.

Myself, I think I should get the diagnosis paper, since the college I'm joining next semester already have said that if I need special help, they will try to help me, IF I have a formal dx. As of today, I don't even know what kind of help I should be looking for, if any, at college.

A possibility to use a computer to take notes during tentamens, instead of writing by hand, would be of great help, since I write really slow by hand. Right now in high school, I waste a lot of time concentrating on writing.

Should I get a formal diagnosis or not? What do you think? Argue for or against a formal diagnosis, please. EDIT: PLEASE reply to this and tell me what you think!

No poll, because logical arguments are of more importance than a vote, a vote that could be uneducated.

Last edited by olle on 09 May 2008, 2:08 pm, edited 4 times in total.

That is why you have an insurance, for that unfortunate moment that you do need thousands of euro's.

As for euro's, assuming you're in Europe it seems unlikely that they wouldn't pay for medical care, even if it's autism related. But you might want to consult some professional about it.

Yes, of course. I still think it's not any strong reason to not get diagnosed. It assumes the worst.

I am in Sweden. I speak the euro currency for convenience

Just because the worst scenario is of lower probability doesn't mean arguing with it in mind is weak. Statistics don't matter to the individual - accidents do happen.

However, I'm going to need some clarification before I give an opinion. If you withhold your diagnosis from your insurance company or future employer, is there any way they could find out? Why would the insurance company give you a lower or 0 compensation? Would it be because you didn't tell them of your diagnosis and they found out somehow, or simply because you have a diagnosis of AS?

I would get it-it can help in the future

From an Insurance perspective (I work in Insurance, specifically Accident and Health for Corporate Inpatriates and Expatriates), you won't be declined cover solely based on your lack of disclosure. Though it is largely dependant on the cause of any potential claim.

For example, if you suffer an accident due to Autism/AS and it is discovered you were formally diagnosed and did not advise your insurer then they may decline the claim or limit it depending on how much the diagnosis increased the risk, void your insurance policy or ammend it for the next renewal with an adjusted premium or excess to accomodate the increased risk.

However, if you have any routine medical expenses, or an accident that does not involve Autism/AS or any psychologically related risk, then they will not examine that aspect of your history and it will not be found out. Even for large losses they won't.

If you fall over and break your ankle and go to hospital, they're not going to look up your mental history and decline the claim based on the duty of disclosure. If they do, you can go to any independant body, or the ombudsman and have your case looked at there, and if your mental history had no impact on your claim then there is no way the Insurer can decline the claim.

It's all based on risk in insurance. Does having Asperger Syndrome increase your insurable risk? Maybe if you have severe motor clumsiness and violently stim, however otherwise you should be fine.

I'm not sure in america, but in Australia here we have insurance brokers. Companies that find a policy that suites your needs. Find an Insurance Broker and tell them about your AS and ask them to find you a policy, they should be able to find you something, it might come at a slightly increased premium, however atleast you know you are fully covered, which is what Insurance is all about right? That "comfort" you get from knowing that if anything happens you will be ok?

Though, as I said, my Insurance perspective comes from Australia so things may be different in regards to other countries (though I do manage insurance for people who live in America and England, etc etc, however the policy is still managed here in Australia.

Well, here's my take on it. More historical than logical. I'm retired, and I went through life without a formal Dx. There was no such diagnosis until 1994, and I only got diagnosed recently.

Trying to be "normal" darn near killed me. It got me flunked. It got me fired over and over again. It got me a family that believes I'm a quitter, a faithless weakling. It got me self-esteem in the sub-basement. It got me high blood pressure, body odour, perpetual sweating, ruined clothes, embarrassment. I don't think that AS got me shunned, but I do think all these other things did. So it got me isolated, too, which I really don't recommend.

Your mother is upset. Mine would never have allowed a Dx during her lifetime, we're perfectly healthy and that's that.

There are no guarantees. That's the bottom line. Take your best shot at a good life. No matter what you do, there will be ups and downs.

Here's a quote from Mark Twain: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Thanks for replying. I want yet more replies; reply! reply!

To clarify: I do not know if there is any way for insurance companies or employers to find out about my AS.

What I meant was that it seems to be mandatory to tell insurance companies, and that they would reduce compensation, or even take legal actions if they found out about me hiding facts. So that's not an option, and that wasn't what I meant to do in the first post.

I wonder if an insurance company could lower my compensation if I get into an accident and they know about my AS, or increase the price for us aspies.

Nearly 24 hours and no new reply. Is it really such a difficult question to answer? Come on, tell me if you think I should get a formal diagnosis or not, please!

olle, I have a formal diagnosis in that it came from a Psychiatrist. But it is not on any paper outside of her office. Only she and I know, and that is how I intend to keep it. I can't tell you what to do but I see no upside to making the DX public. Do you see any advantage? If not then why bother?

Only you can really know. How do you plan to use your DX? What do YOU think you will get out of it? What are the potential drawbacks? No one can answer these questions but you, especially considering you are likely the only person posting in the thread from Sweden, and things such as benefits, disclosure, etc. differ from country to country.

Whether or not the psychiatrist gives you something saying you have AS seems inconsequential. I don't know what you could use it for. If you ever need any accommodations for school or work, they will need your psychiatrist to send them a letter directly. They are not allowed to take proof of a DX submitted by you because someone could hypothetically fake it or alter it. I think this is true in most countries these days.

I am still hesitating to go to a psych because I'm also afraid that a formal written dx might have some disadvantages for me, especially when it comes to applying for insurances.

I'm not sure if I really have AS, but if so, it would be a rather slight case, except for the social stuff

How severe is your AS? You wrote that you are seeking employment in IT, which might lead to getting a well-paid job. Trust me, I'm speaking from my own experience

Having a well-paid job means (at least in Germany, where I live) that you also need some insurances and private retirement plans to cover your higher standards of life in the case something happens to you. Unfortuneately, these ask you for health related stuff when you apply. And by your application, you also release all your doctors of their professional discretion against the insurance company. That means that you should be honest in the application, otherwise they might find out about it and then refuse any coverage. But then again, if you're still studying, you probably would not (or even cannot) apply for these insurances.

For me that means that I'll do a thorough check of my insurances before I go to the psych. Those insurances cover the status that you have when applying, so anything that is dxed after the insurance application will be covered. Well, at least it should be. Never underestimate the insurance companies' lawyers.

Are there any Aspie forums in Sweden where you can ask if anyone has had problems with insurances? You'd probably have a better chance to get information about the situation in your country if you ask there.


Difficult question .. I'm still searching for the ultimate reason to seek or not to seek a formal dx.

Thanks for your input. I try to read through all your ideas and think about them...

Yes, I agree I should ask for advice in my own country. I will probably send an email to the Autism Society in Sweden ( http://www.autism.se/site.aspx?id=572 ). They should know more about the insurance matters. I'm sure they could give me some advice.

But that doesn't make your thoughts less important.