Testing for Adult Aspergers

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I had 2 one-hour sessions, written tests that I took home and did in my own time, another one-hour session to adminster the Social Faux Pas Recognition Test and Mind In The Eyes, and a three-hour session for the WAIS-IV, all with a clinical psychologist, who then took a couple of weeks to write a diagnostic report.

20 minutes is nowhere near enough for a diagnosis and would barely be enough for a well-educated guess if you were obviously AS or obviously not, ie: so obvious you'd scarcely need to ask.

I would say get your money back and see a real professional. I agree with the others, 20 minutes is not enough. I filled out about 80 pages of questions, had a 2 hour interview, WAIS IV, and WMS IV.

One psychiatrist always thought I had Asperger's, he just failed to mention it until a year later when I brought it up. His observations, obviously.

At an ASD clinic, I just said I had it; they seemed to agree. They talked to my mother too.

That sounds like an efficient way to go about the appointment. Also, what difference will be observed after the change in criteria? Will the new criteria preclude adults being diagnosed?

No way is 20 minutes a full diagnostic. Mine took 3 - 4 hours total, not counting several tests the Dr. sent me home with, to fill out and bring back to him at the next session.

I had an interview that too about 20 minutes as well. But it also included questionnaires, as well as a list of answers about my childhood from my parents, and a second opinion from a psychologist I used to go to.

But maybe that's why my assessment is supposedly "mild".

Anyways, my hunch is that it has something to do with traits appearing differently in women, and perhaps the psychologist who diagnosed you was used to dealing with the more obvious traits in men.

My assessment took approximately 3 hours and included the AQ, WAIS-III, and an interview.

I was lucky I did get my money back from the first self-claimed "AS expert" psychiatrist. He had seen me for about half an hour and determined I don't have AS but was unfortunately born with a "sh***y" personality (HIS words). After I recovered from the shock, the humiliation and the fear of trying again, I went to the one AS specialist that had no openings for 2 months because there was such a long line waiting to see her (I had gone to the other guy because he could receive me the same day), and got a serious diagnosis (2 sessions, tests, writing, questions, etc.).

Even so, even experts don't know what they're doing yet, and they have to rely on us Aspies a lot, so at this stage in time it's better to self-diagnose than to trust a professional.

Example of how they need to rely on us more than on themselves: the face-recognition test they gave me to do at home, she said I had performed almost like an NT. I have severe prosopagnosia, though. I told her to dump that test, as when you have to recognize the face of your boss among a lot of new faces in the office on your 3rd day of work, you're not given it as a task to take home, all your co-worker's faces lined up squarely in front of you, black on white, evenly-lit in 2 dimensions on a computer screen, for you to take a couple hours to decipher who is who, without any outside disturbances or the faces moving or talking at all. This test is ridiculous, and she ended up seeing the point indeed. By the way, I hope they soon get rid of this laughable way of testing for autistic prosopagnosia.

That's not too bad, I waited nearly 5 months for mine and I doubt that's the longest wait anyone has had. And that was to see a different psychologist to the one I requested, as he had no openings whatsoever!

Fior had 3 hours worth of very intense testing. I had a hard time finding someone who diagnoses ASD, on adults with actual testing. Granted, 10 minutes with Fior, you could probably guess he was an Aspie, but I didn't want a soft diagnosis. For one, if Shrinky Dink did no testing, Fior (who is very data driven), would say that it was an opinion and not valid. I was going to have one shot at the diagnosis rodeo with Fior, and I had to make it my best shot. (Fior believed there was nothing wrong "except a little depression")

So any shrink that stated he/she didn't need testing for a first diagnosis got the boot off my list.

Two, we wanted to know where the real problems were. With testing, it was found that his executive function skills are dog cr*p, enough so that he boarders on ADHD. So are his "reading body language" skills. He does not read between the lines at all. Horrible with transitions and multitasking.

Maybe the above gained knowledge means little to Fior, it was a HUGE weight off of my shoulders. It meant I wasn't losing my mind. It meant it wasn't so much me being sh!tty at communicating, but Fior not able to process it like anyone else.

It meant it the problem was an actual developmental disability, not a mental illness, and his company couldn't toss him to the curb with nothing. His original diagnosis was Major Depression, severe OCD (this was BS, I know folks with OCD, they are nothing like Fior), and Social Anxiety Disorder. The depression was valid. The other two is because the inpatient psych shrink was a mentally lazy tool who drugged up people and kicked them out as fast as he could.

It was the best 2K we ever spent, in terms of peace of mind, and holding the company's feet to the fire. When you get a report from a well know expert in their field, it is really hard to legally screw you over. They couldn't just file the report under, "oh that's interesting"-insert eye roll here.

If you need the diagnosis for anything legal, I'd get a second opinion.

*deleted double post* stupid mobile phone. Tawaki

I find this thread very interesting. Many of the points brought up, especially those by ekm79 and mmonroe who were diagnosed with social phobia instead of AS after a less than complete evaluation, are among the main reasons I have resisted any form of official evaluation. In my opinion, if you are able to thoroughly investigate aspergers (and the other possibilities that need to be eliminated) on your own, most people could do just as well with a self-diagnosis. I know that wouldn't work for everyone of course and some want their strong suspicions validated but self-evaluation seems to be more accurate in many cases to me.

I have some questions based on the responses so far:

redrobin62 mentioned some extra visual tests for light sensitivity and restless leg. Can anyone elaborate on what this entails? What about auditory tests? "touch" tests?

Can someone elaborate more on the common differences between female and male aspies? I've read some, especially as it relates to emotions and empathy, but I still have a lot to learn in this area.

What about experiences where different therapists disagree? It seems to me there is so much variation in the test performed and in the interpretation of these test it could go either way in a number of cases.

Just to add some weight to this, it was also suggested to me that I have social phobia when "assessed" by a psychiatrist who did not specialise in AS. He didn't do any tests, just asked me a bunch of leading questions which allowed him to conclude that I had social phobia, and avoided asking questions that wouldn't give him the answers he wanted. It was very disappointing and frustrating.

In contrast, I was extremely happy with my proper assessment. I had basically self-diagnosed prior to going, but there was still a niggling doubt. My session really cleared it up and I'm glad I did it.


There's a thread about this that you might like to have a read through: list of females AS traits

hi ekm79 - I read your post with real sadness. Obviously I don't know you and have no idea whether you have Asperger's or not, but wow that is not on, what you were subjected to.
My diagnosis follows many of the posts here - a whole bundle of tests to be done at home, followed by a lengthy face to face with a pyschiatrist.
The thing with me, and many of you I bet, is that by the time I got diagnoses (late 20s) I was an utter expert at blending in, mimicking body language, etc. I mean, come on, many Aspies with a decent IQ are going to observe, mimic, replicate what they see 'normal' people doing. So, when you go in for that assessment, and the 'professional' is only observing your superficial behaviour, what are they really basing their judgement on?
For me, I had to go into that appointment 'naked' - by which I mean I didn't bring any act witrh me. I could have sat there and eyeballed the doctor, or looked nervous, or flirty, or interested, or angry, or whatever other act I can pull out when the time demands. But as you all know 'acting' takes so much out of you, it's no way to live, and it wasn't what I wanted the doctor to see. So I went in 'naked'.
So, my advice is, don't give up and do nothing, or else this will shape you. Get hold of someone far better qualified, and when you go and see them, be yourself. Don't act. If you're an adult whose lived with Asperger's all your life, I suspect my advice is easier said than done, but there you have it.

I really do wish you, and the others who have posted similar stories, the best of luck. It's the worst thing, being told you're faking, or exaggerating, or that you're on the same playing field as everyone else so suck it up. I'm sure sometimes that's true, but for most on this site it probably isn't. Good luck

Reading these posts have really helped me. I am seeking a therapist for an "official" diagnosis now, so now I know what to look for. BTW, there two reasons why I am looking to get diagnosed. First in case I need assistance in the future for any unforeseen reason. Second is to help my niece. My sister has been trying for three years to get her into a specialist, I didn't find this out until I mentioned that I thought I might have AS. Her response to me? "I wouldn't be surprised if you did. It would explain a lot."

Also there is mention of interviews with family members who knew you as kid like siblings or parents. What if none are available? Will this affect a diagnosis? I am pretty certain (99% positive) that I have AS or HFA based on my memories which go back to when I was two. Hopefully I don't have to wait too long.