At 27, should I get a diagnosis?

Post Reply New Topic

Looking into your local university is a very good idea: I got my diagnosis through my school for about $500, which was approximately a quarter of the price I'd have had to pay if I went to a private doctor. My school also offers services to non-students; perhaps yours does as well.

As for the other problems you mentioned:

Ensuring that you have a relatively set routine for getting things done, and having it written or otherwise visual in an area where you can see it may help. My organisation improved a lot when I started making to-do lists and marking things off as I did them. This also helps with the forgetfulness problem, which I deal with a lot. Write down everything, even the mundane things like "feed the dog" or "unload the dishwasher" and it should help you remember. I have to write "mouse" on a sticky note every week to remind myself to feed my snake; without it, I'd keep forgetting!

For procrastination, you might try a self-rewarding system of sorts; give yourself a set task or time limit in which to complete something, then reward yourself after you do it. It feels a lot better to have earned something rather than just getting it because you can; that sense of reward and accomplishment may help you stick to it, because I know it's very easy to just say, "Forget about it, I'll skip what I need to do and go straight to the rewarding thing!" I still sometimes do that

Anxiety is a little trickier for me to answer, since I'm trying to get help for it myself, but I can tell you that if you have access to it, cognitive behavioural therapy through a clinic is proving very useful for me. Standard breathing and muscle relaxation techniques can also be good at temporarily staving off the anxious feelings.

Keeping track of personal belongings also falls into the organisation category, but instead of writing things down and sticking to a routine, make a habit of putting things away in the exact same place every time. If you make a concerted effort to do this, instead of bending to the temptation to just drop whatever you're not using in the moment wherever you happen to be (also a problem I used to have), you'll find you lose things far less often. I always keep my purse hanging on the railing at the bottom of the stairs right next to the front door, and even when I take it to a different part of the house, I always return it to that spot, despite the extra two or three minutes that takes, because it's too important to risk losing. I even organise my school bag that way: calculator goes in the left hand pocket, stim toys in the right, wallet in the front pocket, notebooks in the main one, etc. It adds a sense of security that I always know where my things are, and I know right away if I've lost them because they're not in the spot they're meant to be in.

Many years ago I started a small business, and the problems you list were BIG problems for me too, when the business took off. I pulled it together with a brief case that had three main sections... today, tomorrow, soon.

I learned to stop procrastinating because I wanted "to keep my agreements." Keeping agreements... ALL agreements, is the key to success.

I meditated and smoked a little pot to keep down my anxiety. I could say my mantra a dozen times, with my eyes closed at a traffic stop, and reach a nice chill.

To combat forgetfulness I kept lists in a little book that I kept in the main pouch of my brief case.

Personal belongings weren't really a problem for me since I don't treasure stuff, but yes my keys and wallet had a special zippered spot in my brief case... and I NEVER misplaced my briefcase.

OP, I did not read through the last two pages but I selected yes, ....... but that is barring these conditions: do you want to know if an "expert" thinks that you have it, is a DX readily available for you and would having an official DX help you in schooling or work? Really, it is up to you, your needs/ desires. I got one at 25, but only because I wanted to make sure that this was really what I had (versus BPD or Bipolar etc). It's an individual choice.
As for your last question: I have serious issues remembering meetings unless I get a daily reminder. I actually have a google calendar set up where I put in all of my appointments and have it set to remind me an hour or a day before. I find that helps.

David, thank you! I would love to check out the tests offered by your university. How can I access them? A simple google search? Thank you again!

The link is below my signature.

It sounds like your life is going fairly well, and you don't have obvious need for diagnosis.
To me, it's a little weird to get autism diagnosis from learning about autism instead of some specific reason for getting assessed for autism, e.g. problems in functioning that would be impossible to deal with or overcome without the accommodations and protections of an official diagnosis.

I know my original entry was long, but I didn't decide that I have this because I learned about it. I had a consultation with a psychologist because I felt even though I was functioning well, I felt that something's were still holding me back and affecting me in a negative way. When the forgetfulness and procrastination flared up it always caused problems in my relationships. And, now matter how hard I would try, I would always forget something important, or let an important due date pass with no action again. I didn't want that anymore, so I went for the consultation.

I always assumed I was an undiagnosed ADHD person. But, the psychologist I saw told me it was more likely I had a social learning disability on the Aspergers spectrum (still not sure about the verbiage of what I just said. That's when I started looking stuff up and placed myself in the category of NVLD since that seemed the most like me. She wants me to take more tests to get a diagnosis and be sure, and I'm trying to decide if it is worth it. Will it really help me with being forgetful and help my relationships?

And, as far as accommodations, I really don't know what would benefit me because I don't know what options there are and if they would help me specifically. Ii may not be affected by this in a way that is affecting me socially, but the things I deal with are real and have been issues for me my entire life. I've always know there was "something" up with me, but I didn't know what that "something" was. Which is why I'm considering a evaluation. Does that make sense?

Thank you! I am planning to take these.

Thanks for your advice and honesty. I felt like the psychologist was judging me when I mentioned smoking and drinking, even though I told her I'd like to find better ways to cope. Legal ways.