Hey! I'm new here, and I have questions.

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^ absolutely right Fnord , it's been corrected

Freewheeling Franklin bought four french ferrets from his friend Francois from Florida.  Frank's four friendly ferrets famously had fifty fine ferretlets.  Fat Freddy finally made his famous fish fillet.  Francois finally flipped fantastically and his fancy family finished the fabulous fillet ferociously.  Phineas found funny furry ferrets frisk near the fryer frying french fries from his fast-food facility.

^ I need new teeth

Patchy.Inc -There are several things that seem appropriate.

There is a common saying that "If you met one Aspie (or High Functioning Autistic), then you have met one Aspie". We come in many different flavors.

Getting diagnosed with autism at the age of two is very, very early. So there is a good chance that your diagnosis at that young age may be wrong. Since you have taken several Aspie tests and the results were negative, there is a fair chance that you are not an Aspie.

I was in the Air National Guards. I had no problem performing my duties and enjoyed it. But several members on this site have indicated that the military has changed and having Autism may disqualify you.

Army applicants with autism spectrum disorders in the U.S. are automatically disqualified, per Defense Department accession policy, though sometimes medical enlistment waivers are granted after a visit to a DoD behavioral health consultant. “All waivers are considered on a case-by-case basis, but generally speaking, autism isn’t something normally waived if the diagnosis was appropriately given.” That is a pretty broad brush. Another article goes into a significantly more detail. Can You Serve in the U.S. Military With Mental Illness?

So I probably will not recommend that you pursue a diagnosis. What you don't know, you don't know. If you are under a psychologist treatment or prescription drugs for mental illness, this may prevent you from pursuing a career as a Combat Medic.

I saw a great movie about a young man who wanted to pursue a career as a combat medic. The name of the movie was called "The 15:17 to Paris". To me the individual in the movie Spencer Stone appeared to have Aspie traits. The movie was based on real life. Some Aspie traits are desirable.

Hello Patchy.Inc, it does sound as if you are doing a great job in school and socially. Congratulations on your hard work!
Have you lived in the same area and gone to school with the same people all your life thus far? This is important information as a dramatic change like losing all the friends you grew up with or enduring significant changes in your environment at some point would reveal some traits that would not have otherwise shown themselves.
You mention having an IEP; if you think of your history in school, why was this reinstated each year if you didn’t need it? I wouldn’t think it would just be based on a one time diagnosis but rather an ongoing need.
Is your desire to be rid of your diagnosis based solely on being admitted to the military? Do you think school life would have been as achievable as it has been without the specialized help?
You should definitely get rid of an inaccurate diagnosis but do it for that reason and not because your dreams are colliding with facts. Good luck!

I guess I would do a couple of things. Get a second opinion on your ASD diagnosis. That is the simplest way.

Contact the Army and talk with someone about medical waivers if you cannot change your diagnosis. The conversation will never hurt if your diagnosis cannot be changed.

Why a combat medic? Is there other career choices that can give you a similar outcome. Are there civilian agencies that might give a rewarding career. FEMA, NOAA Corps, or ASPR might need medics. FEMA and ASPR are obviously disaster relief agencies. NOAA Corp are the fifth uniformed branch of government, but not a military branch, but a scientific one.

There are also non-profit and non-governmental agencies that do relief work. I am not sure how medics work in those sort of organizations, but it might be something worth exploring.

Hi!
I too, fit the description that you gave yourself. In fact, many times I find myself questioning my diagnosis because of who I am outside of it and the way I've adapted to it.
I am nineteen. I work full time as a bartender/barista. I'm constantly gaging people's needs and interacting with customers for hours at a time. I am financially independent, I'm currently transitioning into a managerial role and my passion in life is to pursue leadership positions. I do not disclose my diagnosis until people know me because of the stigma I can receive and the negative effect this can have on achieving my goals but in the world outside of education no one ever has to know unless you want them to, and telling people and showing them what having this diagnosis really means is also important.
An important distinction I've had to make is the fact that Aspergers isn't the same as Autism. I personally do not believe HFA or Aspergers are the same either, I've found that many of the struggles that seem like a give for people with HFA simply aren't the case for people with Aspergers and that there are struggles that Aspies have that aren't shared but are less known of because of how the diagnosis' was lumped together. While in the original diagnostic criteria the only difference between them was whether or not a child had any speech delay, you would have received and autism diagnosis, however, that is BS and is no indication of where you may fall between the two. I say this because certainly, you must have some challenges if you have an IEP and though they may not reflect ASD or what is common for those with it, you did describe something very common for an Aspie. (I also score NT on all Autism diagnostic tools)
However, I don't know your experience so maybe you don't have HFA or Aspergers but I know that legally it shouldn't keep you from doing anything. I also know that no one is going to look for it either. Unless you are specifically looking for some kind of accommodation out of the norm then there is absolutely no need to ever acknowledge it exists.

That's a top-hat question. I can't answer that. However, I can say, I'm getting off accommodations this year.
I had no choice a couple years ago, as... Parents. But now, I do.

To what I've been told, I plan on getting a second opinion soon.