Correlation between visibility and getting a diagnosis

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no, no, and no... but as far as facial expressions... I have a VERY expressive face a lot of the time, but my expressions just don't match what I'm thinking or how I'm feeling. My children laugh at me because when I'm angry and yelling at them, I have a huge smile on my face still. It's hard to get them to take me seriously because of it. As far as tone, I don't have monotone, but my pitch and all of that also doesn't match what I'm saying. I can tell someone I'm not happy with them, but sound thrilled when I say it, so it gives very mixed signals.

I have never been "denied" a diagnosis by people who really don't matter, lol. My psychologist said it was a definite thing, but couldn't do a diagnosis that would be accepted. She could only help by writing a letter stating that by her observations I very likely have it. Other than that, I have not been able to afford a diagnosis of any real importance as I'm not working and my medicaid won't cover me seeing an actual neurologist.

Greentea, your anecdote about the ex is one of those stories if you wrote it down, people would say you were making it up. But it's not "ridiculous" - that is a horrible word. You deserve a huge great big hug, not ridicule.

Anyway I do think it is potentially damaging to go through counselling for a problem that is due to Aspergers. How come you are seeing the counsellor? Why not just say bye-bye to her? (It is a woman, isn't it - WP is very slow so I don't want to try and reload the page to check.) Are you paying the bills? And it is your time too. You could do something fun with the time and the money instead of chewing over the past.

I mentioned those tests because they are so far as I can tell the standard tests, (I think the ones you took are the Autism Quotient Test and the Mind in the Eyes test). They were what convinced me. I'm the opposite to you: I did think all my problems were due to a childhood trauma. I visited a counsellor because I wanted someone to tell me what is wrong with my body language. She said "you seem like you may have Aspergers", and I said "no, no, it's some kind of post-traumatic thing". She handed me a couple of books about Aspergers and the tests with the scoring system, and when I did the tests and saw the scores I was convinced. Still can't find anyone who will tell me what's wrong with my body language other than "it's kind of awkward" (well I feel awkward, so at least that's coming across accurately.) So I said bye bye to the counsellor and registered for WP instead.



The test are all at www.autismresearchcentre.com

I found it really useful to do the friendship, empathy and systemising tests as well as mind in the eyes and autistic quotient. What I liked about it was finding out that I really do have fewer friends than most people so I know I'm not imagining it. I also found out that I am good at reading faces (which I thought I was) and that I am very unusually systematic. That was news to me and it was useful for me to know, now I understand why most people find all my routines and procedures extreme. So I think other people might find taking these tests useful too, (even if you can't get a formal diagnosis.)

I am not sure whether my voice is monotone or not..it is high---I have unusual inflections...lately I can't stop talking like my Puppet--friend....Puppetrina I do what I can to snap out of it though.

I had an AS specialist tell me she thought I was an aspie and a regular psychologist who admitted he did not know much about AS say that the assessment seemed accurate...He wrote PDD-NOS on my chart.

I don't make eye contact and when talking to a shrink I tend to squnch up in a ball and fidget with stuff..I am also physically incapable of NOT crying when I talk to them.

The shrink did focus extensively on my traumatic childhood...and I really wish he hadn't

Yep, they all seem to have a bad habit about doing that, I think it's an obsession they have.

Greentea, I thought you were getting a second opinion soon. I wish I could help, perhaps you need to save up and get a diagnosis overseas? I know of a lady you could see in Ireland, I hear she costs 300 euros, she has a doctorate in psychology. I know that is probably incredibly unhelpful because of the distance and cost though.

Not sure/no

Not sure becasue I don't know how I look/sound to other people because I've never asked them.

No because I wasn't denied a diagnosis, although one doctor/psychologist whatever it was wanted alot of enecdotes just to be 100% sure because I'm mild. I found some of these "anecdotes" that my mum had written, and I was really annoyed and embarassed by them because it was detailed accounts of my tantrums and social faux pas, I actually ripped one into shreds because it was so embarassing, stupid me forgot that my mum probably saved it on the computer.
Also to be honest I didn't even know I was being diagnosed, I just remember being taking to this place where someone was asking questions, I didn't know what it was about until my mum told me weeks later. I was 11 at the time btw.

Yes (except for the fact that my facial expressions don't lack emotion)
No

I have hundreds of very telling anecdotes, but I doubt the shrink will want to hear them.

Zen, she left on vacation in the middle of the diagnosis. That's another pain that had to be added to the whole torture. Everything has to go the hardest way for me. Who knows when she'll call me again to arrange the 2nd session.

I don't think an overseas dx would be valid for local social benefits. I'd probably need to get a 2nd dx here anyway.

Aunty, if I told that anecdote of the ex to anyone, they'd probably think I'm crazy. Re; therapist, I stopped therapy several years ago. I'm going to check those tests now. Thanks for sharing with us! It's indeed amazing how your case was exactly the opposite of mine.

DadiBugs and Jenny, thank you very much for your supportive words. I think if one more specialist/therapist tells me all I have is a nasty character, I'll spit in their face just to prove them right. You know, camels here are like horses in other countries. They can cross the desert by storing water in their hunches, so it's more practical.

I see... well it was a longshot but I thought I would put it out there.

Anyway the therapist will be back from vacation mid august, I think you mentioned? Thats not too far away now... I will also be having my intial screening assessment around that time. So you will have some company, there might even be other people on the board who will be going through the process in mid-august.

What dx are u seeking? I see you say you have "öther autistic spectrum disorder"...?

She'll be back this month, yes, but there's no knowing when she'll call. She'll probably have an even longer line than usual due to her having been away.

Well, then, provide them--and show they are not simply doctors who define AS as always including "no or limited facial expressions, a monotonous voice, and a lack of appropriate eye contact". We know people have different opinions about AS, and some doctors have had downright odd ideas--like your having to be male, or having to be good at math, or having to be fascinated with train schedules, or having to be incapable of understanding figures of speech...

What if your voice, instead of being monotonous, were sing-song or simply had different inflections? What if instead of lacking eye contact, you ended up staring too much? What if your facial expressions were unusual instead of absent? I'd still call that AS, if the rest of the usual list were there too. It's really not that simple.

That's all in what I said.

Anyway, here's a source from a neurologist (it's a very long, but very informative speech, and it includes far more than how AS manifests in appearance):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qgw8rYNTGno[/youtube]

Yes I selected that because none of the options in the list really said what I wanted which is more like "Think I have mild AS but dont know where the line is drawn".

I am seeking an AS diagnosis but might well end up with PDD-NOS and if I dont get at least that I will be very PISSED-OFF to tell the truth. I would like at least some acknowledgement that I am on the spectrum, even if it is not the full AS diagnosis.

I am well aware though that my traits might be a bit watered down to gain a diagnosis. I have looked at the DSM and I match much of that, but I had difficulty matching myself to the Gilberg Criteria which had more emphasis on "rote and repetition" I stopped with all the rote stuff years ago.



I am sure she will be back in time, and refreshed. Im sorry you had to wait so long... thats pretty hard on a person.

I've not yet gone for an official DX, but my 2 cents is that you must find a specialist who is well-versed in AS and willing to DX a patient as AS because anyone else will either not know how to property identify AS or will be prejudiced against giving that DX.

I know it's pretty much "stacking the deck" but do you want to go to a general practitioner for a DX on pancreatic cancer or a cancer specialist with lots of experience with pancreatic cancer?

I wish mental health workers used the same classification as medical doctors use. Most all of them are no more than GPs, and very few can call themselves "specialists" in specific psychological/neurological matters.

Ditto to every word!

Greentea, let's just rewrite your anecdote about your ex. Say that instead of mere face-blindness you had a dx of legally blind, able to see only blurry shapes. Same situation, you are out somewhere and "see" someone who you feel you ought to know - maybe it's a work do and you thought you knew who all was in the room. So you greet him warmly and he replies and then you recognise his voice. Now, no-one would think you were crazy, they'd totally understand how ghastly that could be.

I actually have imagined that scenario. One time I was working behind a bar and I thought an ex-boyfriend of mine came into the pub and walked up to the bar. I dropped a whole pint of beer that was in my hand. That's when the man spoke and I realised it was not my ex-boyfriend.

I hate the whole dx thing and the way unqualified people try to dx people or undx them. I spoke to a woman the other day who runs a parent support group. I said I thought I had Aspergers. She said "you know it's not just poor social skills, don't you? What else makes you think you are autistic?" I actually started trying to explain before I thought the best answer to that is "that is a a very personal question, don't you think?"

I am having weird flashbacks to a consultation I had with a neurologist who was trying to work out what was wrong with my balance. He asked me if I was autistic. I looked at him to see if he was serious. Many kind sweet people have asked me if I was autistic after seeing me get "stuck" in a computer for 8 hours or more, or seeing me paralysed in social settings time after time. This man had just heard me speak about my balance for ten minutes, and I speak very fluently. I said that I wasn't autistic, so far as I knew, and let the uncertainty show. He explained seriously to me that many autistic people had balance problems like mine. He clearly didn't have any prejudices about voice and body language.