Got referral for assessment but still unsure (much shorter)

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Simon01
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17 Feb 2017, 3:56 pm

I have a referral from my primary doctor to a local psychiatrist for assessment for Asperger's as well as updated testing for ADHD, depression, and bipolar disorder. Took a while, and I'm glad to be finally on track with it.

I'm a bit unsure though- I relate to a lot of Asperger traits, but not to the extremes that I see described. I function well most of the time, but I do have enough problems that fall in line with having Asperger's. The thing is, I sometimes see attempts to connect intellectual disabilities to Asperger's, and I have a long memory of people trying to classify me as mentally challenged because I was assessed as gifted (seriously, being called low functioning and even the "R" word for being a nerd reading above grade level), and later trying to connect mental disability with my purely physical disability- basically seeing a wheelchair user and insisting that there must be an intellectual impairment as well, to the point of acting suprised that I'm actually relatively independent and not immersed in "being" disabled.


So I'm concerned that I'm risking being assessed only to be diagnosed as having a more severe problem than I think I have. Not denial, I just have a long memory of trying to get help only to end up being seen as less capable than I really am. Nor do I want to be seen as someone just trying to find a medical excuse for behavior problems.



ASPartOfMe
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17 Feb 2017, 9:02 pm

You always have a right to get a second opinion.


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Noca
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17 Feb 2017, 9:14 pm

You can be gifted and at the same time have intectual disabilities. They are not mutually exclusive from one another.



Simon01
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18 Feb 2017, 12:33 am

ASPartOfMe wrote:
You always have a right to get a second opinion.


True. Plus testing did years ago didn't show anything except bipolar disorder and ADHD (not looking for Asperger's at the time), so I'm assuming nothing has changed.



Simon01
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18 Feb 2017, 12:42 am

Noca wrote:
You can be gifted and at the same time have intectual disabilities. They are not mutually exclusive from one another.


I understand that. It's not that I was shown to have intellectual disabilities and have tried to hide it over the years, but rather *not* being mentally challenged but having to deal with people from time to time trying to find some disorder or impairment to negate being gifted or to negate my ability to be independent by trying to connect mental disability to physical disability. I know that one can have Asperger's, function well, but still have limitations, but I want to be sure that any real limitations I'm shown to have aren't focused on disproportionately in relation to everything else. At the same time, of course I hope I'm able to be proactive in addressing the things I know I need help with.