Adult looking to get diagnosis

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Hey, I was a bit hesitant to post and ask this question, considering I did kind of self diagnose... Kind of? My mom has thought I had it since I was very young due to much of my behavior, but I have always done great in school, so we didn't think there was any reason to get a proper diagnosis. Now I am thinking I need to proceed with a diagnosis. My stress levels have been mounting tremendously lately; I have been in college for about 2 years now, going on my third year. My child support is going to run out next year when I turn 21, which we use it to pay rent. We also just got our food stamps docked by about 30%, and we have 200$ a month to work with 4 adults in the house. We are, and have been in poverty. We really need to move, as our house is quite literally falling apart around us.

The idea of college + working at the same time is starting to make my performance in classes drop quite a bit, considering I was doing outstanding as of last term. I've always been really independent, and reluctant to give that up. But I am starting to think I will need a bit more help adjusting into adulthood... I honestly didn't expect to be this stressed out about all this. I need so much time to recuperate even with not taking more than 3 classes per term. The idea of working makes my stomach knot.

Anyway, getting away from my mindless rambles... I would like to know where I could go to get a proper diagnosis, that isn't incredibly pricey. I haven't done any of this before, and have no idea where to even start. My end goal is to be set up with social security. A very close friend who has been diagnosed with autism for a long time has been pestering me to get it over with, and now that I am ready, augh.

Not really sure if this is relevant or if I even need to prove myself, but I did just now go ahead and take the ritvo ASD test. Apologies if this wasn't really necessary, I just don't really know what to expect. I've seen some nasty responses to self-diagnosis, and I have never really been good at sharing interpersonal details.

Since you're in the states, if you have no income you can apply for Medicaid. Mine took about 3 weeks to get approved but I think it does depend on the state you're in.

From there, I would look up a psychiatric center that specializes in diagnosis. This link might help. It does depend on where you live but to my knowledge, most places take Medicaid because it's funded by the federal government and the state.

Also, you should be able to file for your own food stamps. I dunno how much you will get since someone else in your family gets them but you can file along with your Medicaid application. You can also apply for cash assistance for personal items and such. It's all within the same application.

If you can't do any of that, you can always go to a hospital or psychiatric center and check yourself in. They can't refuse service just because you have no income. Only private practices can do that. Many if not all hospitals here have financial assistance programs for hospital bills - in the past, I applied for such a thing and didn't have to pay anything ultimately because I had no income.

Feel free to message me if you need more info.

Also if you'd like, I can keep you updated as to my own situation. I am seeing my psychiatrist today to seek a diagnosis, and I plan on taking my test results from this test with me. My results are 175 of 200. I also don't know what to expect but I figure it might help because I suck at verbal communication with strangers.

Okay, thank you so much! Do you have any clue on how child support works with this? My mother and step-father get all 600$ of it to pay the rent. (I approved of this, of course) -- But I personally see not a dime. I've never been able to figure out how I am supposed to respond to income, if it is just strictly work, or government stuff as well. I also get financial aid for schooling, but most of it goes right into my schooling. In short, I have no "disposable income". I don't even buy my own food. (A tad embarrassing, now that I think about it)

I actually just now finished that very same test, and tabbed back to here to see if I had received an answer! I scored 162. I think if I had taken it a few years earlier, it would have been much higher. But even my mom admitted that telling me about ASD helped IMMENSELY with me figuring out how to control it. I agree, considering my mother used to receive daily calls for in-class disturbances up until HS. Anyway, probably TMI.

Thanks again, I wasn't sure if I would actually get a response TBH.

No problem. It's funny, as I actually came on the forum today to post about seeking a diagnosis.

I don't know how it works with child support. But since it's your money and it's being used to pay the rent, then when they ask about what your rent costs, put $600 and state that it comes from child support.

I'm not sure financial aid for school counts as income if it's only going towards your tuition, books, etc. But they will call for a brief phone interview so you can ask them then, or just call a local office to ask before you fill out the form.

I am also going to take the test that you referenced and see what I come up with. I'm kind of the opposite - I was a quiet, seemingly normal kid but I did have major emotional issues. And my mother doesn't believe I have autism. I'm trying to decide if I even want to tell her if I get a diagnosis. She's very rigid.

Don't be embarrassed. Everyone needs help from someone. People with jobs need those jobs to pay their bills - they can't just will money into existence and spend it. Everything we have, we receive from others. Even when we worked hard for it.

Alright, I kind of figured. I asked a couple other people I know about it and they said about the same. Just depends on how they ask the questions, relatively straight-forward. Can always call. Thank you!

I was really loud, and actually far more outgoing than I am now. Along with weird behavior/habits that my mom couldn't find the answer for until more info came out online on aspies, from there it was pretty straight forward. I got pretty good for awhile, I am way better at not freaking people out on first impressions. Although my social anxiety levels have deteriorated a bit drastically... I can barely leave the house without getting nervous. And require a lot of recup away from people on school weeks. Weekends I am way more sociable.

Yeah, I do know we depend on one-another, still though. It is interesting when compared to other countries, and other periods of time. Independence came to us much more quickly in times of desperation. Hard not to draw comparisons, although basic logic tells me it is normal. Especially with the current state of economics. As things get tough, we are trying to pool money in so the whole family can buy a piece of property for all of us to live on to make things a little better financially. All of us are adults, too. Except for my sister's son. My sisters are both almost a decade older than myself.

I was very quiet, and very smart but not emotionally mature enough to deal with changes and social demands. But as I got older, I was more outgoing. I've recently introverted further though, and my social anxiety is worse.

I learned very early on how to imitate others to appear normal but I didn't know I was doing it until a couple of years ago. It's been stressful for me though, so my behavior is leaning more towards neurodiversity everyday and less towards neurotypicality.

No I understand about comparison. I was telling my mum yesterday that the quality of public healthcare services is lacking because of greed. My psychiatrist is in his office one day a week (he's older, like in his 70s or 80s) and is the only doctor there so appointment schedules are crazy and you're only seen 4 times a year max, if that. But if all doctors made the same amount like in some other countries, there would be more people willing to work in offices like this one. I don't understand the concept of money and I never have. And healthcare should be free anyway. Taxes are high enough.

And yes, my family is in a similar situation. We are trying to move about a 12 hour drive away by this time next year. I live with my parents and two older siblings.

Btw, my overall test score was 205 for the Ritvo test. I am way above the averages I guess. As I see all my symptoms every day, it really makes me wonder how no one noticed sooner. I hid some of them but a lot of them I couldn't.

As an update, my psychiatrist today told me to check with my insurance to find a psychologist. I figured he would. I will keep you posted about how that goes.