I wont be able to get a diagnosis because...

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There is nobody to refer me to.
I check on the national autist society, and there is nobody in my part of london who can diagnose an adult.

I cannot afford to go private.
I went to see my Gp, and she told me she had somebody in the same case as mine, who wanted to get a diagnosis and, it is impossible with the NHS...


What should I do?
How much does it cost privately?

Dunno.
But I'm not sure there are any kind of accommodations available over here, like there are in the US.
That said, I'm talking from a position of total ignorance on this.

I guess you need to weigh up the pro's and con's - because I'm pretty sure there are some appreciable con's ... and the balance may not be something you'd WANT to actually pay for.

This may sound like a kind of round about way of doing it .. but do you think you have depression ? Ask for a referral to a psychiatrist, mention to the psychiatrist that you feel you may have aspergers, as far as I am aware they are also able to give an official diagnosis as well as a psychologist. I assume you can see a psychiatrist via the NHS ?

I did ask for a psychiatrist, the answer was... no.

I even ask to see a doctor about my allergies , i want to do some test, and the other was "we cannot do that"
AAAAH!!
Only under 18, can have any referal they want

That's really wierd. Must be someone who can do that.

I guess the next question is , why is it important to you to have a diagnosis, will it change anything ? will it give you access to services that you currently do not have ? Or do you just need to * know * for yourself.

For myself, I worry insurance companies will cause issues with a diagnosis..I know in my heart I have many aspegrer traits, the more testing I take online, the higher the scores..for me,a self-diagnosis is sufficient in explaing who I am , what I'm made of. I felt so freeing in finally knowing this...

I now understand who i am, but it is to explain to people why i am behaving the way i am.
When i explain i am self diagnosed, people think i am making it up...

I know that with my husband he just needed to *know* and I think have acknowledgement that it was just not in his head. He got two opinions and was satisfied at that point. What it changed for him I think, was that he had a greater level of acceptance of himself and better understanding of why he is the way he is.

I think NEEDING an official dx should be made a diagnostic symptom.

Yes that public acknowledgement can be important I think ..

I am not sure what the cost would be in the UK, but I know here in NZ to get a private diagnosis it is around $1500 for the assessment and report.

what does that mean?

Which people ?
You think things'll improve because you can waive a certificate in their faces saying 'Officially Aspergic' ?

It'll alienate a lot of potential friends - and make enemies feel they were justified in thinking of you the way they do.

You certainly won't be treated as normal, due to widespread ignorance of ASD's - which'll mean a lot of people just won't bother with you ... and that includes potential employers, friends, admirers, lovers, acquaintances and plain old taxi-drivers (no offence to taxi-drivers).

If you really want to see how it impacts on your life, why not make a sign saying 'I suffer from an Autistic Spectrum disorder' that you can wear round your neck or stick to your shirt ?

It'll amount to just about the same thing.

I could be wrong, but I don't think you'll find it greatly improving anything.

Of course, you can always reverse things when you get fed up with it, by saying that you did it as part of an ongoing social study on the effects of ASD's on the individual.

Last edited by MemberSix on 24 Sep 2008, 6:17 am, edited 1 time in total.

A diagnostic symptom is one that psychiatrists use to make an assessment or diagnosis of a patient - like for instance, stimming.

Don't worry, you are not alone. Don't buy the impossible on the NHS line. There will be loads of Psychs who you could be referred to, however it is your GP that will make that call. Keep in mind the fact A GP is not qualified to make any sort of AS diagnosis OR EVEN REFER YOU TO AN AS SPECIALIST! You might have to flat out DEMAND a psychologist (not a psychiatrist). The psych will be able to asses you and if they can't make a dx or you want a second opinion you can request to be refered to an ASD specialist, even if they are outside your area. Only a psych can refer you to someone who specialises in diagnosing ASDs. You are well within your rights to have this through the NHS.

The GP will probably not want to pass you over for a diagnosis, I have experienced resistance from GPs myself, keep in mind it is not their place to diagnose an ASD, all they can give is an opinion, you are entitled to see a psych in pursuit of a diagnosis.

The GPs I seen were determined put me on meds for depression. I told them on 3 seperate occassions NO, if this is depression then it means I have had it all my life. Not possible! I had to really dig my heels in and make multiple visits to even get refered to a pyschiatrist.

I had spoken to NAS about my symptoms and they have said it sounds like I have many of the traits of AS. They told me the route to go for a diagnosis. I followed it, I even wrote down my symptoms for the doc so I would not freeze when she asked me questions but apparently it would seem that because I'm not some sort of slavering ret*d the GPs are convinced I can't have it, I must have depression and must take meds that will probably drive me to suicide (is that the plan?).

I thought they had given in when they passed me to a psych, but when I got there it was for CBT - for DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, the psych had no idea I was going about AS. Luckily she was very understanding when she discovered there had been crossed wires, she even admitted she was not qualified to make a dx but agreed to refer me to a specialist - I'm now waiting for an appointment. How long has all this taken? 10 months, just to get an admission that they are not qualified to diagnose me.

IMO you have to be persistent. If I had just took their initial opinion I would have just given up and gone on meds.

They are clamping down on welfare claims here in the UK and are in no mood for negotiating. A possible reason you are finding yourself in a dead end might be that they are afraid you will get a diagnosis and might want to claim disability or assistance so if they make it as frustrating as they can you might just give up trying. People who have a genuine illness or disability are being brushed off, or put on meds so they won't end up putting in a claim now. Across the whole system they are tightening belts - but they can't remove your rights as a British citizen. YET.

Wow. All of this makes me realise how lucky I am. I went to my GP who didn't seem convinced but agreed to refer me on to the mental health team. I saw a psychiatric nurse who then referred me on to a psychologist who was qualified to diagnose ASDs in adults, and he diagnosed me. All of this took a couple of months. I'm also in London. Which bit of London are you in?