Disadvantages of diagnosis?

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Finally taken the plunge and looking at how to get a diagnosis. Went to see an educational psychologist, at the end of the discussion she said I might not have autism but it is possible I have a developmental disorder related to autism. She said that generally the diagnosis is advantageous and as I might have a disorder related to autism I could use the agency prospects to help me gain employment. I have told my parents and my mother has agreed to come up and speak to the person administering the test so that they can gain a developmental history. Although my mother has agreed to come up she is not sure that the test is a good idea she thought that it would be 'labelling' and that it might affect my career chances. However I have problems in interviews and am about to be withdrawn from my current course because I have communication difficulties.

So I suppose my question would be considering I need to be looking for work will the diagnosis get me the help that I need to find a job?
My mum will be talking to the lady administering the tests to determine if there are more advantages than disadvantages to diagnosis. What do people recommend I say to persuade my mum that diagnosis is a good idea?

I think the kind of assistance you can get may depend on where you live. I have found no resources and that was the whole reason I initially went for an assessment...problems with stress and jobs . I was in my 40's before I began to question why someone who had a college degree, was hard working and relatively intelligent was working with 20 year olds for very little money . The person who Dxed me offered no resources and gave me no ideas of where I could go to find any . It sounds like the people who are Dxing you Do know of resources and can give you recommendations . I know you can also get some accomodations for school and jobs are "supposed to" not discriminate and offer accomodations in some circumstances. Proving they are discriminating and actually getting accomodations are not so easy .


I think the good thing about a DX is that knowing why you are having difficulties may help you figure out ways of coping with them. You can't fix a problem unless you know what is causing it and if it is not AS...what is it ? There maybe other ways of coping . Even if you have a DX, you do not have to disclose that information at job interviews and they are not likely to know...I have gotten two jobs since my DX and they did not know until I brought it up . If they had known, they might not have hired me but since I am doing work that I need little if any accomodations, my DX is irrelevant .

I wish you luck, what ever you decide. I will say that some people have said it is much more expensive to get medical insurance for yourself with an AS DX but I don't know if that is true...it certainly doesn't matter if you get it through a job but most of them have a "no autism related treatment clause" anyway, so it become a pretty mute point .

It certainly will effect your career choices, if you decide to go around disclosing it to every job you apply for. If you decide to go through this agency, then every "employer" you have will be aware of it. I would tread carefully, though. My aspie ex-boyfriend went through one of those programs, and every single job he got was only for one month and unpaid. He also said that his "employers" treated him badly, until they realized that he wasn't mentally ret*d. If you try and use those jobs on a resume, then employers will know that there's something "wrong" with you and may turn you down. So, you have to really examine the effectiveness of these disability work programs.

If by chance, this is a paid work program, they usually reserve the office jobs for people with physical disabilities while giving the menial jobs to the mentally disabled. Try and get something as high-paying as possible, because sometimes your wages might not be as high as people doing the same work due to the fact that the company is doing you a "favour" by hiring you in the first place.

Essentially, only do it if you're desperate.

Never tell anyone if your career you have AS; it's a suicidal move that will hurt your finances. Asperger's should only be disclosed if it's the only way to get yourself out of hot water.

That's stupid. And discrimination to boot. You can sue for that.

I only know advantages of a diagnosis.. like a guaranteed interview for jobs as it's a disability, DLA (Disability Living Allowance) which I got refused before the diagnosis, even though I copied and pasted my issues from the previous claim form and stuck an AS diagnosis on there.

I am still as yet waiting for some sort of actual HELP after nearly a year, but I'm patient, even though I need it most right now.

I have an official diagnosis or classic autism (dx code 299.00), and I have found it impossible to get any kind of health insurance as an individual. I also have yet to get any kind of government or charitable aid. If you only want the diagnosis for your personal insight, then it would be best to make sure that the diagnosis is off the record so to speak. If you are getting the diagnosis for accommodations and access to government or charitable resources, then I would suggest that you check out thoroughly what is involved in accessing these resources as well as the chances of actually getting the aid. Unfortunately any kind of condition that makes a person to be mentally atypical is heavily frowned upon by potential employers. In most cases, the employer will label you as "ret*d" or "crazy" in his or her mind. The only type of employment where it is helpful to be labeled as "disabled" is with government agencies, and that is if the particular agency is trying to fill a hiring quota. Being labeled with any kind of autism will very likely disqualify an individual for military service as well.

In reply to LadyMacbeth, I agree that it is stupid and discrimination to boot. Yes, people can sue for discrimination, but unless there is a smoking gun so to speak, the chances of winning such a lawsuit is almost nil. Since I am labeled as autistic, I am unable to get private insurance, and my family makes too much for me to get government insurance. Since I have been gainfully employed for most of my life, I am ineligible for any kind of government disability. With the exception of being able to publicly speak about an autistic person's perspective of the world, I have no advantage for having this label.

I wish to get a diagnosis as I have had trouble finding work full time work (my difficulties with social interaction mean that I keep on failing the interviews). Since leaving university I have only had temporary jobs. I am looking to get into research and a diagnosis may help me find work/help my employers to understand me.