Should I Seek Diagnosis?

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RAD?

What is RAD?

it is kinda like PTSD except specifically related to early childhood. usually cause of neglect, bad parenting. alot of adopted kids have it. kids/adults with RAD are a lot like people as autism. i might get ripped a new one for saying this, but RAD can almost be like environmental autism, imho.

http://helpguide.org/mental/parenting_b ... sorder.htm

Oh, well I wasnt abused until I was 8 and 10 years old.
I was having issues long before that, as well as obsessions with things.
It would be nice if it were the answer as it is more dealable with. I sure do have some issues that I am sure come from the abuse I suffered, but my social issues go back to early childhood. And again, it wouldn't explain the obsessive interests, collecting etc, the inability to interract socially. It would cause perhaps a withdrawal from others, this RAD, I am assuming, but I just barged in on groups and interrupted and such things when a child at school. And even now, I get into problems sometimes for interrupting when I shouldn't I had seen someone who talked to me a lot in the local store, and he was in conversation with a man and i wasnt sure whether to just ignore him or say something, so i went up, stood there and said hello, and well, his reaction was not very positive and I wondered what on earth I had done wrong until he told me you should wait for people to finish talking before doing that.

if you have been abused, i would definitely consider a diagnosis alternate to AS. and you should 100% seek a diagnosis, you may have some sort of co morbidity.

RAD, can develop as early on as the crib. parents that allow their children to cry and do not pick them up can develop severe RAD. children in orphanages die of RAD, an emotional disorder, it is intense. not really more dealable than an ASD really, i don't want to sound negative...but just in case you do get that as DX, you shouldn't think you've gotten the easy way out, kinda the opposite.

sometimes i think self-diagnosed people may actually be abuse survivors and the AS diagnosis is more desirable because it doesn't involve dealing with the reality of the abuse. there's nothing wrong with that, it is a coping strategy, and when someone has never been taught proper coping strategies or self-soothing, it can be almost life saving for some, where as facing the abuse history would literally break them (could even up suiciding).

I am curious as to why you would push for my considering a diagnosis alternate to AS?
I dont think AS is preferable, I saw many many therapists for what was, essentially minor sexual abuse at the two ages mentioned.
I was not neglected as a child.
A lot of what I listed are, from my reading, AS traits.
In fact, once I started wondering, I read about AS in depth, and even got an interest in classic autism, not because I thought I had classic autism, but because it became an interest.

What about my post, makes you believe I might have RAD or PTSD rather than AS?
Is it just the fact I was abused?
I am curious. I have held back on a post like this for sometime as I see so many 'could I have AS' posts.
I do not consider myself self diagnosed, rather undiagnosed at present, as I am not saying I do definitely have AS, but rather I am fairly sure I am on the spectrum and would like to get to the truth of the matter, given everything I read of, barring the odd thing, is relevant to me.

Self diagnosis can be dangerous, and at best, foolish. It would be best to get a diagnosis from a qualified individual ASAP, IMO.

i'm not pushing for a different diagnosis. i just thought i'd give another option. i read your first post, and i saw you had a post count close to 9000....i kinda figured you would have considered AS heavily by now, just thought i'd throw an option out there you might not have considerd, but that could also be likely.

a couple of things you listed in your first post as well kinda made me think it's a possibility (not crying when you fell over, lack of reaction to pain is a HUGE tell for RAD kids, as is approaching strangers [especially adults] to talk to and dissociated emotions [being able to feel for people your read about or see on tv, but not those you know]), and a few more...these aren't at all overly common to AS, though i am sure there are many aspies that might have had these issues too, but they are not characteristics of an ASD but they are of RAD.

but, honestly, i was just putting it out there, not to try and hurt, just to consider.

It is okay, I am not hurt.
I just like to know where people are coming from. Admittedly, yes, I have been here a fair time, albeit on and off and even have met up with some from here and was fine. It was actually an ex mentioning he had AS that got me reading up on it to begin with to learn more about him, only to find more and more fit me as I was reading. People obsessions in particular stands out as an early thing I could identify with that AS people get. I have had people obsessions since I was very young on top of regular obsessions.

Obviously when I find a suitable professional, I will bring up the RAD thing to ask if it could all be that, but I would assume they would do all the relevant tests for ASDs anyway. Thanks for the information on it.

Actually sensory disruption is common in Autism including Asperger Syndrome and is widely accepted as a trait of Autism. Response to pain entirely relies on sensory processing.

Approaching strangers in an overly friendly manner is in fact common in Asperger Syndrome, and is part of what is referred to as an “active but odd” style of social engagement.

yes i know. and like stated "i am sure there are many aspies that might have had these issues too" and i also said in a post before that that i thought RAD was like 'environmental autism', implying i think both disorder have very similar characteristics. i didn't say 'sensory disruption', i spoke specifically about the non-reaction to negative physical stimulus, as did the OP, this is a specific sign of RAD (separate from general sensory issues that include sights/sounds). with the approaching strangers, i think even someone uneducated could tell the difference between an aspie kid approaching strangers and an RAD kid. the aspie kid, gives off that well known 'little professor' impression and genuinely wants conversation, the RAD kid is clearly seeking affection and attention from an older person. so, same same, but different! i do know which of these it was for the OP so i considered the fact it might not be the AS version.

my point really was that some of things in the OPs list had quite a few things that point directly to RAD, so i thought i'd point it out.

With my approaching strangers as a child, it was to talk, not for affection. I talked to them, I am told. Sat down at their tables in cafes and started talking... I don't know what about. I dread to think. I didn't go and hug strangers or anything like that. I just talked to adults a lot as a child, rather than other kids. I asked a lot of questions of adults, especially old people. It is just the way I was. I have clear memories of ranting on about my favourite kim wilde songs to friends of my fathers when I was about 11 so I assume that is what I did when I was younger too

Regarding sensory issues, I did put in my post that I have extreme sensitivities to noise, textures and smell and have always had these.
But I did not cry and make a big fuss if I fell over. I got up and carried on with what I had been doing usually.
That is not to say I never cried, I did. I was not neglected, nor abused in my early childhood, so quite honestly RAD is highly unlikely.
I believe my parents both have AS traits, but I was not emotionally neglected. I would understand the possibility of RAD had I been a horribly abused child in my early years, but I was not.

But as said, I shall find the answer, I guess, when I find someone suitable to assess me.
Whether it will help me in any way with my current life issues, is another matter.

Why do you have "diagnosed" in your profile if you haven't been diagnosed?

For the original question, do what you want; it'll probably take a while to get assessed if it's through the government, as it's often said around here that people have a very long waiting period in the UK unless it's private.

I keep changing it to undiagnosed and it keeps going back to diagnosed. I went to try and post an avatar tonight and it showed as diagnosed again, I changed it back to undiagnosed. I had this issue before when I posted here a lot. I don't know why it won't stay on undiagnosed.

As to assessment, I have been thinking of doing it privately, if I manage to find anyone suitable. I did do a google search but I must have used wrong criteria as I couldn't find a specialist. My gp suggested I could get a second opinion on the NHS but my last experience has put me off somewhat, I don't know if there is even an NHS hampshire psychologist who specialises in ASDs. The man I saw was a psychiatrist who seemed to deal with numerous different things.

Ah, I now worked why it wasn't changing to what I put it as, I had been clicking the button at the very bottom under the avatar upload and not the button below the profile part... what an idiot

Same here, except if its a little frend or a girlfrend
or brother then I start to cry at the same time.