Tips before assessment

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Hello! So I am going to do an official assessment this Friday (they told me some interview things and approximately ten hours of cognitive testing) Does anyone have any recommendations for me before I go? I already put together a list of signs/ symptoms and categorized them, as well as asking my parents some questions about behaviour/ speaking when I was younger. Any thoughts or tips from you all to better prepare would be greatly appreciated. Thanks all!

Make sure to include specific life examples of each autism trait on your list. The longer the list, the more detailed the better as you cannot rely on every autism trait to magically present itself during the assessment. In order to get the right answer, they have to ask the right question.

It sounds like you are well organised.

Other things you might consider, if they are available:

-Childhood photos (I had many showing stim postures, downcast eyes, odd posture, etc.)
-Childhood videos (I had some from 1970s put onto DVD and downloaded with links, showing my mannerisms)
-School report cards (Mine described an autistic personality)
-Work evaluations and assessments (Mine talked about poor eye contact, burnout, meltdowns, etc)
-Contact info for any doctors you've seen re: depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, etc.

Don't worry if you don't have access to these things; they're just suggestions. The more you can give them, the better, but overall it's the testing procedure which will be most telling.

My assessment was 10+ hours like yours. It's exhausting so rest up tomorrow. Take snacks and water and ask for breaks when you need them.

Keep in mind that it's OK to be completely yourself. I sat on the floor for most of mine. I stimmed whenever I needed to (I took my piece of satin to play with thousands of times), and don't worry about masking in any way whatsoever.

Be yourself like never before.

Good luck!

You are already overdoing it.

I didn't prep at all. Just showed up, and whenever the doc asked me anything biographical and would just relax and speak as freely as could, and talk unflinchingly about any personal failures as I could.

This is good advice too.

I don't like to generalise, but it's often harder for girls and women to be assessed properly by interview alone. There are many biases against females in the diagnostic process, so the more objective information she can prepare, the better.

Rest, I left mine feeling like a zombie as it was hours of different types of tests that tested all sorts of skills, some which I was very bad at and so, found very hard. You may feel a little overwhelmed after so prepare for that too and if you have any sensitivities try to take care of them before they really bug you so you are in a good place after.

"You have a right to remain silent"

Everything you say can and will be, misheard, misunderstood and used against you, in the courtroom.

Don't forget to eat lunch before you start, if you're anything like me. Breakfast and supper are meals that are nice, but non-essential. Lunch, on the other hand... if I don't have it on time, I'm pretty sure my IQ drops at least 10-15 points.

Oh and rest up if you can. Doing anything well is going to be a lot harder if you pulled an all-nighter (or, if you're like me, you'll fall asleep on the spot at a bad time). Energy drinks and coffee don't work quite the same.

I agree with the suggestion to be yourself. In fact, revel in the fact that maybe for the first time in your life you can be yourself around a perfect stranger and leave off the infernal masking completely.