Is it REALLY that important to be "diagnosed?"

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I think I need a diagosis. As I mentioned in a different thread, I don't really feel like I have the right to identify myself as an Aspie or talk about myself as one, because despite feeling certain about it, I can't really prove that and don't have an outside, professional perspective to back it up. It's more difficult to tell friends or discuss it seriously, because I have to constantly preface things with some explanation of my suspicions, and occasionally, explain why I think it's AS.

At least you have more assets on the Left Coast than we do here around Chicago... It took me more than 6 months to locate ANYONE who would schedule an adult eval... (plenty for kids, but not for adults).

You'd be surprised. A lot of places here in Portland won't see adult patients, and as it is, I lack insurance and the cost isn't insignificant. OHSU charges around $1500, and while my mother could technically help with this, she's chosen to use her $3k+ bonus for something else.

Well, admittedly, with no insurance either, I did have to scrounge up the $$$ (about $500 total) for the 3 sessions I had, but I'm hopeful it will have a good ROI.

Have you tried getting in touch with Roger Meyer there in Portland? (Here's all I can find on the web at the moment: Roger N. Meyer, facilitator, at rogernmeyer@earthlink.net or by phone at 503-666-2776... he has a good website though, but i've misplaced the link...)

I haven't, but I'll look into him and maybe give him a call, thanks.

i think a proper dx is really important.
It offers certainty and relief and a good specialist in AS will help you to see it as an asset you can work with instead of a liability one has to constantly fret over.
a good specialist in ASD's will diagnose and then work with you to help yo uget the optimum out of your life and special interests. they can help with the development of a plan and strategies to deal with sensory integrations dysfunction issues.

But the most important factor in all of this is to go to a SPECIALIST in AS or ASD's so you can be thoroughly examined by someone who really knows a lot about AS and ASD's.

in 2008 i was told by one male psychologist who had no current knowledge of AS that i could not have AS because i was a female. (he probably specialised in stop-smling hypnotherapy....)

I was also told by another therapist that i did have AS but she did not specialise in AS so i sought further confirmation.

I went up to Minds and Hearts which is Tony Attwood's AS clinic and saw one of the clinical psychologists there who specialises in AS. THis guy only deals with AS people and kids. That is his profesisonal life and he knows his stuff. The diagnosis was that it was completely OBVIOUS i had lived with Asperger's my whole life and had remained undx'ed until the age of 46.

For me, a dx has been essential.
its' very hard and also a relief.

I am trying to find someone locally who could diagnois me and it will be a breath of fresh air. I want a formal explanation for the way I act. My ex left me and took her son from me because she accused me of being unable to change and emotionally abusive because I couldn't understand/read her emotions. Learning about AS and realizing it was like reading a page from my life helped me mentally because I realized there is more to the way I was in that relationship than just being a jerk.

Hello everyone,
I am not diagnosed, but my four-year-old son is. In the process of my wife and I getting him the help he needs, I learned a lot about AS and a lot about my own life has fallen into a new perspective.
My mother looks at my son and sees nothing wrong -- apparently I acted just like him at that age. He is very bright and high-functioning but has pragmatic language and social difficulties even though academically speaking his language is great.
I spent a lot of years as a young adult being very lonely and shut off -- didn't date for years at a time -- but found a rewarding career path and built enough coping skills to get along. I got really lucky and found a wonderful woman 10 years ago and we have been married almost 7.
Poking around this site's threads and seeing young people talk about their social problems really resonates strongly with me and my heart goes out to them -- I feel I know their struggle.
I have noticed that people go easy on me and don't poke fun or tease me -- I think a lot of people around me sensed my trouble with not taking things literally. My career (music and music education) has taken the particular shape it has because I am not good with "schmoozing." It has turned out remarkably well for me, yet I know if I were a more social creature I might be doing some very different things in life.
My wife, who is a devoted, loving and beautiful person, tells me she misses flirting and romance (which she was accustomed to a lot of before meeting me) and I would like to continue to develop my skills to help give her more of that.
I took an online AS quiz which put me in the AS range but with the caveat that even those who score highly report no difficulty in daily life. For the most part now that is the case for me. But it was not always and I did not know why. Now I feel I might know.
Thanks for reading. If this resonates with you, please post your experience.

Somehow this sounded a bit too familiar to be left without a little comment.

Being one who seeks actively a formal diagnose at the moment, I've given some thought to "Why am I doing this?" One simple answer is that I don't have to be absolutely certain that I'm an asperger-person but I'm not confident enough to settle with self-diagnosis. Thus I'm looking for a confirmation of my suspicions, at least.

What then do with the diagnosis? Well, in my case I'd like to get rid of most of the coping mechanisms as I feel that I've spend my whole life trying to be something that I'm not. Being in my mid-thirties means that I've got some good years still ahead if I play my cards right. And playing my cards right means I have to learn how to handle myself to make my life less stressing and damaging (it might even mean that I could be able to build a small social network instead of being mostly isolated and alone). Of course I could just deny that I'm in any way special and try to cope still a few more years. But I think it's wise to admit that I've been placing bets on the wrong horse (coping), thus I should stop now and start betting on a better candidate (learning to live with this instead of trying to change myself).

I bet there are some people who can build up such a big arsenal of coping strategies that they'll manage their whole life. As I'm a bit less talented in that field means I'm giving up coping and start doing something else.

I sought a diagnosis because of the disability side of Asperger's. I was having problems in every aspect of my life, being work/friends/family/kids. I knew something was amiss with myself, but I didn't know exactly what. Knowing for certain has helped how I deal with these aspects. I didn't know about Asperger's before the diagnosis, but had I it would have been difficult to go with a self diagnosis. There would always have been doubt about whether or not I was wrong, and if I was then I was probably approaching these aspects the wrong way. A diagnosis gives a clear view of how things are and how one should approach them.

Not really. But at least it removes one possibility of things maybe having been different if things had been gone about a different way.

My thoughts on this subject is that yes you should get a formal diagnos, because diagnosing yourself with it is in some cases just something to blame your life on.
I'm sure some of the selfdiagnosed people got AS but I'm also pretty sure that some of the selfdiagnosed don't got it and that they just:
1) Want to blame their current situation on something but themselves
2) Want a defined personality, solidarity. An example is insecure people becoming extremists etc, an extreme example but you get my point.

You should get a diagnos so you can be 100% certain and with that certainty move through cycle of life, battling the problems that comes with your personality and that comes with your AS.


Though a question to be asked is:
If people who selfdiagnos themselves with AS go to a psychologist and find out that they don't got it. But the AS selfdiagnos still makes life easier for them, shouldn't you do what helps you do the most even though if it's a lie?

(I tried to express myself better but couldn't, hope you understood my point with the last question)