Starting my diagnostic journey | First psychiatrist appointment as a self-diagnosed autistic

[@Corie3269]

Thank you very much for sharing your experience. This is exactly the reason I am hesitating to talk to a psychiatrist about possible autism. I have had depression and anxiety for years, also complex PTSD (though my former therapists thought I might have BPD) and do have experience with professionals in this field. Yet, especially male psychotherapists doubted my suspicion. The fist person who told me up front she thinks I might be autistic was a female experienced psychotherapist who recommended to pursue an official diagnosis. Hope it will go well for you. I can understand the situation with the psychiatrist felt a bit upsetting.

[@marypham859]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us, Angelina! This is very helpful advice. I was watching another KZbinr who was formally diagnosed recently and she said that a regular psychiatrist is not qualified to diagnose autism and that she recommended those who are seeking a formal diagnosis to work with a specialist in autism. From her own experience, she was traumatized by a couple of psychologists before meeting her specialist. The psychologists told her that she couldn't be autistic because she was well dressed and that autistic people don't have a fashion sense. I think it was good that your therapist didn't say anything to you. She could have traumatized you. I have witnessed some therapists who hold stereotypes and old views about autism such as people who are autistic lack empathy. New research has proved that this is false and outdated information. Also, some therapists will misdiagnose a person with autism as being a narcissist. So, I am very happy that you will be seeing a specialist. I wish you the best! You are very brave for sharing your journey publicly with us. Stay strong and keep us posted! ❤

[@GhostGemVlogs]

I’d like to say I absolutely appreciate you sharing your diagnosis experience for autism, we need more voices like you 💕 I’m still self Dx hoping to seek Dx soon but I will say for my adhd Dx my experience with my psychiatrist was the same way. Their knowledge felt limited and biased but they will still listen to you and give you resources to explore those options which is far better despite the discomfort I guess 😅

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Thank you Ruth, you’re so kind! And thanks for sharing. I hope your diagnosis journey is a validating experience and goes well for you❤️

[@GhostGemVlogs]

@@navigatingthespectrum you as well

[@Catlily5]

If you can, ask the assessors if they have experience with diagnosing women. Try to find one who has more experience with diagnosing women (if possible). This advice was told to me. It helped me with my diagnosis so I am passing it on. I understand that it is not always possible. I didn't think it would help me at first but as I learned more from local autistics more options became available.

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Thank you so much for the advice, I really appreciate it! I’ll definitely do that if it’s an option.

[@patriciarold5366]

I have watched a few of your videos and I am very impressed by what I have seen. I think it is amazing that a person could go through 12 years of schooling and go on to college and earn a degree and no one noticed you might be autistic. Congratulation on all your accomplishments so far. You are so easy to listen to. It also sounds that you have an awesome mother. Whatever they discover is wrong I want to know because I think I have something similar. I am 76, retired, 2 grown adult kids, 4 grandchildren. You don’t mention friends, or are you happy with everyday life. I believe a person deserves a good friend to have by your side. My best friend died 10 Years ago I don’t think I will get another like her. I am going to think about you in the future, but you have a lot of good qualities to be proud of and wish you the best.

[@Eryniell]

I'm happy to hear someones experience from finland ^^ I'm also living here and currently waiting for my evaluation (which is supposed to be about generally anything I could be having/dealing with not just autism). I really hope it goes well for both of us ^^

[@jgrutza]

Hi Angelina! Wow, your videos are really well done. The camera image looks nice and the audio sounds good to me. The thing that I really noticed was the captions. I think you must have done that deliberately since they were not auto-generated. I wanted to tell you how much I appreciated that. So far, your experience sounds a little bit like mine. I was unsure of whether the person I was working with was there to help me. I still don't really know, but I did get what I was looking for. Thanks for the video, and onto the next one! I am enjoying your story.

[@cowsonzambonis6]

Congrats on getting the referral, and thanks for the tips! I don't have plans to pursue a diagnosis right now (it's expensive!), but it is possible I will in the future. Either way, it's encouraging for see fellow self-diagnosed Autistic getting closer to diagnosis!

[@annami_]

I happened to find your channel, and I was positively surprised when you said you live in Finland. I also live in Finland and just got a referral for autism assessment, so finding someone who lives also here and is going through that was a nice surprise.

[@toni5543]

I am so grateful for your video. I'm from scotland in the UK. Thank you!!

[@navigatingthespectrum]

I’m glad you found it helpful! Thank you for watching☺️

[@nettiezdolls6742]

Thank you for the tips.

[@VonniC-bv2ow]

Thanks Angelina. I really appreciate your videos. Good luck 😊

[@aleksi1758]

Hey Angelina! This was a great video! I also live in Finland and I am considering getting an official diagnosis, this video was really helpful for that whole process. Definitely will follow for more content from you😊.

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Hi Aleksi, nice to meet you! I’m glad I could help. Thank you so much for watching and good luck with your diagnostic process☺️

[@m0thdm]

Rooting for you!

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Thank you so much☺️

[@emmab9545]

Good luck with the rest of the process! I remember all of the waiting was so stressful for me, so I hope you don’t have to wait too long. Also, I definitely relate to your feelings of disappointment after sharing so much and receiving so little feedback. Thanks for sharing!🙂👍

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Thank you so much, Emma!☺️

[@alexlaessle1]

Thank you for the informative video.

[@navigatingthespectrum]

You’re welcome, I’m glad you found it helpful😊

[@banaanitarhuri]

Hi Angelina! Thank you so much for telling about your experiences in this, and other videos! It's really helpful and interesting. I usually don't comment on videos but I'd love to start engaging with more neurodivergent ppl (especially in finland 😄) I wish u the best for your diagnosis journey! I will probably be looking to get assesed when I return back to Finland this summer :)

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Hi Kiona! Thank you for taking the time to watch my videos and for leaving a comment. I really appreciate it! All the best on your journey as well❤️

[@pierocastrololi483]

Hi, I have some doubts about the sensitivity of the most used diagnostic tools nowadays (ADI-R, ADOS-2, etc) in a profile like yours (woman, CI preserved or maybe high). In these cases I think that the result could be a false negative. I hope professionals will be able to have more sensitive and specific diagnostic tools for "cases" like yours. Thanks for sharing your experience. Regards from Barcelona.

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Hi Piero, thank you for your comment. I agree, I worry about that too because I’m high masking and the tools might not be the best. But I’ll give it a shot and maybe I’ll get lucky. And yes, hopefully things will improve and it will get easier for professionals to diagnose autism.

[@pierocastrololi483]

@@navigatingthespectrum at the end, ASD diagnostic is clinical. I mean, diagnostic tools are only a complement. The most important thing is to be evaluated by an experienced professional, I think.

[@CatholicOnTheSpectrum]

I recently started this process at 32.

[@navigatingthespectrum]

Best of luck on your journey❤️

[@CatholicOnTheSpectrum]

@@navigatingthespectrum Just had the first stage of my assessment: He's thinking autism, ADHD and OCD.

[@redpalex]

❤

[@kathryncollins8708]

It seems like the psychiatrist was not a specialist in autism and that is why she did not want to say much in case she was incorrect and did not have enough understanding/ insight. (?)