Autism / Autism Spectrum Support Group

I wish I had more information on this sweetie, but I don't. I do have a cousin who was dx when he turned 19. After years of suffering & struggling.

Have you talked to your doctors about this?

Not as of yet.

Maybe bring all of this up to the docs.
Maybe getting into some therapies could help? We recently went to a meeting and we were told that ABA therapy is taught at all levels.

I'm still in awe with adults who have Autism. The strength all of you have to not only deal with everyday life, but also the autism end of things.

I do hope you find the answers you are searching for. I'm sure someone here can help more than I can.

HUGS!

I have a piggy-back question...

What kind of doctor would you ask about adult autism (not a lot of autism diagnosing going on in the 60's or 70's) and what would the benefit of knowing be? Like, would there be help?

That's a good ?, I just think I may have been mis diagnosed.

I would think any Autism specialist would be the one to make that dx. And from what we have learned...many of the therapies are still beneficial to adults.

I know the push is for kids out there, so that we as adults can help them have the easiest way of life possible with this disability. We were (and still are) being pushed hard to get our 4yr old and our 2yr old therapy because if we can make any corrections while their little brains are still forming, the better things will be for them.
I believe the cut off ages are 5yrs for brain development and 7yrs for sensory issues. But still at any age therapy will help.

Welcome to the group.

I have a brother born premie and a young boy, age 5, on the spectrum, and a sister who is a highly recognized psychiatrist. You are getting bits of yourself understood, and it very likely you could be on the spectrum, or not, but you are who you are and learning how to feel good about that and finding joy and passion in your day's activities is the goal, in my opinion.
FYI I see alot of common things that are "overlapping" traits, being that the same symptom is considered for various disorders.

young kids can learn ways to overcome the mental confusion and develop, especially at a preschool age. You should be able to learn how to choose your feelings. Meds may help but you need to direct your mindfulness to be well.
Your asthma will always need to be watched, but personally I have recovered from asthma by not going near cats, and watching what I eat, so to not have too much of things that trigger it, like watermelon.

I suggest a highly regarded M.D. psychiatrist should be able to understand. Did one doc give you all theose diagnosis'?

I agree that you could be misdiagnosed. But adult onset?? I don't think so. A person is born with ASD.. it is not something that they develop later on. Sometimes it just takes a while to get the correct diagnosis. Some of the disorders on the spectrum are diagnosed at a later age, i.e., Aspergers Syndrome.

You need to have an appointment with a psychiatrist or psychologist that specializes in ASD. That way they can differentiate in the diagnoses you have previously been given and the possibility of a spectrum disorder which can be multifaceted.

Good luck... Gram

It is not unusual for kdis with high functioning autism or asperger's disorder to go undiagnosed. Many people have that image of the child who is non-verbal and stims all day but they are not used to thinking of someone with autism as being a person who is high functioning. I diagnose for a living and can tell you that I have gotten quite a few referrals for kids who are older -high school or so. Prior to that it was blamed on jwust bad behavior and they were introuble all of the time. Once we were able to address the real cuaswe of the behaviors (ex. a sensory need rather than plain defiance or aggression due to anger, etc.) then we were able to really make progress. My best advice os to get an evaluation. I will caution that there are people out there, doctors, etc. who evaluate and have no idea what they are doing. Go to http://dobanautismpage.blogspot.com/ and read the article on how to make sure you get a good evaluation (it is just too much to put in this anwswer). You may not have autism but it should definitely be ruled in or out. Good luck to you.