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im gonna get food soon but i wanted to type out some messy thoughts and experiences i have regarding self diagnosis. I believe i am autistic, and i dont think its baseless to claim that since ive had multiple people in my life ask me, 4 of which are noteworthy.
the first noteworthy one is my old boss. she works in a sort of social work sector, where she regularly deals with people that have a variety of mental health issues and disabilities, as well as people who just arent doing super well and need financial support. she asked me.
the second is my old job coach, someone who helps those who have a barrier get a job. barrier such as a physical or mental disability, or perhaps a single parent. i have depression and anxiety which is why i was working with her, but she also asked me if i was "on the spectrum"
the third is a bit more personal. my aunt has a son (my cousin) who has aspergers, so she's not AS qualified as the other 2, but she has done a lot of research and has also asked me.
and the fourth. a family friend and my unofficial "therapist" (she was teaching me ways of coping and essentially keeping tabs on my mental health before quarantine hit). she has a doctorate in psychology, specialising in child and adolescent psychology. she doesnt know me quite
as well as the others, but she is also very qualified and upon telling her that i think i might be autistic, she said that it would certainly fit. she did however also tell me that she is against labels for these things due to the somewhat tick box nature of diagnosis, and
instead thinks that we should aim to help people on a case by case basis. everyone is different, even if they are all officially autistic, and each person will need different support, which was her proposed approach.
idk why im making this thread, i guess cause self diagnosis is generally frowned upon but i went to my GP about this and he basically accused me of hopping on a trend (cause yknow, being autistic is a trend now)
