Now Ye're Talking - to an adult diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Nokia6230i

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA wrote: »

in a way yes, I am very bright, but I don't generally obsess over things, however I do have big interests in things (such as music, computers, and writing)

This though? This. Definitely this!

I'm delighted that the AMA is on someone on the ASD and esp. with A/S.

I've so many questions now but will have to go through the thread first (this reply is to a post on Page 2).

I'm not sure I'd go with obsessional in my case either but I do get caught up in things, topics and sadly people too.

Were you (or are you) on any meds for A/S and have they changed in either type/name or strength?

Saying this in a vacuum as I don't know how old you are currently and when/at what age diagnosis occurred.

Wanderer78

Nokia6230i wrote:

In case this derails the thread feel free to bring it to DM; would be intrigued to know who you're psychiatrist is/was, whether public/private, if on meds & what ones etc.

Be in touch with you tomorrow

Calhoun

Wanderer78 wrote: »

Be in touch with you tomorrow

Just be careful of that doctor, i believe allot of his diagnosis are no longer being accepted by the HSE.

Caint is the service the HSE now uses for its private diagnosis.

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Nokia6230i wrote: »

This though? This. Definitely this!

I'm delighted that the AMA is on someone on the ASD and esp. with A/S.

I've so many questions now but will have to go through the thread first (this reply is to a post on Page 2).

I'm not sure I'd go with obsessional in my case either but I do get caught up in things, topics and sadly people too.

Were you (or are you) on any meds for A/S and have they changed in either type/name or strength?

Saying this in a vacuum as I don't know how old you are currently and when/at what age diagnosis occurred.

Hi there, thanks for your questions, and thank you, it's a pleasure to do!

yeah I am on medication for AS, I'm on Lexapro, I started at 5mg when I was 18 and it's gone up and down over the years depending on my circumstances, at the moment I'm on 20mg. Usually have a review on it every 6 months to a year

I got my diagnosis at 15 and I'm 28 now

Wanderer78

Calhoun wrote:

Just be careful of that doctor, i believe allot of his diagnosis are no longer being accepted by the HSE.

Thank you but I actually think it's correct, I've suspected for some time now and I fit the criteria

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Calhoun wrote: »

Reading this gives me a little bit of hope, my 3 year old is on the verge of speaking she has certain sounds and she gets the picture thing very well but just hasnt started speaking yet.

Its great also to hear you speak of emotions ect, my daughter can be aloof but definitely affectionate.

Anything you would recommend a parent to do with their ASD children particularly girls?

Hi there, thanks for your question

They are all positive signs with your daughter..best of luck going forward

I would say
-continue with the pictures, support her as much as you can and I recommend this book: http://www.jkp.com/uk/parenting-girls-on-the-autism-spectrum.html

Nokia6230i

Similar to others on here I've a dual diagnosis. But my psychiatrist doesn't have me on anything for A/S.

Only Strattera 100 Mg for Adult ADHD (still don't know difference between it & "Normal" or "Childhood" ADHD mind..........).

He did though at the beginning but I've no idea what they were; if my GP will furnish that information I'll come back on here & post to "compare + contrast"; Lexapro doesn't sound familiar mind.

I know I was on Clonazepam for a while (diagnosis August 2014) & Zolpidem (to help me sleep; one tablet and a good nights rest resulted instead of currently......not sure why I was weaned or taken off them.......).

Calhoun

Wanderer78 wrote: »

Thank you but I actually think it's correct, I've suspected for some time now and I fit the criteria

I am not saying its not correct just the HSE are critical of what they accept/dont accept so if your going on for further stuff you may need to go deeper with it.

The diagnosis process the HSE will eventually do is a multi-disciplinary one. The report i had done for my daughter through a private company was 1K to do it.

Calhoun

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA wrote: »

Hi there, thanks for your question

They are all positive signs with your daughter..best of luck going forward

I would say
-continue with the pictures, support her as much as you can and I recommend this book: http://www.jkp.com/uk/parenting-girls-on-the-autism-spectrum.html

Thank you very much i will give it a read, my wife is so much better at this as she is a trained teacher and worked in a ASD unit for a long time. She knows what to expect where as i am the dumb one.

Wanderer78

Calhoun wrote:

I am not saying its not correct just the HSE are critical of what they accept/dont accept so if your going on for further stuff you may need to go deeper with it.

What kind of things would it effect?

HairyCabbage

If anyone could DM me with the name of the person who diagnosed them with AS or Adult ADD I'd be very grateful!

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Calhoun wrote: »

Thank you very much i will give it a read, my wife is so much better at this as she is a trained teacher and worked in a ASD unit for a long time. She knows what to expect where as i am the dumb one.

no worries

Goodigal

Thanks for taking the time to do this. As a mother of a boy on the autism spectrum, I am always interested to see how young adults are getting on in life.

My question is how do you feel about the fact that they no longer diagnose Asperger's anymore? They just say you are on the spectrum. My son has high functioning autism but I really consider that he has Aspergers. It's confusing when talking to other people about it.

HairyCabbage

Goodigal wrote: »

Thanks for taking the time to do this. As a mother of a boy on the autism spectrum, I am always interested to see how young adults are getting on in life.

My question is how do you feel about the fact that they no longer diagnose Asperger's anymore? They just say you are on the spectrum. My son has high functioning autism but I really consider that he has Aspergers. It's confusing when talking to other people about it.

This is interesting, I watched a video on YouTube that (obviously mistakenly) explained that there was a difference in between AS and high functioning autism. It stated that you were diagnosed with Aspergers if your speech developed as expected for a 'typical' child and with high functioning autism if it was delayed but were otherwise symptomatically similar to some one with Aspergers.

Goodigal

HairyCabbage wrote: »

This is interesting, I watched a video on YouTube that (obviously mistakenly) explained that there was a difference in between AS and high functioning autism. It stated that you were diagnosed with Aspergers if your speech developed as expected for a 'typical' child and with high functioning autism if it was delayed but were otherwise symptomatically similar to some one with Aspergers.

My son was diagnosed aged 6, and there is no mention of Asperger's in his report. The psychologist (done through HSE) said that they either report people as being on the spectrum, or not, depending on the results of the assessment(s). They do not label them further than that. However, as a mother, I see traits of Asperger's in him, definitely socially. But he is steadily making his way through mainstream school and I am super proud of him

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

HairyCabbage wrote: »

If anyone could DM me with the name of the person who diagnosed them with AS or Adult ADD I'd be very grateful!

sent you one there

Goodigal wrote: »

Thanks for taking the time to do this. As a mother of a boy on the autism spectrum, I am always interested to see how young adults are getting on in life.

My question is how do you feel about the fact that they no longer diagnose Asperger's anymore? They just say you are on the spectrum. My son has high functioning autism but I really consider that he has Aspergers. It's confusing when talking to other people about it.

Hi there, thanks for your question:)

I didn't know this until recently so it surprises me, but it shows that things in the medical world are changing. I can imagine it's more difficult for people to explain a diagnosis of autism with that change

Gloomtastic!

Thank you for doing this AMA.

Don't believe this question has been asked. Why do you think you are autistic?

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

Thank you for doing this AMA.

Don't believe this question has been asked. Why do you think you are autistic?

Hi there, thank you very much and thank you for your question:) (I don't believe i've ever been asked that question)

There is a number of reasons, because of my odd development growing up, my sense that I was different before I was diagnosed, the way I think differently and experience things differently, it's kinda hard to explain. It sounds corny but if i was a neurotypical (person without autism) I would have no idea what I'd be like or what I'd be doing with myself

Crea

Hello, my daughter is 12 and was diagnosed with AS 4 years ago.
Her main issues, that I can see, are social. She's pretty much ignored by the girls in her class.
My question is what kind of adult supports did you avail of and do you think should be available?

LadyMacBeth_

Well done on coming so far with your social anxiety, from being selectively mute for such a long time to having a good group of friends

If this is too personal then no need to answer but did you struggle a lot with loneliness growing up since you were mute in school, and did any teachers put pressure on you to answer a question or to talk? Thanks

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Crea wrote: »

Hello, my daughter is 12 and was diagnosed with AS 4 years ago.
Her main issues, that I can see, are social. She's pretty much ignored by the girls in her class.
My question is what kind of adult supports did you avail of and do you think should be available?

Hi there thanks for your questions

Most of the adult services I used were for my education and ASD based, after leaving school I used a service with people with ASD which was in Kilkenny, I went there as a student for two years and during the course of those 2 years I did two computer courses in the VEC. The service in Kilkenny don't offer their full-time anymore but they support people on an outreach basis, their parents and they also do presentations on autism which I'm involved in

Once I left there I did 2 more computer courses in the VEC which was very hard going

Then I took a 4 year break and went back to college in 2015 to do a general level 3 FETAC/QQI in a rebab service (not drugs before I get any smart answers!).

I finished there recently and went from there to another rehab service which is more long-term based. I will also be receiving some home support from another rebab service but this time outreach, in the near future

I think it all should be available to people who needs them, but sometimes isn't(location etc)

Sorry to hear you're daughter is being ignored, that's no fun

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

LadyMacBeth_ wrote: »

Well done on coming so far with your social anxiety, from being selectively mute for such a long time to having a good group of friends

If this is too personal then no need to answer but did you struggle a lot with loneliness growing up since you were mute in school, and did any teachers put pressure on you to answer a question or to talk? Thanks

Hi there, thanks for your questions and thank you very much

In a way, I struggled with it as I couldn't talk in school but in a way, I didn't as I talked with family and always liked my own company so..kind of to answer that one. Regarding my teachers, most of them were patient and didn't put pressure on me, but there were a few who did so and lost their temper. It was rough but it's behind me now thankfully

Gardenlife

Hi, thank you for doing this chat! My beloved partner is 55 and was diagnosed a year and a half ago. He is finding it very difficult to access counselling where the provider has an understanding of *adult* aspbergers and his high anxiety. We also could really do with a couple's counselling that understands Aspies as well as neurotypicals...internet searches not really helping us (all Aspie&NT couples help seem to be US or UK) and none of the Irish ASD/Aspie sites seem to have recommendations either. I'm just thinking to ask since you have had more years of experience in using the services available, if you have any suggestion? I was hoping to find something on Aspire, but didn't see anything. Thank you!

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

Gardenlife wrote: »

Hi, thank you for doing this chat! My beloved partner is 55 and was diagnosed a year and a half ago. He is finding it very difficult to access counselling where the provider has an understanding of *adult* aspbergers and his high anxiety. We also could really do with a couple's counselling that understands Aspies as well as neurotypicals...internet searches not really helping us (all Aspie&NT couples help seem to be US or UK) and none of the Irish ASD/Aspie sites seem to have recommendations either. I'm just thinking to ask since you have had more years of experience in using the services available, if you have any suggestion? I was hoping to find something on Aspire, but didn't see anything. Thank you!

Hi there:) thanks for your question

there is a few counselors on this list, if that's any help : http://www.aspireireland.ie/cmsWP/directory/ and here: http://www.ieft.ie/therapists/..there's not many out there

Gloomtastic!

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA wrote: »

Hi there, thank you very much and thank you for your question:) (I don't believe i've ever been asked that question)

There is a number of reasons, because of my odd development growing up, my sense that I was different before I was diagnosed, the way I think differently and experience things differently, it's kinda hard to explain. It sounds corny but if i was a neurotypical (person without autism) I would have no idea what I'd be like or what I'd be doing with myself

Good on you, happy in your own skin.

I was on a course earlier this year with a very well respected psychotherapist and he said autism/ADHD etc etc were due to some sort of developmental trauma as a baby. (No reflection on mothers of autistic kids as they are some of the most devoted parents I know).

Life can be very harsh sometimes.

faceman

Thanks for doing this AMA, makes for interesting reading!

Just wondering if you have ever participated in theatre or drama and if so how did you find it in context to your ASD?

I'm an adult with ASD, AMA

faceman wrote: »

Thanks for doing this AMA, makes for interesting reading!

Just wondering if you have ever participated in theatre or drama and if so how did you find it in context to your ASD?

Hi there thanks for your questions, and thank you very much

yes I did a bit of drama in school, and I hated it, because of my ASD and social anxiety I found it very hard to act. I was very relieved when I had the subject finished when I left school

Boards.ie: Niamh

I'm going to close this up now as there have been no posts for a couple of days and OP agrees.
A big thank you to our guest who has answered some great questions and given us all a new insight into life with autism.