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Official diagnosis

T

Tanyax

Well-Known Member
I’ve just received a letter from the doctors saying that I’ve got two weeks to fill in my forms for a referral to get assessed for Aspergers. I’ve never bothered obviously to fill them in, it’s too daunting, and it took me days to even open the reminder (I don’t like opening mail). I don’t know
If I should bother. I don’t even know if I can handle the forms. I’m not good at this stuff. I avoid it at all costs and then the appointments that will follow. I know what I am. Do I need to put myself through all the paperwork and assessments? It’s stressing me out just thinking about it. What are your experiences and do you think the stress is worth it? I have to get on with it quickly if you think it’s worth it. Any help would be appreciated x thank you x I don’t do quick and I don’t do stress. I don’t do forms and I don’t do appointments. I avoid everything. EVERYTHING.
 
Yes, absolutely you should make the effort to get diagnosed. From your post, I'm inclined to think you something of a shut in. An official diagnosis is the gateway to support you may desperately need, including income. Get a friend or family member to help if you need it. I think it will be worth it for you!
 
Is there any possible benefit to doing this now? What is this random two week deadline? Doctors demand you hurry back to them often because they get more money for nothing if you do, but since there is no possibility they will be doing anything that might benefit the patient, why bother? Unless you need or want an official label for some non-medical reason, say, as a requirement for government benefits or to convince other people in your life that you are not lying or crazy when you ask them for help and understanding to deal with your situation, or for your own peace of mind, etc. then it might be worth it.

Doctors know your health is important, so a doctor saying hurry up and rush-rush forces a patient to feel like they are in a life and death situation where they need to obey doctor's orders. Doctors pressure you to follow their commands and do the paperwork and schedule more appointments and waste more of your time/money on expensive painful unneccessary diagnostic testing, even though they already know they can't or won't help you. It's just a tactic they use so they will get paid faster and more often. If you wait two months or two years, they are still going to take your money and provide NO medical services whatsoever for you in return. You don't get a discount for being scammed earlier.

When it comes to an adult diagnosis for Aspergers, there is no cure or palliative treatment available. Whether you have it or you don't, you still have the same unchangeable manifestations. There is nothing medically wrong with you since either way, you are not sick or injured, so their is no possibilty they will offer you any medical assistance for this condition. There's nothing they can do except slap a label on you, which may do more harm than good.
 
Tanyax said:
I’ve just received a letter from the doctors saying that I’ve got two weeks to fill in my forms for a referral to get assessed for Aspergers. I’ve never bothered obviously to fill them in, it’s too daunting, and it took me days to even open the reminder (I don’t like opening mail). I don’t know
If I should bother. I don’t even know if I can handle the forms. I’m not good at this stuff. I avoid it at all costs and then the appointments that will follow. I know what I am. Do I need to put myself through all the paperwork and assessments? It’s stressing me out just thinking about it. What are your experiences and do you think the stress is worth it? I have to get on with it quickly if you think it’s worth it. Any help would be appreciated x thank you x I don’t do quick and I don’t do stress. I don’t do forms and I don’t do appointments. I avoid everything. EVERYTHING.
Click to expand...
I'm with you on most of that.
My experiences with many people and
places were painful and harmful.
Even in asking for help, I often don't
feel worthy of the help I am asking for.
And so, I also shirk filling and returning forms. There's this ominous feeling, and the expectation that I'll get abused again.
Makes me timid.

I will say, that most times my fears are not irrational, but they aren't necessarily founded in certainty, either.

Fill out the forms. You went looking, you won't forgive yourself if you are the reason
that you don't find your answers.

Sometimes, forms are needed long before an appt. so that they can be transferred to computer, and both or all offices involved have copies of everything necessary.
It makes things fluid, from an office standpoint.

So, start fillin' out the forms and playin'
wit' the pencils(Arlo Guthrie fan?
Maybe? Never mind...:rolleyes:),
and give yourself a chance.

I have to tell myself, sometimes, that it's really just a little thing, get it done.
As soon as I do, relief washes over me, and I am content that I have done something for myself, not necessarily them.

May you be well.

sidd
 
I suggest filling in any bits that you can, firstly. That's what I do when I have a form that I m put off by.

Then if there are boxes you can't work out how to fill in, go in to the doctors and ask the receptionist how to do it. Or call them. Or if you have a friend or colleague or other helper, get their help. Or ask us, here, what does this mean? We will help.
 
There are two things that you could do, first of all: don't do all the forms at once. Do one form each day until you get them done. Or just do as much as you can and tell yourself that's all you need to do and it doesn't matter if you finish it. If a longer, daunting task is divided into sections, it's easier to deal with.

Another thing you could do is get someone to help you - when I had lots of forms to do, my sister helped me and went through them with me and it helped a lot.
 
Time frame wise, if I don’t fill the forms out now, I’d have to start again and get another referral which I’ll never get around to. Thank you for all your help. I’ll start filling them out tomorrow (lol), always tomorrow! See where it takes me x
 
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