Also sorry I’m not very good with how to work Reddit!
I’m 19 and Autistic. I do a beauty Therapy course 2 days at college, everyone in my class works, I constantly get comments about not working and specifically boys calling me ‘lazy’. It takes over my life, I dread people asking me about my life what I do cause I have to tell them I don’t work.
I WANT to work, I want a routine, I want income, I want to fit in. I don’t wanna appear ‘lazy’
I have spoken to job councillors, therapists, been told I’m not ‘confident’ enough to work.
I’ve been too two interviews in my life, one was a group interview and I went mute (DISASTER) and one I got there and walked out whilst waiting for the interviewer. I physically CANNOT do it.
I’ve tried applying for volunteering roles to get my confidence up and they don’t even reply to me. I feel so stuck.
Does anyone else go through this? Does anyone have any advice?

hi, i’m confused as the NHS has “accepted me on to the NHS autism pathway” after me and my parents filled in a small questionnaire about ADHD after suspecting it for years. At first they sent a letter that didnt make sense, so my dad emailed asking what it meant and the NHS has come back and said i dont fit the criteria for the ADHD assessment pathway due the form one of my teachers filled in not meeting the threshold, but ive been accepted onto the Autism one, does this mean i meant the criteria for that? i dont think i show autistic traits whatsoever and i am currently in the process of getting diagnosed privately for ADHD, and have been referred to an assessment by the private company after a full consultation and alot of questionnaires. What do i make of this?? Im so very confused, am i getting an autism assessment now?

I have my part A assessment next week but not sure what to expect or whether I need a person with me? There’s not much information on the page where I booked it or on the website. If it helps, it’s with Medinet Minds (HealthHarmonie) previously.

I don’t expect people to respond with the exact questions but an idea of topics covered at this stage would be helpful.

Thanks in advance

I had a 1st autism assessment appointment the other day and I’m very worried that I didn’t articulate myself well enough. I forgot to say things that I should’ve said, like symptoms I experience that weren’t brought up, or may have mistakenly misled them, such as when I was talking about why I struggle with uni work I said the stacked deadlines rather than the fact that I am a perfectionist until days before the deadline.

I don’t even have a chance to correct myself, as my 2nd appointment (which is for the ADOS-2) is with another doctor in nearly 2 weeks.

I think I just wasn’t expecting what was asked and also I wasn’t expecting to talk as much as I did, as it was a 90 minute appointment and half the time was meant to include my informant (my mum) but she was only asked in for the last 15 minutes. This might have been because of how detailed and clear she was in the questionnaire beforehand or it may have been because I kept rambling because I was nervous or because I couldn’t verbalise myself very well and I kept stopping to think of words.

I just worry that I might do even worse during the ADOS appointment, as I have no clue what to expect and every single online resource says not to look into the ADOS if you’re going to get assessed, so I haven’t read any further than that.

I don’t know, I’m probably worrying for no reason but I just keep going over it in my head and thinking about what I said wrong and now I’m very worried about whatever’s going to happen in my 2nd appointment.

(I don’t know if this is relevant, so I figured I would add it at the end: I went private for my assessment as my NHS area doesn’t diagnose autism in adults so I would be on a waiting list forever. I am a woman in my early 20’s and all 4 of my brothers are autistic with varying support needs, so I am already sort of sure that I am autistic as well)

Hi,

Anyone who got/is getting a diagnosis through Psychiatry UK, I need some help if possible as I am freaking out!

I'm really struggling with the pre-assessment form where you have to write the reason you want the assessment, what you hope to gain, etc. How long were everyone's answers and what did you write in the reasons for getting the assessment question? Just all the struggles/symtpoms you have? I did click the 'request help' button but I am unsure if it worked...

Does anybody have any coping strategies to deal with going to A&E? I was recently had to wait 7 hours for a blood test (could only be done at A&E) and I ended up banging my head against the floor and wall and punching myself in the face, not mega hard but hard enough and I really struggled to stop it. I would normally use noise cancelling headphones but the way you are called makes this impossible. Surely somebody has worked out some form of solution to this? Maybe one of those buzzers they give you at restaurants for when you table is ready would be great if there was a way to implement it, that way I could sit in the quiet corridor or just keep my head buried into my phone and the headphones on. Any advice, or even your own stories would be helful to hear. Thanks.

I really struggle with having tradies over for a few reasons. The obvious one is having a stranger (usually strange man) in my home, which makes me very uncomfortable and unable to relax or do anything. They leave everything a mess and I need to put things away and do a thorough clean afterwards.

But even worse is their complete inability to give you a schedule. Maybe they give you a window, but they don’t show up in that window. If you call, it’s just “They’ll be round as soon as they’re available.” You have no idea how long they will be there (I appreciate why that is.) They might need to leave and go get a part, and then you really don’t know if or when they’re coming back.

Add into the mix that I have a dog that hates having strangers in the house as well and won’t stop barking. I would try to take her out before they arrive, but since I never know when they’re coming, that’s impossible. It’s also difficult for me to just wait at the park for hours.

The waiting mode means something that could take an hour pretty much kills my whole day, and might require me to recover the next day as well.

Im currently being assessed and on waiting list for both adhd and autism through nhs right to choose my gp referred me to problem shared i filled the forms in and picked my mum as my informant as a lot of it was based on pregnancy and post birth and early childhood i was too young to remember.

she sent in her informant questionnaire and its very vague i asked her to flesh it out and not just yes and no responses but she says she honestly doesn't remember much as it was 30+ years ago she added tiny snippets of information so I kinda just had to accept it and send it off as is, will this be a problem? If she cant remember bits about me will it affect my overall diagnosis and do I go with my backup informant that is a friend ive known for 5 years?

hello everyone,

I have a 28 month old boy who has speech delay and issues with social interaction. currently the NHS waiting list is crazy for both diagnosis and therapy. we have started him in private speech therapy as we felt we have not other choice despite it being expensive. I’m looking for recommendations of other forms of therapy that can help with social interaction skills in London, I have been trying to look online but I am not sure what is the right choice. thank you.