self referral-sorry a bit of a long message

[jenk1]

i decided after weeks of thinking it through to go and see my gp and asked to be referred as i think i might have AS. this has all come to light since my son was diagnosed with it 3months ago, as a child i never "fit in" with the crowd was always told i was a geek etc, it didnt bother me that i didnt fit in, i didnt like being called though, i have always been sensitive to noise,textures,fabrics etc, fascinated by numbers,music,routines. Anyway i wrote it all down in a letter as i couldnt face talking about how i felt but the gp just scanned my letter and said "i cant read all that,whats the problem?" whereupon i burst into tears and said "i dont know how to explain" i managed to tell her a little bit and she said"u havent got Aspergers if u dont mind me saying Aspergers is a nerdy syndrome and u r not nerdy, i said to her its different in females though, females can hide it more, my son has it and also my cousin, she said "its not genetic" i said but i think it is a lot of families have generations of it and i quoted tony attwood, she then shut up and said well i,ll refer u to a psychiatrist but i dont think theres anything wrong with u and then she said i think u just need to go on anti-deprassants, i said no not just yet. I now feel a completee idiot and wish i hadnt gone,i keep thinking the psychiatrist will think the same and tell me off for wasteing time,dreading going to see him now

[Twiglett]

GPs are general practioners .. anything that isn't bog standard treated with antibiotics common they just don't have the specialised knowledge to deal with

you have done the right thing .. and I think talking it through with someone who actually knows what they are talking about will help

BTW .. I think your gp sounds pretty unsympathetic if she can't even be bothered to read a letter .. personally I'd look to switch

[Jimjams]

It's not genetic?????????????

you don't need to feel like an idiot- the GP does- clearly clueless!

What do you hope to get out of dx? Is it to understand yourself, or to access services? If you can't bear the dx procedure and its to understand yourself you may get more out of reading thihgs like Calire Sainsbury martian in the playground, rahter than having to put yourself through seeing these people. (OTOH good ones would be worth seeing).

[jenk1]

it is to understand myself-ive always known that i dont see things as others do-im comfortable with that,its social situations etc, its hard on DH as i avoid going out having people round etc and he,s the complete opposite to me, i would like to access the services even if its just to get help with the social side, irealise its a long procedure but ive tried everything else,anti depressants,group counselling(yuk!) i have been waiting for 121 counselling for over a year now so, i have even thought about doing it privately but wouldnt know where to start or who to see

[saadia]

jenk1, some gps are really insensitive. Don't let that experience put you off if you feel you need help. Like Twiglett says, they don't always have up-to-date and specialised knowledge.

If you are referred to see the psychiatrist try to plan and rehearse beforehand what you will say to give the whole picture.

I think doctors generally get very defensive if people come up with answers for their problems themselves so you have to word it carefully to give the whole picture of why you feel this way.

I have friends who are doctors (psych) included and whenever any discussion about medical/psych matters come up they always think that laypeople know nothing.

[Fio2]

jenk i hope it goes ok with the pschiatrist, sounds like you have had a stressful morning. Alot of GP's dont understand ASD?AS/developmental disorders etc so dont beat yourself up about it