I am Self Diagnosed with Autism (ASD) AMA

amother

Fri, Oct 27 2023, 1:52 am

amother Dodgerblue wrote:

Considering you said that stimulants worsen your anxiety, are you on any meds for ADHD?

No. Occasionally, I'll take a short lasting Ritalin but I usually regret it.

amother

Fri, Oct 27 2023, 1:59 am

amother Fuchsia wrote:

I know this is a few weeks old but I’m really struggling rn and maybe someone on here can see this and help me out.

Anyone on here has gotten an ASD diagnosis as an adult? If yes and you are willing to share leads and tips for how to go about that please respond!

(Not interested in getting it for govt benefits or to have on my medical file. I just want answers for myself)

You can Google ASSQ. It's a test to diagnose adult ASD. For me personally, self-diagnosing was enough because I'm not trying to get disability either.

amother

Electricblue

Fri, Oct 27 2023, 6:49 am

Thank you for sharing OP

My son, almost 19 years has HFA

he struggles socially. Has no real friends & has problems connecting with his classmates. He’s in a special class with other kids with various dx
He claims no one understands him. And he really is not on their wave length.
He is def not adhd. He is super focused & once starting a task, finishes it through till the end.
He’s very attached to me & dh.
Will he have a career ? Will he get married ?
I can’t see it but one never knows.
It really scares me to think of his future.

He is so bright, & capable.
But avoids conversations & engaging with others.

Any advice for the social aspect ?

amother

Steelblue

Fri, Oct 27 2023, 7:24 am

amother Electricblue wrote:

From what I hear that age is really the hardest. Many people who struggled at 19 do much better later in life. My husband didn't have friends at that age either, he slowly found people as he got older.

Does he have hobbies? That's how my husband started to make friends...

amother

Sat, Oct 28 2023, 1:02 pm

amother Nasturtium wrote:

There are non stimulants you can try.

I tried one. It was bad. My adhd specialist told me not to continue with them. She also added that they are overall not very effective.

amother

PlumPink

Sun, Oct 29 2023, 12:04 am

amother OP wrote:

I tried one. It was bad. My adhd specialist told me not to continue with them. She also added that they are overall not very effective.

Worked well for my DD BH

amother

Amethyst

Sun, Oct 29 2023, 12:29 am

How about clonodine patches. They don’t have the same side effects as pills and is a non stimulant. It was suggested for my son and I find it really helping him.

amother

Sun, Oct 29 2023, 12:47 am

amother Amethyst wrote:

How about clonodine patches. They don’t have the same side effects as pills and is a non stimulant. It was suggested for my son and I find it really helping him.

I can ask but I'm in Israel and I find them overall to be behind on adhd meds.

mary6

Mon, Oct 30 2023, 5:05 am

amother Electricblue wrote:

I just want to point out that someone with adhd often can focus very well on a task and complete it. - it’s more about the getting started that’s the problem. Often adhd ppl hyper focus on the tasks they want to do.

mary6

Mon, Oct 30 2023, 5:12 am

👋
Me too!! When my daughter got diagnosed I realised that’s what’s “wrong” with me.
It’s called masking when you learn to fit in and is very common with girls. This is why so many girls go undiagnosed.
I’m on a journey to help myself and learn how to manage. Would love to hear what you do to help yourself.
My biggest issue is wearing a shaitel,

amother

Mon, Oct 30 2023, 5:20 am

mary6 wrote:

Totally. Some people I've told are shocked and don't believe me and say there is no way I can be on the spectrum. Let's just say it's been years of hard work.

Shaitels are awful. I rarely wear them. I wear tichels and my best ones are made out of light, airy materials. I get nice ones to coordinate with my Shabbos clothes. I just rocked one at a wedding the other day.

My other trick is gloves. I can do so much more if my hands aren't going to touch things that bother me. What bothers me changes by the day. But definitely touching chicken or meat or anything greasy. I also can't stand touching conditioner. Disposable gloves improve my life.

amother

Chocolate

Sun, Nov 12 2023, 4:39 am

My husband self-diagnosed as being on the spectrum, but when I tell friends that they doubt it, as it isn't a formal diagnosis. Do you feel that "self-diagnosis" is enough for you, or do you ever think that a formal diagnosis would be useful?

Are there any mitzvot you find harder/easier than average? Do you think there are places in halacha that allowances need to be made for someone with ASD?

I'd love to hear more about parenting. What specifically has been hard? Is it harder to parent NT children? What have you done to overcome the challenges? Are you the only one that has changed or have your children adapted to your style? I'd love examples.