Testing for an ASD...?

[Minion]

I posted on Wrong Planet, but wanted to see some reactions I'd get from different sites, as well

Hello everyone! I was diagnosed with NVLD when I was 16 (I am now 20), via a psych-ed test I was given by a child psychologist at the children's hospital... It said I did not have ADHD, as well. My current psychiatrist has diagnosed me with Schizoaffective disorder, a combination of Schizophrenia and Bipolar Illness, and ADHD. I start college in September, and am worried that the disability services will not accept one of the opinions because they kind of cancel each other out, and the psych-ed is kind of old. My grandma has always thought I have AS instead of NVLD (my grandparents are my caregivers), and she said we might want to ask my psychiatrist about testing me for an ASD, as it would probably get me more services in college, as well as long term, as we worry about housing and possible group homes for when my grandparents can no longer care for me... There are not a lot of group homes for the mentally ill here, but there are more for adults with ASDs. I had a psychiatrist that once said it was likely I had AS, but that she did not have the time it would take to test me for it. I made an appointment with a psychologist to have a psych-ed done again, and testing for an ASD... For those of you who don't know what NVLD is, it stands for Nonverbal Learning Disorder. It's very similar to AS, with the differences of no restricted interest, no stimming, and no real problems with eye contact. The only thing is, I do have problems with eye contact, I play with my hair or fingers when nervous or excited (not sure if that counts as stimming), and I am totally obsessed with the minions from Despicable Me.. Lol. Everything in my room is minions, every movie I watch is minions, if someone will listen, I will talk about minions. Before that it was Law and Order: SVU.. I still have all the DVDs to almost the whole series, up until I lost interest. And before that, American Idol. I talked about it so much at school, people would draw pictures of me and American Idol people.. In a mocking sort of way, but I had no idea then, my grandma had to point it out. When I was little it was always some Disney movie. I'd watch the movie until it broke, have all the plush dolls and toys for it.. But I'd just rein act the movie or line up the toys the way I wanted to.

I have problems with people touching me, but I bite myself or scratch myself when upset because I don't know how else to communicate how I feel, and I feel no real pain from it. I don't understand sayings, although I can be sarcastic at times. I have no idea how to read facial expressions, the psychologist that did my original psych-ed said I tested at a very low level for that. I only have two friends, and they both know about my.. erm.. "problem", and even then we sometimes clash and I question the need to even have them as friends. But the psychologist said these can all be because I have NVLD (they never tested me for AS/Autism...)

I'm just wondering... I live in Canada, and because I am now an adult, I have to pay for these assessments from the psychologist. Do you think it's worth paying for the Autism testing? It's about $3,100... I did the math...

My grandma seems to think I may have Autism, what used to be known as AS, but I thought I'd ask, does any of this sound like you or your children, or should I not bother with the testing?

 

[wyverary]

NVLD and AS are not mutually exclusive...I am diagnosed with both, and they can be co-morbid with many other disorders as well (though I'm not the resident psych expert, haha). If I were you, I would see what your college disability before you do anything.

Welcome to the forums!

 

[Minion]

Thanks wyverary. I was in college for a few days before dropping out last semester (it was just too much stress) and the accommodations were very minimal and not very helpful. My therapist used to be a teacher, and she said that unfortunately NVLD isn't recognized as much, and that a diagnosis of AS might get me more services.

 

[Judge]

Do you think it's worth paying for the Autism testing? It's about $3,100... I did the math...

If your goal is to secure tangible benefits and services to aid you, that's the only thing that I believe would justify such an expense. Of course there are no guarantees. At best you can consider it a "personal investment" with a potential payoff.

 

[Minion]

Judge, I have an inheritance from my father that I have to use before I can return to receiving disability support funds, and they would consider this expense legitimate (I have to justify all the money I spend) I am hoping the testing along with the psych-ed will at least result in an accurate diagnosis that will get me some sort of help that will actually get me through school, this time... And perhaps even after school...

 

[Judge]

Judge, I have an inheritance from my father that I have to use before I can return to receiving disability support funds, and they would consider this expense legitimate (I have to justify all the money I spend) I am hoping the testing along with the psych-ed will at least result in an accurate diagnosis that will get me some sort of help that will actually get me through school, this time... And perhaps even after school...

Under the circumstances I'd consider that a means to an end. Especially with school in mind. That you are your own investment. It's just that the real risk factor remains in the hands of whomever evaluates you.

 

[Minion]

Um, sorry, what does "means to an end" mean?

 

[Judge]

Um, sorry, what does "means to an end" mean?

It means using your inheritance as a financial resource to fund a diagnosis is a viable solution to your problem, as long as you accept and understand the risk of possibly not being diagnosed for ASD or something else. That IMO it's worth the risk.

If such a diagnosis can help you through school in some capacity and perhaps later in life, that strikes me as a good thing.

Of course not just anyone can necessarily benefit from such a diagnosis. It depends on many things...but in your case it does appear that it could work to your advantage. It's just my opinion based on what you have posted.

 

[Minion]

Yes, I understand that. I was diagnosed with Nonverbal Learning Disorder when I was 16, I'm not sure if that would have changed. I just did a psych-ed then, though, not a test for an ASD.

 

[Ste11aeres]

It sounds really pricey and I can't help wondering if you might have more necessary uses for that money.

 

[Minion]

It sounds really pricey and I can't help wondering if you might have more necessary uses for that money.

Yes, college. But there's definitely more than enough for both. And I use it to pay for my medications, clothing, luxury items like iTunes cards or video games, etc.

 

[Judge]

It really comes down to how you perceive the value of the benefits you seek as a result of a diagnosis that could confirm you have ASD.

Could you see yourself getting through school without such benefits? Do you see yourself being employed without any financial assistance or disability considerations?

 

[Minion]

It really comes down to how you perceive the value of the benefits you seek as a result of a diagnosis that could confirm you have ASD.

Could you see yourself getting through school without such benefits?

I was in college for about a week or two with the diagnoses ADHD, Schizoaffective, and NVLD and I couldn't do it. It was too much stress. In fact, I ended up in the hospital because my grandparents were then saying I had to go to school or I had to find a group home to live in again, and I crumbled under the stress. Started hearing things again.

I was told in high school that if I was diagnosed with an ASD, I would qualify for an EA (Educational Assistant) and full special education services (which included breaks from the classroom, going to the special ed room when I felt overwhelmed) I qualified in my last year of high school because I was a safety risk, and I did much better. I'm not sure if I'd get through school or not, I did get through a bit of high school.

 

[Judge]

I was in college for about a week or two with the diagnoses ADHD, Schizoaffective, and NVLD and I couldn't do it. It was too much stress. In fact, I ended up in the hospital because my grandparents were then saying I had to go to school or I had to find a group home to live in again, and I crumbled under the stress. Started hearing things again.

I was told in high school that if I was diagnosed with an ASD, I would qualify for an EA (Educational Assistant) and full special education services (which included breaks from the classroom, going to the special ed room when I felt overwhelmed) I qualified in my last year of high school because I was a safety risk, and I did much better. I'm not sure if I'd get through school or not, I did get through a bit of high school.

It seems to me your pursuit of such services would be worth the risk of investing in a formal diagnosis for ASD to have a real chance at a good education where your conditions could be accommodated to some degree.

Others have posted of similar issues...maybe Dizzy will see this thread and give some real input far better than mine. Of course how much educational institutions might accommodate students is likely to vary greatly, especially given you are in Canada as opposed to the US.

 

[Minion]

It seems to me your pursuit of such services would be worth the risk of investing in a formal diagnosis for ASD to have a real chance at a good education where your conditions could be accommodated to some degree.

Others have posted of similar issues...maybe Dizzy will see this thread and give some real input far better than mine. Of course how much educational institutions might accommodate students is likely to vary greatly, especially given you are in Canada as opposed to the US.

Well thank you for your input I just want something to occupy my time that will not cause me a great deal of stress. And hopefully help me obtain a job a few days a week after graduation.

 

[Vanilla]

If you feel you could really benefit with your studies with a diagnoses, it could be well worth it. You seem to possess some AS traits, but if you are worried still (which is understandable, considering the cost for an assessment), perhaps it would be beneficial to do a little more research in to AS.

When I was unsure about my self-diagnoses, I had the same issue with being worried about the high cost of an official diagnoses (haven't had one yet, but hope to one day). When I called a diagnostic centre up enquiring, they advised me that if I wanted answers first, I should take a look at a few books:

http://www.bookdepository.com/Aspergirls-Rudy-Simone/9781849058261

http://www.bookdepository.com/Pretending-be-Normal-Liane-Holliday-Willey/9781853027499

Perhaps these will help you too; I definitely recommend the first one

 

[Vanilla]

If you feel you could really benefit with your studies with a diagnoses, it could be well worth it. You seem to possess some AS traits, but if you are worried still (which is understandable, considering the cost for an assessment), perhaps it would be beneficial to do a little more research in to AS.

When I was unsure about my self-diagnoses, I had the same issue with being worried about the high cost of an official diagnoses (haven't had one yet, but hope to one day). When I called a diagnostic centre up enquiring, they advised me that if I wanted answers first, I should take a look at a few books:

http://www.bookdepository.com/Aspergirls-Rudy-Simone/9781849058261

http://www.bookdepository.com/Pretending-be-Normal-Liane-Holliday-Willey/9781853027499

Perhaps these will help you too; I definitely recommend the first one

 

[Minion]

If you feel you could really benefit with your studies with a diagnoses, it could be well worth it. You seem to possess some AS traits, but if you are worried still (which is understandable, considering the cost for an assessment), perhaps it would be beneficial to do a little more research in to AS.

When I was unsure about my self-diagnoses, I had the same issue with being worried about the high cost of an official diagnoses (haven't had one yet, but hope to one day). When I called a diagnostic centre up enquiring, they advised me that if I wanted answers first, I should take a look at a few books:

http://www.bookdepository.com/Aspergirls-Rudy-Simone/9781849058261

http://www.bookdepository.com/Pretending-be-Normal-Liane-Holliday-Willey/9781853027499

Perhaps these will help you too; I definitely recommend the first one

I've read a little bit about it. I used to have a book comparing AS to NVLD for teens from when I was first diagnosed with NVLD. I know a little bit about it from there. I also took the RAADS-R online a while ago. I got 187.0.

 

[Loomis]

$3100 sounds high to get a diagnosis. I went to the autism society two years ago and spoke with a PhD counselor for about an hour and she was able to diagnose me based upon our conversation and a multiple choice test. I do not know how much the bill was because it was covered by insurance but based on the time and effort spent on me I suspect it was likely under $1000.

 

[Minion]

$3100 sounds high to get a diagnosis. I went to the autism society two years ago and spoke with a PhD counselor for about an hour and she was able to diagnose me based upon our conversation and a multiple choice test. I do not know how much the bill was because it was covered by insurance but based on the time and effort spent on me I suspect it was likely under $1000.

I called a few days ago and inquired about the testing, and they said the Autism test would be two hours long and cost $300. It's the psych-ed that's going to be very expensive... It requires three, two hour appointments. As well as an appointment to discuss all the results. I don't have insurance, so unfortunately none of it will be covered.