Caught my "resting me face" while getting ready for a call. Oops. It's been about three weeks since I received my autism diagnosis and I've been trying to figure out how and why I feel different about myself. Because I do feel very different, and it's mostly really great. Aside from everything else, it's a … Continue reading A Different Kind of Imposter Syndrome
Category: DIagnosis Process
The journey to an ASD diagnosis
Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 4 (The Diagnosis)
If you've been following along with the Baby Steps series (or longer than that), you can maybe imagine the buildup to my results appointment. It took about four weeks following my in-person testing -- I was expecting three weeks, so that extra week was painful and I did end up sending a check-in email in … Continue reading Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 4 (The Diagnosis)
Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 3
Following my intake interview, I had some homework to complete before the in-person testing. These were the four questionnaires I was assigned: An online quiz made up of maybe 400 true/false statements. This was the most difficult, since so many of them were judgments or used vague wording or wording so absolute that I wasn't … Continue reading Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 3
Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 2
"I'm seeing a lot of anxiety here." Yeah, that's how you want to start an assessment. But it was true. After close to a year putting these pieces together for myself, it was finally time to present them to an authority on the subject in the hope of validation, which could then lead to some … Continue reading Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 2
Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 1
These are all rolling a little late, since it's been tough to write and edit and publish. Big happenings on the diagnosis front, along with the rest of life, so finding moments of calm has been a bit tricky. I have an appointment for my autism assessment! Two, actually, with a third one TBD. It … Continue reading Baby Steps to Diagnosis: Part 1
While I Wait: The Consideration of Labels
I'm still writing from a place of self-assessment. Three months ago, I called and got myself on the waitlist at the AARTS Center at Rush, and then one week ago I called to check in, leaving a message that has not been returned. That's frustrating. I was told it would be 6-9 months before I … Continue reading While I Wait: The Consideration of Labels
A Bit of Limbo: Between Self-Assessment and Professional Diagnosis
It's been about a month and a half since I took my first neurodiversity quiz and began researching autism, particularly in women. In one sense, I'm very comfortable with the "autism" label, like if a professional told me I am autistic with a side of OCD, I wouldn't be upset. But at the same time, … Continue reading A Bit of Limbo: Between Self-Assessment and Professional Diagnosis
Ohhhhhh…
That thing where you notice a bunch of neurodiverse/divergent/atypical characters on TV shows and movies and they sort of trigger all these things from your life like ticks and habits you trained yourself out of and things you find comfort in and things that bother you but not other people and then also things doctors … Continue reading Ohhhhhh…
Delightfully Quirky 