My Adult Autism Diagnosis Experience

After I first realized I was Autistic in late summer 2023, (read that story here), I KNEW deep inside that I would only find closure with an official diagnosis.

I started checking out how other Adult Autistics made it happen, and was not feeling very good about what I was hearing. Turns out, there is a terrible lack of awareness regarding what Autism in adults, especially high-masking females, looks like.

The typical method involves contacting one’s GP, who will then refer them out. There is quite a number of people that had much-less-than-desirable results. It’s not unusual at all to be told that one is not Autistic because they made eye contact or have a job, and even being diagnosed as something else entirely, and prescribed unnecessary medication.

The very nature of Autism typically spurs the one seeking a diagnosis to have exhausted all available resources on Adult Autism Traits, and taken a number of online tests to confirm the suspicion. To have gone through all that, and to just KNOW it deep inside… it can be crushing to be so radically invalidated by the very one that should know and walk alongside us, after going through such a journey leading up to that point.

Another formidable roadblock is the fact that so many places are on a waitlist, sometimes YEARS out, and it is normally in the thousands, out of pocket. This is why so many self-diagnose, and why that is regarded as completely valid in the Neurodivergent community.

Such a prospective future was really scary to me! I didn’t want to go through that with such a driving need inside me to have this diagnosis. It just sounded so horrible. What a tragedy that this is happening to so many.

I feel so fortunate to have had such a warning from my fellow Autistic YouTubers! Their insight and stories have been so invaluable and life transforming. Having a heads up enabled me to go into this armed with the info I needed to make an informed decision.

Given everything I had learned, I went online and I started looking for an online assessment. I discovered a place that immediately seemed right to me. It felt right in my heart and in my soul. It’s called GRASP.org. I wrote them and received a response almost immediately thereafter (which was a great sign).

I received word back from a very kind lady named Jane, who had me do a preassessment questionnaire in a Google forms format. I filled it out and sent it back… I received a response within 24 hours, which stated yes, they would absolutely be willing to do the the assessment.

They asked me which package I would like – they have a number of them available:

• Adult Autism Assessment
• Adult Autism with Full Report and your choice of testing for either ADHD or OCD
• Adult Autism, ADHD, OCD, and PTSD Testing with Full Report and Coaching

As of the time of writing this, they still have very reasonable pricing and wait times.

I knew already that I have c-PTSD, but was interested in the coaching and having the Full Report…. so I opted for the full package. I signed up… and waited. I was really anxious going into this; I had this fear the whole time that I would be told I’m not Autistic, even though I had done all these online tests that say ‘You are absolutely Autistic’.

Shortly thereafter, my first online appointment was scheduled and I was so anticipatory, I could barely contain myself! The timing was something else – it happened to fall on a day we were out of state visiting my mother-in-law. There was a whole lot of trouble leading up to the time; from my phone dying to internet trouble in the house. I literally had to drive into town and purchase a new phone to make the meeting. It was so incredibly stressful! Kate was so kind and calm that I settled down pretty quickly.

There were four video sessions with Kate, spread out across a few months. During that time, I was filling out a number of tests that she emailed me.

The first thing we did was an interview, which was a ‘Psychosocial Assessment Review of Developmental History and Observations’. She asked me a lot of questions, some of the things surprising to me (things regarding family health history and my personal medical history). I wasn’t expecting any of that, but it was okay.

These were the tests she sent me to complete and/or administered in person (virtually), after that initial assessment review:

• ABAS-3 (Adaptive Behavior Assessment System)
• SRS-2 (Social Responsiveness Scale)
• CEFI-Adult (Comprehensive Executive Function Inventory)
• ASRS (Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale)
• BOCS (Brief Obsessive-Compulsive Scale)
• Y-BOCS (Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale)
• PCL-5 (PTSD Checklist for DSM-5)
• LEC-5 (Life Events Checklist 5) & Criterion A
• CAPS-5 (Clinician Administered PTSC Scale for DSM-5)
• KBIT-2 (Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test)

A number of these were emailed to me to complete, and some of them she administered via virtual interview. At the last session, she let me know to expect my full report to come via email, and then we would complete the virtual coaching.

It was really interesting to complete these tests. I had no idea what being OCD really meant and did not think too much of it, but was shocked to see what this disorder entails as I was completing the assessment she emailed me.

The same with ADHD. I never expected to find out that this is something I would receive a diagnosis for. I have a family member that has this and it presents differently, so I never dreamed that this would be part of my picture.

After completing the assessments, it was clear to me that I would likely receive a diagnosis for those as well.

I literally checked my email several times a day until the report came. It took much longer than I expected; a few months. It was excruciating, trying to move through life with THAT dangling out there.

The day finally came when I saw the notification on my phone. I dropped what I was doing and breathlessly opened the email with my report attached. My heart was racing as I quickly read through it. I read it a second time all the way through, savoring the information that was like receiving a name after moving through my entire life without one.

The report was 20 pages long and worth every penny and every bit of time! Oh, the relief and actual joy I felt at receiving this report.

• 299.00 (F84.0) Autism Spectrum Disorder
• 314.01 (F90.2) Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• 300.3 (F42.9) Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• 309.81 (F43.12) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Each diagnosis had supplemental information, and the report was an exhaustive detail of each assessment and interview. There were also letters for my medical file and employer.

I completed my coaching call shortly thereafter, where we discussed the report itself and next steps moving forward.

Having this diagnosis has changed my life for the better! I am seeing my entire life and person through a clear lens where everything falls into place. I can better plan for my future, be a better me within my circle, and understand myself in such a way that I can accommodate my trouble areas in a healthy way.

Having this diagnosis has changed my life for the better!

I am seeing my entire life and person through a clear lens where everything falls into place. I can better plan for my future, be a better me within my circle, and understand myself in such a way that I can accommodate my trouble areas in a healthy way.

This entire experience has given me a voice I never had before….. that is compelled to contribute to the Autism community at large.

RK