Who's read 'Age of Diagnosis' (overdiagnosis in Long Covid, ADHD, Lymes, autism, cancer screening)

If you are adult being diagnosed surely you will have decades of problems which you can recount to the psychiatrist.

I am disappointed that checking for a diagnosis of adhd or autism with prisoners doesn’t seem to get mentioned.

If you fail at school I’m not sure how people are supposed to make a living these days.

If you have a low dopamine level due to ADHD you are more likely to drink, smoke, take risks, gamble, take drugs -to think that medication for a few hundred £ a year could fix some of the problems which have prisoners in jail and costing £40,000 a year. But no one seems to be following this up.

The term over diagnosis is absurd. What are we suggesting people are being diagnosed who don’t have the condition they’re diagnosed with? Or that people should live with it and not be diagnosed? I wish this debate would stop.

I actually agree that we need something to replace the old diagnosis of Asperger’s.

IMO the main problem with diverse conditions like autism is what you’re highlighting in your answers - that it’s too easy to dismiss those with less obvious outward struggles and so they get ignored or brushed off as rude, ignorant, weird and annoying.

🤣hysterical. Stereotypical ignorance .If only headphones and a magic tablet was the answer for the huge struggles my dc have.

@L00pl00p

Yes. Because I have fought to have his speech targeted (rather than turn taking stereotypes associated with ASD) and this is now happening. I realised his EHCP was not stating provision correctly, so I basically rewrote it myself. I insisted on the ADOS screening. I’ve researched DLD.
The result is far better provision for DS and the threat of exclusion is no longer there.

Working with people autism doesn’t mean you’re not ignorant. I’ve met many people working with those who have autism who are extremely ignorant ,hence the rolling out of NHS training.

My dc’s autism has a profound impact on their lives involving multiple services, hospital stays and MDT teams- they don’t present in the way you dictate autism should though. Thankfully the professionals in their MDT teams are far more knowledgeable than you.

Unfortunately not surprising and, in my opinion, not unique for her specialty.

many neurologists are expert diagnosticians up to and within the boundaries of their specialist knowledge. Even then, of all the organs, we know the absolute least about the human brain. Amazing as to what is now possible, but still limitations on what can be known and limitations on diagnostic abilities.

It is disturbing when claims and assertions are confidently made about neurological conditions without acknowledging the possibility of error, let alone making commentary on conditions outside medical expertise. Feels like this doctor has made overgeneralisations about ‘psychosomatic’ (or unexplained) illnesses her thing and is running with it in a Julia Hartley Brewer kind of manner.

At best, an inadvertent consequence of her books is encouraging or feeding into a narrative that doctors are never wrong, that there’s no possibility of being un/misinformed, as they are all knowing omniscient beings. At worst, it’s arrogance and contributing to the potential for some medical professionals to further stigmatise patients who are left undiagnosed at the current boundaries of medical knowledge. Medical history ought to be a humbling reminder.

Never said they don't struggle.

Perhaps different diagnosis is required. Autism with ......

The problem I've encountered when with individuals who have severe and massive life changing symptoms, and I mean severe is that everyone knows someone with less impacting Autism. Try a tablet, try headphones (not tolerated by some individuals due to profound sensory overload) even if on many children, it works for them and they are autistic...that lumping of all people diagnosed into the same incorrect assumption

@L00pl00p

Ok, just to point out that I am discussing this with you. I’m not stating things to you such as ‘you make zero sense’. A good discussion is about respecting differing points of view.

You were referring to autism. You can’t get an autism diagnosis in an hour with just a tick box form.

Of course there’s a difference but that doesn’t mean the people who don’t appear to struggle as much are any less autistic 🙄

When people deny what is provable.

Just because they didn't get an hour diagnosis doesn't mean it's made up.

A TA would only be targeting his speech. IEP targets are specific and if a speech therapist is involved they’d be following their advice. How would you change speech difficulties to a stereotype of autism? That makes zero sense.

You’re conveniently ignoring the fact that autism often goes hand in hand with severe learning disabilities - many of the people you describe who need constant care and who can’t function without medication and support have other conditions as well as their autism.

It’s interesting that you display quite a few autistic traits yourself in your responses.

Indeed.

Just because people here say it doesn't happen doesn't make that statement true!

Nope. Worked with many individuals with autism which ranged from smaller impact on their day to day life to profound impact on their day to day life. A massive difference.

I think they were talking about adult ADHD, which is 100% being diagnosed in an hour by numerous private clinics.

Here's just one from a quick Google search, there are many others.

https://www.berkeleypsychiatrists.co.uk/lp/adhd-assessment#book

Adult ADHD assessment - 60-90 minutes.
Virtual - £745, in-person £1,045.

"The assessment typically takes 60 minutes"

So, really not hard and really not that expensive despite what other posters may claim.

This!

All you’re doing is proving that you have absolutely no idea about autism or how the autistic brain works.

Wipe their own bottoms, dress themselves, massive life changing ocd behaviour meaning they cannot hold down any job, aggressive, non verbal, needing 3 to 1 support, very complex and life changing is different from many late diagnosed adults!

Yes - and another trait of autism is black and white thinking, so he sees an autism diagnosis as being an autism diagnosis no matter the impact.

Many people with autism who require constant care also have other conditions as well.

@L00pl00p

I truly don’t think mine was an anomaly or isolated incident.

NHS waiting lists are extremely stretched and I had to wait nearly two years for the ADOS screening.
I firmly believe that - in order to reduce demand - there had been a decision (and I believe this decision was made as a group practice for the area) to remove children from the list who they felt they could diagnose without the need for an ADOS screening.
And this would have happened has I not insisted on the screening.
If you look at DLD v ASD - there is much discussion that the ‘fashion’ for ASD has led to DLD being overlooked : whereas DLD is actually more commonplace than ASD. Yet you rarely hear of DLD.

I think part of the issue is that the ASD spectrum is so broad, and - I think - subjective - that a teacher or teaching assistant can make assumptions about a child.

An unqualified TA does the majority of DS’s interventions. If she is specifically targeting DS’s speech, this will have better outcomes than anything more generalised and associated with a ‘stereotype’ of ASD.

You are though🤣You seem to think your picture of autism trumps the autism experienced by my massively impacted children.

Your preferences don’t thankfully over ride the highly qualified professionals within my dc’s MDT teams either. They have profound and life changing challenges even though they have been able to live alone and hold down jobs at times. Looking after themselves is subjective. Thank goodness there are better informed professionals.