Finally been to GP and I have been referred....what now

[sonoonetoldyoulifewasgonnabethisway]

Hi, so after 48 years of not fitting in, feeling different, hurdle after hurdle, self loathing, anxiety, ridiculous rash decision I could not explain, years of debts and hoarding, changing my job every 2-3 year with no explanation why (and lots of transferrable skills 😂because it was always a complete change!) and most of all, years of wondering what was wrong with me and why I think differently to all my friends and family, i bit the bullet and spoke to my GP. She was very good and sympathetic, we discussed ADHD and autism, and she sent me a over an online test to do.......

I have been referred to ADHD 360, through the right to choose on the NHS.

What should I expect next? True to form I need to know every detail and will research the sh*t out of this, but this is one thing I will follow through on if it gives me answers. Be kind.

Bump

You will get an acknowledgment of your referral and they will ask for your details and the details of an informant who can tell them more about you. You will get sent some questionnaires to fill in and your informant will be sent questionnaires too. My mum was my informant and her questionnaire put me below the threshold for diagnosis. I think I scored 18 when I did it and something like 8 when she did it. Eventually you will get an appointment through for your assessment which may be via zoom/teams. Some places tell you the result straight away, others make you wait. Then this will be followed by a written report with details of why they reached the conclusion they did and their recommendations. It took about 8 months from referral to diagnosis with Right To Choose.
I hope it all goes well for you.

Thank you. The only informant I could give them would be mum but she has vascular dementia and alzheimers, can they do one without an informant?

For ADHD my mum only did the questionnaire and I thought at the time that I could have just done it for her and nobody would have been any wiser. They didn’t speak with her at all. They just sent the log in details to her email address (which I have access to as her carer anyway). As your mum has dementia then it’s tricky so I think in your shoes that I’d give her name etc but have the contact details be to a number and email that you have access to. For my ASD appointment I asked to be my own informant and that was fine. There’s a poster on here who is stalled in her diagnosis because she hasn’t got an informant. I’m not one for dishonesty but in your case I would be your own informant either openly or covertly.

My dad did one form- he honestly only wrote a few words. I can't remember if it wad required or not but I got a friend to do one form too. This was with Psychiatry UK. I also had school reports. There's lots of examples of people who don't have school reports and were still assessed and in many cases diagnosed.

I have done my initial onboarding on ADHD 360 and waiting for my appointment, they say it could be as soon as 10 weeks

My DD did my informant's report, and mentioned loads of examples that I thought were completely normal, but which I now see are typical of ASD. As a PP said, it took about eight months from referral to diagnosis, also with Psychiatry UK. It was such a relief to understand why I'd always felr the odd one out. Autism has now become my special interest. Some friends have even told me to stop banging on about it 😂!

Expect to spend the next ten weeks wondering, "What if they say I'm not autistic?". As my DD said to me, she doubts that NT people go around thinking, " What if I'm autistic?"

Yes, I feel like a fraud, I feel like they are going to laugh at me and say there is absolutely nothing wring with you, you are normal

@sonoonetoldyoulifewasgonnabethisway that is a perfectly normal (indeed, usual) reaction. I had it too, even though the more I read about autism and reflected on my behaviour, the more I realised it simply had to be ASD. When I told close friends and a select few colleagues that I was waiting for an assessment, their reaction tended to be a brief pause followed by a thoughtful, "Oh, yes, of course...". One friend even said to me, "I thought you already knew!"

You've got this. You're not wasting their time.

Assessment is booked for 24th October. Anxiety already through the roof.

Update if anyone is interested.

I have 3 types of ADHD, inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive. My medication arrived today and I am going to try in on Monday.

How long did it take for you from seeing docs to referral/diagnosis?

4.5 months from referral to assessment

Hi op I’m just starting the referral process, also right to choose for adhd, do you mind if I ask what you did for an informant in the end please? I don’t have family. Thank you

i hope the meds work out for you