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Diagnosing ADHD in adult women

Ziggy1957

Hi all… I have been diagnosed ASD1 (Asperger's) since 2021. I'm currently 66 years old and fighting with my GP surgery for not following through on a recommendation for referral in 2021, 2023 and more recently in early 2024…

It may not seem important to some. Certainly not my GP surgery who seem to think I'm not worth it at my age.

For me, like my autism diagnosis, although I have done online tests and been informally advised by the psychiatrist who diagnosed my autism that I am high likely to be ADHD also, it is important to me to have a formal diagnosis. It helps me to actually know my behaviours are not that of an aging woman but that of an aging woman with ADHD… And I think it's important to others, especially councils and other authority bodies like GPs, to see I have a proven my diagnosis - for their understanding and their fair treatment of me… It's especially important as being a woman I am fed up with the attitude 'well women and girls are known to be highly strung/ over dramatic'… Your thoughts?

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Albus_Alumni

Hi @Ziggy1957 I totally understand the need for a formal diagnosis. I was diagnosed ASD nearly two years ago now, but I'm still fighting for the ADHD assessment, I'm very aware how harder it is for women to get a diagnosis though. It's worth having a quick look at my Right to Choose discussion here as that may be the best route for you now as it could be a fair bit quicker?

Ziggy1957

Thanks so much lovely… I can't do anything, as I always haven't been able to, until my GP agrees to make the referral - which is what I'm arguing about - why haven't they done anything about two professional recommendations…

Right now they say they are 'investigating' - but still no agreement to make a referral - so I can't use Right to Choose until they agree that… I will keep this information though as it will also help me with my argument with my council for disabled banding for council tax...

I am arguing that as an autistic adult woman with a separate room that I and my husband regard, and I use, as my therapy room I qualify for disabled banding… My council have put me through the hoops to prove my assertions… I had to first proved that under the 2010 Equality Act that ASD 'is' classed as a disability as the council refused to accept that it was… Now they say Im not 'the right kind of disabled' and therefore have to prove that I need the room I use as my therapy room is 'needed' - which has meant a lot of emails and detailed information and arguing the council doesn't understand autism - autism in adult women - and rooms used for therapy for the autistic individual, including their special interest as a means of managing stress and overwhelm… I've shown causal link, and correlation evidence, as by my own assertions and as found by online research to better explain what I'm saying… The council say they want a GP or a consultant to support my autism diagnosis report AND my assertions… The GP is ignorant as to autism - and especially in women… The diagnosing psychiatry company who provided the NHS psychiatrist to assess me say they don't provide further support letters and their own report is sufficient enough… The council obviously are ignorant of what a diagnosis means and what the needs of an autistic person are… I am still waiting for the council to finish assessing my assertions to see if I need to go to a Valuation Tribunal. I'm ready for that if I have to… Thank you so much for the link x