524
What was it like for you? (piefed.cdn.blahaj.zone)
submitted 2 months ago by to c/autism@lemmy.world
39 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 21 points 2 months ago (7 children)

Kinda disappointing. Like the therapist saying or more like confirming you're on the spectrum was kinda redundant. Yeah sure, ok. Now what?

I'm still going to have to use all the compensatory methods. I'm still going to have to do all the social and emotional side manually. Like dafuq did i throw my money at you, no offense to the therapist.

Brain implants don't exist yet to fix or aid with my issues. Neither can we do any surgery to rewire the brain. I'm going to go out of this office and still have to deal with the same issues. What was the point even?

Yeah this did kinda put me off of therapy for the foreseeable future. Way too much like shooting in the dark to justify the resources it takes, time and money. So at least it did something.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 7 child comments
    •
  • [–] 18 points 2 months ago (3 children)

    Confirmation is one step in being able to solve / correct behavior and build workarounds.

    Acceptance is a big step for a lot of people, as is the feeling of solidarity.

    Now they know what to research for "life-hacks" on how to interact with and live within the world that isn't designed for people like us.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 3 child comments
    •
  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    And it can help rewrite the techniques you have built to function in society (‘masking’) towards something more comfortable and less energy consuming.

    A friend of mine got diagnosed in her 20s, when she went in burnout and couldn’t get over it because any social situation was overwhelming. Learning methods to handle social situations -less masking, more awareness of her limits, searching for clearer boundaries and much more I am not privy to- helped her tremendously and she is blossoming.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
    •
  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago

    I can’t imagine not masking at work. It’s so ingrained that I don’t know what “not masking” in a professional setting would even look like. When I’m alone I don’t mask, obviously, but when I’m alone I’m also not talking to anyone. So there’s no facial expression or tone of voice to monitor.

    I’ve had way, way too many bad experiences related to not masking. Too much punishment, too many baseless accusations, too many authority figures confusing flat tones of voice with “sarcasm” or “rudeness.” The idea of not masking in a professional setting is as scary as showing up to work naked.

    It’s cool that some people are finding ways to reduce masking, but I can’t fathom what I could do instead. From what I’ve experienced, the world still isn’t ready for full autism acceptance.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago

    Completely fair and I'm not denying it's overall usefulness. Way too many people have found it helpful to deny it.

    I just got diagnosed late enough that i already had developed most of the necessary compensatory methods to deal with my day to day life.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago

    I'm in my 40s. I got my ADHD diagnosis this year. For me, it was validation, and was worth the money I spent on it to be able to say: "Yes, my brain has trouble with these things and I have to work differently than others."

    I imagine it's the same for ASD. Having someone else confirm you struggle with certain things is, in its own way, empowering.

    I don't know that "Therapy" therapy, or even medication, is always necessary afterwards. I don't plan to get meds for my ADHD, or get regular therapy sessions. I developed my own coping strategies and I've been fine for years and years; if I had been failing to hold a job or relationship, then therapy might be helpful to teach me strategies. The desire for me was to have someone else, who has training and knowledge more than my WebMD queries, tell me that I am correct in understanding my own body and everyone else is weird.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 3 points 2 months ago (1 child)

    I still find therapy useful as an ASD adult. However, it certainly costs a lot and if you cannot spare the cash I totally get it. I get mine partly funded by the Australian government. I am genuinely grateful to the taxpayers for this privilege.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
    •
  • [–] 2 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

    Yeah the time and money cost associated with it are the biggest factors in making it less worth than its helping, even though I'm not in US. Local healthcare system is just barely functioning and US style private healtcare system has emerged.

    Being cheaper and more accessible would most definitely put less pressure on it to justify its cost.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent