Today, awareness of autism is at an all-time high. As an adult, you may look back on your childhood and realize that you’ve possibly had an autism diagnosis overlooked. If you’re a parent, you may have come to realizations about yourself after observing behaviors in your child. However you’ve come to notice the signs, you may suspect that you have autism. You may be wondering: can I, or should I, be tested for autism?
Adult Autism Diagnosis
It can be challenging for an undiagnosed adult to be evaluated for autism. The standardized diagnostics checklists commonly used for diagnosis were designed for children. While there are no diagnostic criteria that are specific to adults it is still possible to be evaluated as an adult. First consult with your primary care physician, share your concerns and have them rule out any underlying physical or medical conditions for your symptoms. Your physician can then refer you to a psychiatrist or psychologist such as Dr. Quarto for an evaluation.
Why Get Tested?
While you may have been somewhat successful in dealing with autistic behaviors over the course of your life, you may have run into some challenges along the way. A formal evaluation and diagnosis can help you in several ways.
- Work Life – An autistic adult may have difficulty with social interactions including verbal and nonverbal communication. You may have difficulty making eye contact with your boss, make involuntary noises during meetings or have trouble communicating with your co-workers. These behaviors can interfere with your ability to advance your career and reach your desired goals.
- Relationships – Autistic adults can sometimes have trouble making or maintaining friendships or intimate relationships for various reasons (e.g., lack of flexibility; communication challenges; black-and-white thinking).
- Everyday Life – You may have repetitive, obsessive or ritualistic behaviors that are interfering with your daily life or social interactions.
Therapy and some medications are available to help you better manage these behaviors. Getting a diagnosis of autism as an adult can help you find solutions to behaviors that are interfering with your daily life.
Are you or a loved one living with autism (or suspected autism)? Dr. Quarto can help you identify if autism is the real issue via a psychological evaluation as well as helping you develop behaviors & coping methods to live a more satisfying life! : ) Contact him today to set up a psychological evaluation appointment (chris@chrisquarto.com). Appointments can take place in-person or via telehealth.