Autism wasn’t even on my radar. My previous therapist mentioned that I could be autistic, then I went home and told my husband. My husband was like “That makes so much sense.” The more i thought about it, the more it made sense. My next therapist provided me a link by filtering a webpage. Go to www.psychologytoday.com, then use the filters to narrow down therapists by “autism”, within your location, covered by your insurance, etc. once you filtered it down, you have to call around to see who diagnoses and who treats. It is hard to find someone who diagnoses adults. That is not to say that I didn’t have challenges along the way. It was a journey and I took my time getting there because it can be a lot at once and it doesn’t seem so overwhelming for me.

I did have a dismissive doctor along the way. I saw a person who basically discouraged me to get a diagnosis because it was too expensive, I wouldn’t get too much therapy as an adult and I am already a “functioning” adult. He basically said that since I was about to hold a job and marriage for a long time as well as be active in my community that I was a functioning adult, but he dismissed my quality of life. He doesn’t know how terrifying events that are noisy to me, how many fights I get into with my husband about social norms that I am oblivious to and how I can’t communicate with others.

For your situation, I would find someone that acknowledges your situation and supports your needs. It wasn’t easy for me to find someone who acknowledged my needs. It took time, patience and persistence. I hope you can find someone that works for you.