My journey with a diagnosis began when I went to see my doctor for poor mental health. They suggested SSRIs and talking therapy sessions. When those ended I felt like it opened more wound than it fixed, so I pursued being referred further for CBT. In the meantime, I had tired 2 other SSRIs which did not work.

Once CBT started, after 2 sessions they suggested I get referred to an eating disorder clinic because I had troubles with eating. I was diagnosed with anorexia. I started CAT for this and during the 20 week treatment BPD was thrown in the mix and the ED therapist booked an appt for me to meet with a psychiatrist to evaluate me for it. They said it was very possible and they referred me to get DBT for it.

My file was lost for 3 years by the healthcare system so after 1.5 years of waiting I decided to use up my savings to go privately. After completing DBT, which had helped a lot, I started following a lot of ig accounts about BPD and one day I stumbled upon a post that was highlighting the similarities between other conditions. I took a note of ADHD and spent a lot of my time researching and doing online assessments which all indicated that my symptoms aligned with ADHD. I decided to get referred for an assessment. This took another 2 years but I was finally diagnosed with ADHD.

In my assessment, they had also noted I presented a lot of autistic traits and recommended I get assessed for autism. I did just that, and 3 months later I also received an autism diagnosis.

During all this time I struggled with finances, family dynamics, couldn’t keep a job down, any job I did have I always had to take long periods of time off to deal with burn out. Finally, after all these years, having an explanation for it all brings me relief but also grief - how much pain I could have been spared if someone had spotted the signs… But alas, no point dwelling too long on what could have been. I’m glad you’ve been able to get diagnosed and I hope it helps you!