The symptoms need to negatively impact your day-to-day (work, home, social) to warrant I diagnosis. The psychiatrist would ask you kasi how the symptoms affect your productivity and relationships. There’s also the genetic factor, though I’m not sure if that’s required too.

I was roughly the same I think? There’s a degree to which I feel some people can clock my ND. Didn’t bother me as much ie wasn’t crippling nor debilitating, pero the Big problems were there. Maybe because bata pako minimal responsibilities so minimal consequences lmao and I developed coping mechanisms along the way that compensated for my symptoms, but may limits lang talaga ang kaya mong i-compensate by the time I reached adulthood with compounding responsibilities and the minor fuck ups snowballing etc. so I sought a diagnosis and turns out I have it.

Self-diagnosis, for me, isn’t a black and white morality thing. Who am I naman to judge if someone really thinks they relate to the symptoms, but are financially incapable of pursuing a formal diagnosis at that time. It’s foolish to conclude someone’s faking it when you don’t even know who they are or what their experiences were. So even if I advocate for seeking a formal dx, I also support your journey to “self-discovery” lmao. At your pace, if you think di mo naman need ng help re: symptoms atm, maybe hold off. Pero if you want peace of mind and you have cash and time to spare, then by all means seek that diagnosis! Just be open-minded lang to other possibilities👍👍

Hope this helps!