You may beg to differ, but I have a serious problem with the DSM. If you disagree, with me don't be afraid to share your opinion. I have not always had a label that fit in the DSM, nor did I have one for most of my life. I didn't get diagnosed with an anxiety disorder until I was in 9th grade, neither did I get diagnosed with aspergers until I was 16. Before that I had a diagnosis that went by the name "nonverbal learning disorder", which pretty much meant nothing other than I had trouble with social skills. It was basically the "fake" aspergers diagnosis' of my time. Ooh wow that makes me feel old!!! Anyway, now that I have a "label", I have been provided many vital services that, if I didn't have, I probably wouldn't be where I was today.
Let me start off by sharing with you all where I was before I had any diagnosis. Before my original diagnosis, I would have a tantrum if furniture was moved, there was a thunderstorm, there were sirens, there were stuffed animals, something was cancelled, and if I didn't get the pizza I wanted. (the pizza is a whole different story). Not only this, but I had significant trouble, with activities of daily living, routines and social skills. I was then given the diagnosis of ADD and put on medicine, which made my brain go haywire. Needless to say it was bad.
I distinctly remember having this diagnosis back in third grade. At that point, I didn't know anything was wrong with me other than seizures. This was a vital time because it was a time of enormous growth in social and emotional maturity. This was the year where I got my first "group" assignment and my first "paper" to write. It was a research paper on the state of florida since I have grown up going to disney. You can thank my parents for that one. Once I was put on the medication, I started having major tantrums. I eventually got off the medication and I was fine.
Next on the list of diagnosis' was Sensory Processing Disorder, which from what I understand is not in the DSM either because a psychologist i work with doesn't know what it is specifically since its not int he DSM or so she tells me. I'm not sure what type of sheltered world she lives in. Here nor there, I was tested for that when Iw as in fourth grade by an occupational therapist. She did the evaluation, but nothing added up to anything significant. Then it was on to the next thing, Nonverbal Learning Disorder. This is where you are supposed to say, but you are very verbal. Oy Vey, please don't do that. It purely means i have trouble with the nonverbal cues.
Once I hit ninth grade, I was finally put with a psychiatrist who treated my anxiety and a psychologist who treated my "nonverbal learning disability" who I still feel has know one I can compare to because she is so amazing. She originally told me I definitely didn't have aspergers. I then replied by asking why exactly she didn't think I had this. The first thing out of her mouth (correct me if i'm wrong because i know your reading this) was that the biggest distinction with aspergers is a preoccupation or a perseveration on something. I then replied, trying to come up with an excuse for that and trying to convince her by saying that I perseverated on learning about disabilities, which is very true. She has learned her lesson since then and now knows me well enough to quit talking about myself in medical terms.
I eventually started having some more issues and tantrums started coming back. My parents made a separate appt by themselves and without me where they discussed there concerns. What exactly went on during this appt, I'm not really sure, but something came out about whether I had aspergers or not. Dr. H as I shall name her told my parents that I wasn't the poster child for aspergers or NLD, but I needed better services to succeed. She said that she knew I could as long as I had the right supports. we finally got through the testing and I now have aspergers.
Today I am happy aspie as everyone calls me. I have a future ahead of me. I have dreams that I know I can achieve. I want to be an occupational therapist so I can give back to children with special needs and make there experiences better than my own. I want more people to be like Dr. H, but they are just not. I no longer have tantrums if a piano lesson is cancelled. I no longer have a tantrum if I hear a siren and I no longer have a fear of thunderstorms. I am able to travel better than before, and I am able to balance my own FLEXIBLE schedule, probably more than my parents. I might even have a great public speaking career in my future as I have already gotten small engagements. Thank you LInda and Sharon.
Now on to the nitty gritty stuff. My mother and I go around and tell everyone about all the progress I am and how happy I am. It may sound like bragging since not everyone is going to be the same. We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. We all do better with some treatments better than others and i seemed to find the right ones as a teenager. Now that I look back, I was going down a scary path before I had help and before I even realized it. Now that I look back I made so much progress, but if it weren't for my diagnosis' I don't know where I would have been.
As of 2013, aspergers AND pdd-nos will vanish from the DSM. They are erasing this diagnosis so people with autism can get better services. They are moving aspergers into a category called social and communication disorder which is a brand new catch all; they thought autism was a catch all before. I didn't really have a choice, but to make my own opinion about this whole situation. I had mixed opinions and just like politics, no one is right and no one way is right so I really couldn't argue, but now I feel the obligation to do so. I now think that people with mental illnesses and neurological disorder should be on the board to create the new DSM.
I wasn't sure what this change would hold for me. I was going to make my voice heard and let people know that I may be confused, but this was still in the works. As it has solidified, its gotten worse for me. Not only are they taking these out, but they are adding a broken heart as a diagnosis and nail biting as a diagnosis. NAIL BITING REALLY???? They are adding nail biting as an obsessive-compulsive disorder. The clinical criteria is enough biting to cause an infection. That's like saying scraping your knee as a kit automatically means that you are mentally ill because you impair your body by causing a scratch or infection from what bacteria gets under the skin.
This really upsets me. I don't mind having depression as a diagnosis. I think it is vitally important to have that diagnosis and treat it. i also don't mind you calling a broken heart depression. What gets me is that they are denying individuals with aspergers the services that have helped me through my life because its too broad yet they are putting a broken heart and nail-biting in the diagnostic manual.
The manual is to exclude those without mental illnesses and provide treatment to the most needy. Those with autism are more needy then those with aspergers and I do agree on that. People who have lost a loved one may need treatment for depression and grievance, but they don't have a broken heart and it has to be an impairment to daily living. That is purely adding to the dsm instead of subtracting from the dsm. Clearly psychiatrists can't do math. I guarantee that once you put nail-biting into the manual you will have 90% of kids in a psychiatrists office getting medications filled on a regular basis. And you thought that we were over diagnosing aspergers and ADHD. You thought we were over diagnosing mental illness too. I didn't know what to think then, but no your really sliding on thin ice peeps. If people think your overdiagnosing, I don't know what they will think of you in the future.
People with aspergers and autism should all get services, but if you think too many people are getting diagnosis' don't put nail biting into the dsm.
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