Financial Support for Autistic Adults?

mapleleaf1010

My GP has referred me to a specialist and now I'm on the waiting list to do the autism diagnosis test.

I don't know much about the condition and what kind of support is available. I'm on a very low salary and find it very hard to pay my bills, even though I live frugally.

Any advice most welcome. Thanks.

Tigsteroonie

Entitlement to PIP (personal independence payment) will depend on how the condition affects you, not on receiving a diagnosis.

Govt pages on financial help with a disabiiity here: https://www.gov.uk/financial-help-disabled

mapleleaf1010

Tigsteroonie wrote: »

Entitlement to PIP (personal independence payment) will depend on how the condition affects you, not on receiving a diagnosis.

Govt pages on financial help with a disabiiity here: https://www.gov.uk/financial-help-disabled

Many thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

Once I've been diagnosed, how long does it take to become registered disabled?

poppy12345

mapleleaf1010 wrote: »

Many thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

Once I've been diagnosed, how long does it take to become registered disabled?

There's no such thing now as "being registered disabled"

fishybusiness

PIP is incredibly hard to get for ASD diagnosed in adulthood.

Very true. My partner is ASD and we are waiting a court date to argue our case against the PIP decision.

PIP seems to concentrate on physical disabilities, there seems no space in the questions to accrue points for ASD type life problems.

My partner was diagnosed about 2 1/2 years ago, which for her was a great relief, and on a personal level she was able to come to terms with her 'odd' ways and find reason in her behaviour.

From a perspective of support outside of our home......there is very little. I get support as her carer from a local Carers Association, which helps, and recently (after 2 years of trying) my partner has help from a support worker for going to new places and sometimes with weekly tasks she needs to do.

Financially, she claims ESA and is in the support group. In the last year we have created a business and she comes to work with me when she is able, which helps with social inclusion, self worth etc etc.

I guess what I am saying is that support is thin in the ground, and financial support is even thinner not he ground.

nannytone_2

fishybusiness wrote: »

Very true. My partner is ASD and we are waiting a court date to argue our case against the PIP decision.

PIP seems to concentrate on physical disabilities, there seems no space in the questions to accrue points for ASD type life problems.

My partner was diagnosed about 2 1/2 years ago, which for her was a great relief, and on a personal level she was able to come to terms with her 'odd' ways and find reason in her behaviour.

From a perspective of support outside of our home......there is very little. I get support as her carer from a local Carers Association, which helps, and recently (after 2 years of trying) my partner has help from a support worker for going to new places and sometimes with weekly tasks she needs to do.

Financially, she claims ESA and is in the support group. In the last year we have created a business and she comes to work with me when she is able, which helps with social inclusion, self worth etc etc.

I guess what I am saying is that support is thin in the ground, and financial support is even thinner not he ground.

i too was diagnosed with aspergers fairly recently ( about 7 years ag when i was in my mid 40's)
i was relieved because it explained why i had always been 'odd' and i now don't let my strangeness bother me ( in fact i relish it )

i receive DLA, but i don't even mention the aspergers, i claim because i am blind.

i struggle a bit with adult diagnosed ASD's getting PIP. ( if it's the sole condition)
as although we grow up being a little outside the accepted norm, we managed and formed relationships, and had families ...
yet all of a sudden, because there is a diagnosis, there should be a claim

GlasweJen

I was diagnosed high functioning autism as a child and my most recent PIP application disregarded it as I don't see any doctors for it and don't have any therapies.

nannytone_2

do you think it should have been disregarded? ( as if you don't have enough other issues, that they also ignored)

i don't know if i am wrong with the way i see it, but i feel my aspergers is more of a personality trait rather than an issue.

some people don't form social relationships because they are painfully shy ... does that make shyness a claimable condition?
( im not being glib ... i'm interested)

Tigsteroonie

nannytone wrote: »

i struggle a bit with adult diagnosed ASD's getting PIP. ( if it's the sole condition)

Be cautious with such statements. Autism is a spectrum condition. Whilst those at the more Apergers end may be capable of forming relationships and having families, others towards the other end of the spectrum may not be able to even function without huge levels of support.

nannytone_2

i totally understand that , but surely the fact that we are diagnosed as adults, would seem to indicate that we weren't that far outside the norm growing up?

my mum said that at about age 7, my teacher told her that i was 'a strange little girl' but that i was academically bright and 'tolerated' the other kids quite well.

i struggle with close relationships and only have a handful of friends, who have remained close despite my sometimes offensive ( unintentional) comments.

i haven't made any new friends in almost 10 years, but i also don't feel the need to do so.

i have heard it said that everyone is somewhere on the spectrum, and am inclined to agree, but when it stops being a part of who someone is and starts to become a disability is unclear ... especially in those who aren't diagnosed until they have already passed through all the establishments without too much concern

fishybusiness

Be cautious with such statements. Autism is a spectrum condition. Whilst those at the more Apergers end may be capable of forming relationships and having families, others towards the other end of the spectrum may not be able to even function without huge levels of support.

One of the common issues is that people are diagnosed with depression, bipolar, personality disorder or other conditions when the true diagnosis is ASD. Of course some people do have comorbidities and others do not.

If ASD is the true diagnosis and it is missed, potentially misdiagnosis and medication are wrong, and can affect a persons functioning and life.

So yes, just about coping in society is common, but the correct diagnosis of ASD can be life changing.

On the other side of it, coping can be learnt, and I'm told it can get easier as those with ASD get older. My partner used to claim DLA, which she used to run a car, and also paid for her allotment and garden interests. It was therapeutic for her, still is but without PIP.

but surely the fact that we are diagnosed as adults, would seem to indicate that we weren't that far outside the norm growing up

Go back 20 years and ASD knowledge and diagnosis was in the dark ages compared to what is known now. Many people missed the boat and were called strange, lazy, and misdiagnosed. Perhaps the world is catching up?