Our expert clinical team are highly experienced in the diagnostic assessment of autism including those with complex and nuanced presentations. We frequently complete private autism assessments for the LGBTQ+ community and are proud to be a safe space for clients across the broad spectrum of diversity of sexuality and gender identity.
It is important when sharing personal and sensitive details around your life in terms of developmental history, that you feel you can be honest and share without judgement. As part of the assessment, it is necessary to understand your experience of relationships and any specific difficulties you have encountered as a potential neurodivergent individual. From our experience, hiding and masking elements of your life might mean that you have never divulged the whole story of your relationship history to one person and as professionals, we are in a privileged position to support with this. It could be that you are unsure about your gender and sexuality. It could be that you have created a whole different identity and don’t recognise yourself anymore. It could be that you are comfortable with your gender and sexuality and want to feel reassured that you are in the company of likeminded people whilst exploring other elements of your identity. Having therapists who are sensitive and understanding of these challenges is an important part of this process.
Why is it important to provide private autism assessments for the LQBTQ community?
Recent studies have found that autistic people are more likely to identify as LGBTQ than neurotypicals. From our experience of working with the LGBTQ community, it is often the case that there are barriers to accessing autism assessments and this is why private options are pursued. For example, you may have been subject to discrimination, stigma, judgement and marginalisation when accessing services. We understand that you may have faced many negative experiences and want to assure you that accessing a private autism assessment with us can help you rediscover elements or your identity.
At Jo Condon Autism Assessments, we want all out clients to feel welcomed, valued, respected, and supported, regardless of their identity, background, or experiences.
When providing private autism assessment for LGBTQ+ clients we aim to affirm their diversity, remove barriers to participation and ensure that everyone can access and benefit from the service provided. In turn, this helps to promote a sense of acceptance and validation and help reduce feelings of isolation, anxiety, and depression that often result from discrimination and marginalization.
Some LGBTQ+ clients who go through the private autism assessment process report feeling like they are in two minority groups, and they have to “come out twice”. The process can be both scary due to previous experiences of being marginalised and subject of prejudice. However, finding out who you are, regaining understanding and control of who you are can help you to regain your identity, confidence and self-esteem.
How are private autism assessments conducted taking into account LQBTQ+ specific difficulties?
Being autistic means that you may have learnt social norms from those around you. It may be that you feel like you needed to hide who you were, or that you are ‘wrong’ or that there is an element of shame around who you are. This adds to an already present feeling of being ‘different’, being neurodivergent and operating in a neurotypical world. This impacts self-esteem, confidence and mental health. We work with you in the initial stages of the assessment to understand your personal circumstances. It may be for example that you have masked and camouflaged for much of your child and adult life and fear that you don’t have a suitable informant who will be able to provide us with an accurate reflection of your lifelong difficulties. We are able to use assessment tools which rely on you self-reporting and reflecting on your life experiences.
Our commitment to the LQBTQ community whilst providing private autism assessment forms part of our wider Diversity, equity and inclusion commitment. We are passionate about providing private autism assessments to the LGBTQ+ communities and other hard to reach and marginalised people in society. We aim to create an accessible and inclusive service where people of all abilities can access us for assessment. We promote a culture that is inclusive of race, age, ethnicity, nationality and faith.
References:
Warrier, V., Greenberg, D.M., Weir, E. et al. Elevated rates of autism, other neurodevelopmental and psychiatric diagnoses, and autistic traits in transgender and gender-diverse individuals. Nat Commun 11, 3959 (2020).
