Getting an autism diagnosis isn't as simple as making an appointment with your pediatrician, but that is where it starts. Your pediatrician can refer you to the medical professionals in your area that can diagnose your child.
Your pediatrician will refer you to one of the following:
Psychologist
Child Psychiatrist
Developmental Pediatrician
Pediatric Neurologist
OUR STORY
In our area, there was one child psychologist able to give a diagnosis. When our child psychologist's office called, they had us scheduled for an appointment in December. It was February. You read that right: a 10 month wait. Despite the high demand, people do cancel their appointments, so we asked to be put on a waiting list. We also reached out to other professionals in surrounding areas. We had actually made an appointment with a child psychiatrist in a neighboring state, where we would have had to pay our of pocket, but we were desperate. Fortunately, we were able to get an appointment with out local psychologist in May, and we cancelled our out-of-state appointment.
We had 3 separate visits with our child psychologist. The first appointment is a consultation. We shared our concerns and answered questions from our child psychologist. If you have taken the M-CHAT with your child, you should be prepared to answer most of these questions. On our second visit, our son was evaluated for over an hour. On the third visit, our child psychologist reviewed his evaluation and we recieved our diagnosis.
We walked out with a 4 page diagnosis and a post-it note with contact info for two therapists. We only had a vague idea of our next steps, but that diagnosis was the key to so many more services that our son needed.
NEXT STEPS
Review the M-CHAT to prepare yourself to answer questions from your doctor.
Make an appointment with your pediatrician to discuss your concerns.
Have your pediatrician refer you to a medical professional who can make an autism diagnosis.
If there is a long wait for an appointment, ask to be put on a waiting list for any cancellations.
Don't be afraid to look outside of your area for another professional with open dates.
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