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It found users spoke of having both ADHD and autism, and in some cases were self-diagnosing rather than seeking clinical assessment.
Benefits and risks of social media
Jemima Kang, a graduate researcher at The University of Melbourne, studied the Reddit posts and found emerging patterns.
Experts and advocates warn that while the two mental health conditions could co-occur, they need to be treated separately.
Expensive to diagnose the distinct conditions
“In my early 30s, I got the autism diagnosis first, and had found out other family members had ADHD, and I noticed that both of those conditions apply to me, so when I started seeing a psychiatrist, I asked her if I could be assessed for ADHD,” she told SBS News.
Understanding her diagnosis has helped Erin create strategies to navigate life better. Source: SBS News / Cameron Carr
For Erin, the process of receiving both diagnoses involved separate and expensive evaluations, with some overlap but largely distinct assessments.
“To do an autism diagnosis, usually it’s going through a psychologist who has expertise in the developmental conditions and diagnosing autism, and that can also, if it’s done privately, can cost a lot, and for adults, it’s generally just done privately.”
May said it could be around $1,000 for a single appointment.
Conditions can come with a ‘significant amount of disability’
“Whilst we want to embrace that idea that neurodiversity has got a positive message behind it, it’s crucial to understand that these conditions are very serious, and for a decent proportion of the community, it will come with a significant amount of disability.”
“If somebody has a legitimate diagnosis of ADHD, their life may be vastly improved with the help of medication. So it’s important that we get the diagnosis right so we can get the right support for those people.”
What’s the government doing?
The strategy, which will inform the federal government’s policy approach, will run until 2031 and aims to bring Australia in line with countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada.
