Case Study Rowan

My name is Rowan and I came to Enfold just after my autism diagnosis.

Rowan shares their experience of being a young person finding the World a difficult place to be part of before receiving their Autism diagnosis and accessing the EnFold free Autism Support Service and YAPP support groups for young people in Northamptonshire.

As soon as I received my official diagnosis, I booked an appointment with my GP. I understood that this might not be an everyday occurrence and explained exactly what it was about so they could prepare for it accordingly. I also sent in a pre-diagnostic assessment and my diagnosis letter from my Psychologist. I needed advice and support regarding a condition requiring specialists and what my next steps should be. In the space of two weeks I had three conversations with two GPs. Only at the beginning of my third conversation was when they had actually looked at the information I had sent in! After the end of that last conversation, I had still not received any advice or support. I have since felt obligated to make a formal complaint about my treatment and I have moved GP surgeries.

Due to years of living without a diagnosis and developing subsequent physical and mental health comorbidities, I have unfortunately suffered from suicidal thoughts habitually, on a daily basis since I was a child. It has been the second of two logical last resorts for me. My first was to section myself as I believed I was going or had actually gone clinically insane. The other was to end my life to escape this torture. After going through this ordeal with my GP surgery I was left to feel completely worthless, alone and literally helpless. The urge to take my own life had never been so serious.

En-Fold’s service leaflet was given to me a day after that last call by Rebecca, Northampton IAPT, for which I will forever be grateful. I truly believe it saved my life. Just the content gave me a pang of hope, something I had genuinely not felt since I was a child. After my extensive research into what are considered beneficial steps to take for an adult with a late diagnosis of Asperger’s, the information was literally life changing for me. I instantly contacted Diane and have been having sessions with her since.  If anything I now believe that receiving an official diagnosis of ASC has given me the ability to focus my research and self learning. Basically, guiding me to the doors I need to walk through in order to proactively move forward with my life. En-Fold and Diane are giving me the keys to open these doors and walk through them informed and with confidence.

Feeling positive about anything that revolves around me is something that I am not familiar with, in the slightest! I look forward to each session and cannot wait to see how, together, we can help me discover me and work towards creating a more positive life for myself.

Apart from offering this much needed service for myself, my wife is also receiving support from En-Fold and Diane. This is muchly appreciated as the lack of support she was feeling had negative effects on her health too. The level of support she is now exposed to is helping her combat these issues positively and with success.