Starting the diagnostic journey..
Hi! I have been experiencing symptoms which have been getting worse over the last few years - I have seen consultants for various tests relating to those individual symptoms, all of which have been negative. I leave each and every time hearing that there’s definitely something going on, but nothing more they can specifically test for. I hadn’t, unfortunately, realised that these symptoms when combined could be an autoimmune condition until my Sister was diagnosed with Dysautonomia and I was reading up on it. Suddenly I was like wait, I have had so many of these issues for years??? Baffled that it wasn’t ever mentioned, but understand that individually it may be hard for one consultant to know.
So, I guess I’m wondering where to begin with it all - is it best to almost self diagnose and be prepared to ask for specific tests that may discount or pick up which condition (if any) I may have, or have you just reached out to a GP with all the symptoms you have and hope they know where to send you? I also *strongly* suspect I have Autism, but trying to get diagnosed in the UK is a whole other battle, and I feel very anxious about starting this journey and having to constantly explain how I feel to various consultants/not being listened to, so hoping it may help me to hear other people’s experiences first to know how best to navigate?
Thanks in advance!