Misdiagnosed by Wendy Handley--PsychRights Horror Stories

MisDiagnosed
by Wendy Handley

I’m a 63 year old women that has spent a life time of being miss diagnosed. In 2007 I got a correct diagnoses of having Aspergers after a life time of incorrect diagnoses, I was so happy when I found out I was a aspi not this person that the doctors said I was. I’ve being trying to get my medical records amended but just won't happen because to amend my records they would have to admit that they had got it wrong.

In 1995 I had a breakdown after memories of being raped by 6 men when I was 18yrs. I couldn’t handle what I was reliving and tried to kill myself by taking a overdose of sleeping pills, I was admitted to a lock up ward and when I was coming to, the doctor that had prescribed them for me was vocally abusing me. "How dare I," were his words. All I wanted was him to disappear. I spent a week in this ward, being interrogated by half a dozen doctors daily. No one was even talking about my memories of being raped. It was all about what drug to give me.

I didn’t want to go on drugs as they had never helped in the past with depression. They always made it worse. As soon as I got in the open ward I checked myself out as I didn’t feel they were helping as they didn’t seem to want to talk about the rape that I had gone through. Their attitude was I should deal with it as it was so long ago and just forget about it, so for 15years I saw many different doctors all giving me different diagnoses. In the end I ended up with quite a list, I ended up very sick and had a blood test done which showed I had a severe mineral diffiancy I had a reading of .002 Magnesium. I was running on empty. I shook so bad they thought I had Parkinsons. I even had an appointment with a neurosurgeon. After getting the blood results I went to see a nutritional specialist who put me on Trace minerals, B vitamins and some herbs. I stopped shaking after 12hours and have never looked back. I felt I was reborn. I felt so well and wanted to tell the world. My doctor's reaction was that I had wasted my money and only needed a Borroco. He got angry with me spending $165.00. I couldn’t understand why he wasn’t happy for me. I felt on top of the world untill I saw him. That was the last time I saw him.

It has been nearly 10 years since I started improving my health and have not looked back. I have cured asthma and depression. I have had no return visits to the pych ward or had to see any doctors for my mental health. I see a psycologist who is helping me understand my aspergers and how to improve my life through talking about it. She has helped so much. I don’t understand why the doctors hadn’t worked out I was an Aspi. When I was diagnosed I was only in the room 10 minutes. When the pychologist that diagnosed me said "you are so Aspi," so why had all these specialists not worked out that I had Aspergers?

I have been trying to get my medical records amended and have asked for a copy of my medical records. There were lots of nurses, conversations, blood tests, lots of opinions by nurses, but no doctors records. I asked why and the admin people told me they couldn’t give them to me as it could be dangerous to the doctors?????????????? I have never been violant in my life and don’t understand why I carn’t see them.

Since being diogosed with Aspergers I have read all I can about it and it has given me many answers about my life. the trouble I had when I was young, and the problems I had at school, but it has also given me many answers about who I am and why I am like I am. It was hard growing up having a schziod mother and an Aspi father. My mother got sick when I was about 7yrs old and I had to raise 3 brothers and look after the family home, not that I did that well at it but I did my best for a 7yr old. Our house was like how dirty is your house well ours was very bad. I was scared for my life, mum tried to chop me up with an axe when I was about 10yrs old. I was good at climbing trees and it saved my life.

I’ve been an artist most of my life and loved garderning. I’m a potter at the moment and started the mental health pottery group. I even won volunteer of the year. That made me proud. I often think how different life would have been it doctors and teachers had understood about Aspergers. It answered to me the difficulties that I had at school, not being able to make friends, but also in later life. There is a lot more to my story. The thing I want most in life is to have my Aspergers recognised and all these incorrect diagnoses corrected.