The Appointment (Part 2)
The appointment with CAMHS was in the middle of a School morning, so after picking up Top Ender from School, we drove to the hospital. We weren't as nervous as we might have been as we'd done a little research about what would happen in this appointment and knew that someone was going to talk to us and be nosey and ask a million questions.
We sat in the waiting room side by side making silly jokes and trying to relax, when the Nurse, a rather handsome chap, came up to us and invited us into one of the rooms. After reminding Top Ender to say Hello, we sat down and started.
The Nurse told us that at some point, he might ask me to leave the room and talk to Top Ender alone. We were ready for that, but it turned out that I didn't have to, but it was a fair warning and I thought I'd leave it here in case you are reading this looking for information about what could happen at a similar appointment.
The Nurse asked what had brought us to CAMHS. So I explained about how we'd noticed Tic's and how after a while, we'd noticed they went really far back (to when she was a toddler) and how we'd noticed her Anxiety seemed to be off the charts at times.
He listened and made notes and occasionally asked more questions, questions which probed deeper. Questions we didn't realise we had answers to. He asked about Top Ender as a baby, about my pregnancy and her delivery. He asked about her early years, about her family life, about school, friends, activities, things she liked, things she didn't like, things that I didn't even realise would be asked until they were asked and it made perfect sense.
I don't know what it was about this Nurse, but with all his questions instead of clamming up, Top Ender opened up. We cried, we laughed, we sighed. We talked and talked and talked.
And then he explained that he couldn't diagnose Top Ender, but he had three things that he thought she was dealing with that he wanted to diagnose her with, but it would take a little longer and consultation with others before it was official.
Tourettes. Which, obviously we'd gone for and so I was sort of expecting.
Anxiety. Which, we knew was bad but it wasn't until listening to Top Ender explain to the Nurse, that I realised quite how bad she was suffering from it.
And then he said, did I want him to say the third thing.
I knew he was going to say OCD because some of the things Top Ender had described and explained so perfectly were classic OCD symptoms.
So I said, I assume it is better known as a three-letter acronym to which he agreed and I nodded that he could give her the news and tell her she had OCD.
Only he didn't say OCD.
He said ASD.
We sat in the waiting room side by side making silly jokes and trying to relax, when the Nurse, a rather handsome chap, came up to us and invited us into one of the rooms. After reminding Top Ender to say Hello, we sat down and started.
The Nurse told us that at some point, he might ask me to leave the room and talk to Top Ender alone. We were ready for that, but it turned out that I didn't have to, but it was a fair warning and I thought I'd leave it here in case you are reading this looking for information about what could happen at a similar appointment.
The Nurse asked what had brought us to CAMHS. So I explained about how we'd noticed Tic's and how after a while, we'd noticed they went really far back (to when she was a toddler) and how we'd noticed her Anxiety seemed to be off the charts at times.
He listened and made notes and occasionally asked more questions, questions which probed deeper. Questions we didn't realise we had answers to. He asked about Top Ender as a baby, about my pregnancy and her delivery. He asked about her early years, about her family life, about school, friends, activities, things she liked, things she didn't like, things that I didn't even realise would be asked until they were asked and it made perfect sense.
I don't know what it was about this Nurse, but with all his questions instead of clamming up, Top Ender opened up. We cried, we laughed, we sighed. We talked and talked and talked.
And then he explained that he couldn't diagnose Top Ender, but he had three things that he thought she was dealing with that he wanted to diagnose her with, but it would take a little longer and consultation with others before it was official.
Tourettes. Which, obviously we'd gone for and so I was sort of expecting.
Anxiety. Which, we knew was bad but it wasn't until listening to Top Ender explain to the Nurse, that I realised quite how bad she was suffering from it.
And then he said, did I want him to say the third thing.
I knew he was going to say OCD because some of the things Top Ender had described and explained so perfectly were classic OCD symptoms.
So I said, I assume it is better known as a three-letter acronym to which he agreed and I nodded that he could give her the news and tell her she had OCD.
Only he didn't say OCD.
He said ASD.