In 2016 the hospital acknowledged the harm I went through. This was organized by my psychiatrist who felt it would be reparative. She referred me to another psychiatrist who specializes in ASD for another assessment. It took a lot of convincing to get me to agree, since the appointment was at the outpatient clinic that is directly connected to the inpatient unit, the very one I was in years before.
It turned out to be a very helpful consultation. I went three times and really enjoyed my discussions with the psychiatrist, whom I actually met years previously while she was a resident. This particular doctor asked me to participate in the teaching program.
In her consultation she wrote:
In the 90's diagnoses of AS/ASD were almost never entertained. Generally, women with what we now know to be AS/ASD, who were struggling to fit in and who were difficult to manage, were diagnosed with BPD.
Didgee's reaction to her unfortunate experiences in the hospital system has been one of trauma which has affected her self-image and led to (appropriate) lack of faith in the system, as she was branded with a diagnosis that has a pejorative consequence in the system. Due to cognitive bias this label led to subsequent repetition of the diagnosis and lack of entertainment of other diagnoses. Today, Didgee would likely have been diagnosed with AS/ASD in childhood.
This was validating.