Asperger's Syndrome

[Ellie]

Hi all.Would love to hear frm any parents or carers of young children with mild autism/aspergers.Am single mum of 3half yr old,under goin observation by paediatrician/health proffess.We have no definite diagnosis asyet.Her paediatrician feels 2young for definite/accurate diagnosis.Any1 going thru same situation,or been thru

[riley11]

I have a good friend who's son has Aspergers. He's 19 now and was just diagnosed in high school..long road to diagnosis. Maybe best to see another doc for second opinion.

[Ellie]

Thanx for takin the time to reply.I think you rite,we in for a long wait before diagnosis.We in the U.K. and have just sent off4membership to the National Autistic Society,am hopin support

[mommy123]

I don't know how it works in the UK, but in the USA sometimes it's better not to have a diagnosis. Once diagnosed, it'll stick forever. However, there are state-funded programs available here for children with developmental problems even if they don't have a diagnoses. My son is "developmentally delayed" and definitely has autistic tendencies. He has been in physical therapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy since he was 12 months and he's now 27 months. I still have high hopes for him and pray that we'll be able to pull him out of it. Right now I'm looking into some diet changes for him. I'm going to a three-day class the end of this month to learn about using only organic, non-processed, whole foods and getting off dairy completely. I've learned through my research that diet can make a HUGE difference for these little ones. Dairy in particular can be really bad for them. Anyway, try not to get discouraged because you don't have a diagnoses and just try to find ways to help her. Who knows, maybe in the end you'll be glad that she was never diagnosed because she won't have it anymore. Good-luck!

[sarg_nomad]

Ellie, I am so glad that you are pursuing diagnosis at an early age. You are very brave and have a very special child. My daughter was 14 before diagnosis finally came. When she was a preschooler I remember tantrums in social settings: church, shopping, parties; refusal of comfort especially hugs; very little social interaction with her peers; appeared not to hear her name called; food and clothing texture dislikes; extreme preoccupation with animals; refusal to participate in preschool activities (hid under table); flat affect (little or no facial expression); verbally acute (talk your ear off with excellent diction and large vocabulary).

I hope this helps. Know that another mom is praying for you!

Beth

[ameripk]

i am starting the process of getting a diagnosis now. i have a six year old son. his school thinks he may have asperger syndrome. i feel like he is 2 different kids, the one that is here with me at home and the one that is at school, that is a distraction to his class. it is very difficult to explain especially to someone who has no experience with the situation. and yes the diagnosis is only going to put one more label on my son. it makes him more isolated at school, because he is different than his classmates. I already have an IEP in place at school, but it does not always help. any advice, would be greatly appreciated.

[mommy123]

It sounds like your son has some sensory integration problems--is that right??? Children with sensory issues have a very difficult time in over-stimulating environments and tend to either act out or withdraw, and for many of them it's very easy to be over-stimulated. There is a new book that has helped me understand my child a lot better and it has good suggestions on how to help children handle their sensory issues. My son's physical therapist recommended it to me, (she's read a lot of these kinds of books), and said it's the best one she's ever read on the subject. Anyway, it's called "Raising a Sensory-Smart Child" and it's by Lindsey Biel and Nancy Peske. You can get it on Amazon.com--I bought a used copy that was in perfect condition for $7.00 plus shipping. I hope this helps. Good-luck!

[ameripk]

THANKS. the first appoinment with a therapist is tomorrow. yes he is sensitive to touch, he seems to act out more at school. he does not have a lot of experience in large social situations, and therefore is socially deficient. he does not interact well with the other kids. there have been some instances of hitting between him and his classmates. he also has some language delays, as far as comprehension and always using appropriate tone. i am hoping for good news tomorrow.

[lboatwright]

Hi, I am a parent of a child with aspergers syndrome. I can tell you have your child tested early and get a second opinion on that test. My son went through both speech and occupational therapy at the age of 2 1/2, the therapies helped tremendously, on draw back was when it came time to enroll him elementry school in the PreK class they put him in a handicapped class - BAD MOVE- he started to imitate all the handicaps and he regressed badly. I had him retested at NOVA University in Davie, FL, and they fought with me to get him into a normal class. I was lucky that his pediatrician encouraged me to, "throw him to the wolves"(My Doc's words), and put him in with normal developing children.

Your child will fight you, don't give up and don't give in. Trust me they are not traumatized when they scream, they scream to traumatize you so you give in. My son screamed and carried on when it came time to write his name. The minute I said "Okay, go play" all tears stopped and he flew out the door. To give you encouragement my son is in the second grade, in regular classes and wants to be an architect. The more contact they have with normal children the better they are. My mother took him to her doctor when she had to go for a visit, he couldn't tell if he had aspergers or not. My advise
Don't close the window - once it's closed it does not reopen.

If you would like to email me my address is [moderator note: e-mail address has been removed]

[AmoScribere]

I'm a college student with AS and I was put in a regular classroom (private school) through elementary, middle school and high school. It was tough at times and I remembered being teased by my peers because I didn't fit in. The teasing was the worst for me in elementary school and it tapered off in middle and high school (probably partially from being at a different school altogether).

My advice for a parent of a young kid with AS is to involve him in school activities, try to find a club or peer activity he likes (I was on swim team from when I was six until graduating high school). If he's doing an activity he enjoys and there is social interaction, all the better. I learned most of the things I know about social interaction from being forced to interact with people on a regular basis, not from the social skills training I did outside of class.

As your kid gets older, it's likely that he'll find his niche where he feels comfortable and really enjoys what he's doing. This is also true for most other teens. It is a really amazing thing to experience and it's probably one of the strongest influences on why I've become the way I am now. Please encourage him to find what he's passionate about.