Anyone else have an Asperger Child? (autism, schools, treatment, functioning)

[evilanarchist]

My son who is 4 hasn't been diagnosed with it but he has every sign of it. I was diagnosed at 25 with it and since its genetic it seems to have passed on to him.Its a rough go of things but now that we know what it is its getting a little easier...he is supposed to start prek in September so going to get the school to help with getting him diagnosed and seeing what we can do for him.Just wondering if anyone else has an Aspergers child.If so anything you can share? It took them 25 years to diagnose me I was diagnosed with everything else ADHD,BiPolar etc etc but it was Aspergers the whole time..fortunately he seems smarter than I was but he is also more prone to hitting people and not listening than I did...I just hope he makes friends and gets through school unlike me. I was a loner and dropped out of school.He has the smarts he just isn't socially there..he loves other kids but doesn't know how to share or express that he doesn't want to share etc.

[SaintCabbage]

Have you taken him somewhere for an official evaluation and possible diagnosis? I wouldn't bank on him probably having something you have because he's acting out. 4 years old is starting to get late in the game to get that diagnosed and start treatment. He's too old for free services, but the school is not going to help in an official diagnosis and won't be able to offer any services without a diagnosis, so you need to get an official evaluation ASAP.

My oldest son was diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) at 18 months, and years of therapy and services has essentially saved his life. He's now 7 and in a mainstream classroom doing great. He would have never been able to do that without specialized and targeted therapy post diagnosis. He still has an IEP of course which is critical to measuring his success. No diagnosis = No IEP, services, therapy, etc..

[evilanarchist]

We took him to a Pysch last year they said he was ADHD same thing they said about me.But reading up on aspergers and other autism related things it fits him to a T. We asked his pediatrician about it just yesterday she didn't know much so she made us an appt with her partner in her doctor's office who knows more about it.

[bowian]

Originally Posted by evilanarchist

My son who is 4 hasn't been diagnosed with it but he has every sign of it. I was diagnosed at 25 with it and since its genetic it seems to have passed on to him.Its a rough go of things but now that we know what it is its getting a little easier...he is supposed to start prek in September so going to get the school to help with getting him diagnosed and seeing what we can do for him.Just wondering if anyone else has an Aspergers child.If so anything you can share? It took them 25 years to diagnose me I was diagnosed with everything else ADHD,BiPolar etc etc but it was Aspergers the whole time..fortunately he seems smarter than I was but he is also more prone to hitting people and not listening than I did...I just hope he makes friends and gets through school unlike me. I was a loner and dropped out of school.He has the smarts he just isn't socially there..he loves other kids but doesn't know how to share or express that he doesn't want to share etc.

One of my children has PDD-NOS (and ADHD). His PDD-NOS presents very much like Asperger's, partly because he is high-functioning. He was first diagnosed with PDD-NOS at about 5 1/2 (ADHD at 4 1/2). Your son sounds similar to mine at 4. He is also very smart and does very well in school. But he is still learning about the social nuances, including monitoring his perception of social situations.

[TabulaRasa]

Not to put too fine a point on it, but it isn't actually known whether or not ASDs are genetically passed on.

[evilanarchist]

Originally Posted by bowian

One of my children has PDD-NOS (and ADHD). His PDD-NOS presents very much like Asperger's, partly because he is high-functioning. He was first diagnosed with PDD-NOS at about 5 1/2 (ADHD at 4 1/2). Your son sounds similar to mine at 4. He is also very smart and does very well in school. But he is still learning about the social nuances, including monitoring his perception of social situations.

What is PDD-NOS and did you just go to his pediatrician to get the diagnosis started? We have an appt with his pediatrician next week.

[ADVentive]

Originally Posted by SaintCabbage

Have you taken him somewhere for an official evaluation and possible diagnosis? I wouldn't bank on him probably having something you have because he's acting out. 4 years old is starting to get late in the game to get that diagnosed and start treatment. He's too old for free services, but the school is not going to help in an official diagnosis and won't be able to offer any services without a diagnosis, so you need to get an official evaluation ASAP.

My oldest son was diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) at 18 months, and years of therapy and services has essentially saved his life. He's now 7 and in a mainstream classroom doing great. He would have never been able to do that without specialized and targeted therapy post diagnosis. He still has an IEP of course which is critical to measuring his success. No diagnosis = No IEP, services, therapy, etc..

This is not my experience. My daughter does not have an official diagnosis, but both her doctor and her school have repeatedly told me that a diagnosis does not matter for school services, that they give her school services based on her needs, not her diagnosis. Her doctor wants to wait 1-2 more years before testing her for autism because she wants to use module 3, and my daughter's speech is not good enough for that yet. My daughter does have an IEP anyway though, and gets services including developmental day preschool, special education, and speech and physical therapy, despite not having a diagnosis at this time.

[NJGOAT]

Originally Posted by ADVentive

This is not my experience. My daughter does not have an official diagnosis, but both her doctor and her school have repeatedly told me that a diagnosis does not matter for school services, that they give her school services based on her needs, not her diagnosis. Her doctor wants to wait 1-2 more years before testing her for autism because she wants to use module 3, and my daughter's speech is not good enough for that yet. My daughter does have an IEP anyway though, and gets services including developmental day preschool, special education, and speech and physical therapy, despite not having a diagnosis at this time.

Not mine as well. We could have gone to the school with a piece of paper from the doctor saying that our daughter had XYZ and it would not have made one iota of difference to the school. They do their own testing and evaluation and base any interventions, therapies, needs, etc. on their own testing and evaluations. A diagnosis can be helpful to them and becomes part of the file, but it is not needed to receive services through the school. However, a diagnosis may be beneficial in opening up additional resources outside of the school and/or having your medical insurance pay for therapies, assistance devices, etc.

[brokencrayola]

I have 3 sons that all have Aspergers. Don't rely on the school to evaluate/diagnose him. He should be taken to a child psychiatrist/psychologist that specializes in kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Once he has his diagnosis you will want to get an IEP done at the beginning of the school year.

[SaintCabbage]

Originally Posted by ADVentive

This is not my experience. My daughter does not have an official diagnosis, but both her doctor and her school have repeatedly told me that a diagnosis does not matter for school services, that they give her school services based on her needs, not her diagnosis. Her doctor wants to wait 1-2 more years before testing her for autism because she wants to use module 3, and my daughter's speech is not good enough for that yet. My daughter does have an IEP anyway though, and gets services including developmental day preschool, special education, and speech and physical therapy, despite not having a diagnosis at this time.

How old is your daughter? That is lunacy, 1-2 years of waiting can cost you decades down the road. The sooner you start therapy, the better, I recommend a second opinion.

Originally Posted by NJGOAT

Not mine as well. We could have gone to the school with a piece of paper from the doctor saying that our daughter had XYZ and it would not have made one iota of difference to the school. They do their own testing and evaluation and base any interventions, therapies, needs, etc. on their own testing and evaluations. A diagnosis can be helpful to them and becomes part of the file, but it is not needed to receive services through the school. However, a diagnosis may be beneficial in opening up additional resources outside of the school and/or having your medical insurance pay for therapies, assistance devices, etc.

Your child may get special attention from good teachers that are paying attention, but no public school is offering dedicated one on one occupational or speech therapy because your kid has an undiagnosed condition. And you're certainly not getting an official IEP nor are you eligible for private sector services or grants for eligible private schools.

Originally Posted by brokencrayola

I have 3 sons that all have Aspergers. Don't rely on the school to evaluate/diagnose him. He should be taken to a child psychiatrist/psychologist that specializes in kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Once he has his diagnosis you will want to get an IEP done at the beginning of the school year.

The IEP is critical. My son has a team of therapists working with him outside his classroom several hours a week. His progress is closely monitored and we meet with the team of therapists and his teacher(s) several times throughout the year. That does not happen with an official diagnosis.

If you suspect your child has something as serious and debalitating as ASD or Aspergers, get it professionally evaluated for goodness sakes to ensure they are getting everything they need to succeed.