Jump to content
mygifts1306

ADHD on top of Apergers

Recommended Posts

Dear all

 

Thanks very much for creating this forum, i have been wondering if it was okay to post adhd related things in asperger forum. My son had a diagnosis for aspergers in 2008, he was only 5 then, we have been reading about it and trying as best we can to let our child lead a normal childhood. When he was 7 we decided to tell him about the aspergers syndrome, our starting point was looking at the number of people who have got autism and to look at the cool things of having aspergers. I really dont believe much in labels, I have found it terribly difficult to come to terms with this diagnosis.like every mother out there i just want my child is happy, so it really hurts when my son wakes up in the morning and he constantly looks sad and has a constant frown, he can ask you to get something and yet when you bring him he does not animate his face as you would expect. when my son started primary school he did not want to hold hands or give me a cuddle( clearly i appeared to the refridgerator mum) at the beginning of may we went back to cahms as the head felt there was something else, he said he thought he was depressed, we were told that he has adhd, i was so gutted to find this. I am not disrespecting his opinion but i dont think he has adhd, he can sit and read a book and he is not that wired to the moon. if both the dx came at the same time that would have easier to deal with. i am interested to know what experience other parents have had. thanks for reading jax

Edited by mygifts1306

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Jax

 

My son has ASD and ADHD, plus mental health problems, when there is a mix or co morbid the conditions can overlap, it is also dependant on mood,anxiety levels and then if there getting enough sleep, eating enough and getting enough stimulation and relaxation.

 

When you said he can read a book, is the book of any particular interest your son has, if its about a topic your son has already got obsessions/interest of then he may well read, but if it is not of interest would he still read the book.

ADHD is mainly about Impulse, Distraction, inattention.

 

I would read more on ADHD, untreated ADHD can also menifest into depression and other mental health issues because the self esteem is effected and may have feelings of failure and that they disapoint others.

 

Did you fill in a conners rating scale, your sons school would of also had to have filled in a conners rating scale, these would of been used in an assessment.

 

It may also be that your son does have aditional difficulties with his moods and it could be that he genuinally could have also depression/mental health issues on top of ADHD and AS.

 

I would research more on ADHD and additonal mental health conditions to get a more of understanding, there are different types of ADHD too so ADHD and ADD is without hyperactivity.

 

Look into attending your local parents support group for ADHD.

 

There is also support services for ADHD such as ADDISS who can send you more information on ADHD and the co morbids as well as YOUNGMINDS they are an excellent service too with a Telephone Psychiatrict consultation available also.

 

ADDISS

http://www.addiss.co.uk/

Youngminds

http://www.youngminds.org.uk/

 

The NHS website is also good on learning more about the condition ADHD and the coborbids

 

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder/Pages/Introduction.aspx

 

You are entitled to a second opinion also, so if you genuinally believe your son does not have ADHD then request a second opinion.

 

JsMumx

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thank you very much JSmum for your reply. I have been reading a lot of the ADHD book and the CAHMS centre gave us some leaflets with reference to the websites you mentioned. I have also got luke jackon's book on the diet and have read his aspeger book. My son reads novels. in hindsight i think he does merit the diagnosis of ADHD, i am just so gutted that its so complicated, i cant even begin to tell me about it, i dont know how, i told him about the autism. He started reading novels when he was 6, he started with enid blyton's wishing chair then proceeded to read the secret seven, he has also read some of Daisy MEadows fairy books ( I know its girly lol) was just trying to help with the imagination. He has more recently read enid blyton mystery stories there are 15 in the series, i always read a chapter for him then he reads on. at present he is reading the dirty bertie ones and have also enjoyed the horrid henry a great deal. He tell me he wants to read harry potter in augusts. I work in a library and have always found comfort in books, so he has always been surrounded by books all his life. He is also impulsive, he does not seem to think about what he is doing. i have had the headteacher of his school say " ihave never met a child like him in the 30years of my teaching", he is a handful i know.. he has a little brother who is nearly 8 and can be so unkind to him, i have always encouraged him to be nice to him, he goes to main stream just now, i still feel ill if i have to go for something at his school. I had postnatal depression a few years ago, i am very warry that he might have depressive illness and i know sitting and qworrying about it wont bring any change. i am planning to study as a mental health nurse and hopefully work with children in the future, if there are jobs that it, but i still feel helpless, that how can i help other people when i cant help my own, thank you very much for taking the time and for your response.

 

kind regards and lots of love jax

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi,

 

Just wanted to say that you are not alone. I have a 9yr old daughter who has Aspergers and ADHD and things can be very hard indeed! LOL.

 

We had to change her school as she was being bullied by both the students and the teachers (they constantly blamed her for any and all altercations with other kids and told her 'well, maybe if you didn't annoy people this wouldn't happen'.

They also refused to punish the other kids saying ' well, what do you expect ?) Needless to say I moved her and she is now much happier at school, though obviously there are problems from time to time, they are dealt with appropriately.

 

So now, instead of a very upset, angry,volatile child, I have a happy one who wakes the whole house at 2am singing Xmas songs at the top of her voice!

 

I would question whether your childs school has any training in teaching a child with Aspergers or ADHD, as it doesn't sound like it.I don't know where you live, but you could try to find out if there are any specialist services which could visit the school to help the staff understand the issues and put in place measures to help your son. (we have a specialist NHS disabilities nurse team and an Autism Outreach team here in Aberdeen who do this )

 

Also, don't worry about going into the school, THEY are obliged to give your son an education which takes into account and accommodates his special needs, and you should NEVER feel anxious if they are not succeeding in this. It may be that they are not trained or not willing to help him, but neither of those things is your or your sons fault. You need to work together to be able to help him (if you feel this will not or cannot happen then you need to think about whether this is a suitable school for him)

 

There will always be issues etc for you to deal with, just take it a day at a time and try to keep a sense of humour ! As I had to do when my daughter covered the entire conservatory with sun lotion (carpet, blinds, windows, doors, sofas T.V., EVERYTHING !). She explained that she was worried things might burn in the sun ! LOL, well, at least I can see the logic ! LOL.

 

We have issues daily with her as she cannot listen to more than 1 instruction, and even then she'll usually get distracted by something and not complete it.

She act impulsively with no regard to the consequences at all, and is genuinely surprised and upset when we get angry with her as she doesn't understand what she's done wrong- and as soon as we try to explain it to her, she's distracted by something else so the info doesn't go in !

It's REALLY frustrating both for us and for her as she feels we're 'always shouting at her' (she doesn't hear the two gentler attempts to get her attention at all !)

 

She can't settle to do anything for more than 10mins and constantly wants 1-1 attention, which is very hard when all I want is solitude !LOL.

 

Also, she has a meltdown if we are staying home for the day cos she can't cope with the lack of schedule and wants every minute of her day to be planned.

 

The school holidays are my idea of Hell. Trying to fill every minute of every day with an activity she will enjoy nearly kills me, but the alternative is worse (screaming, crying,basically a full meltdown which can last hours cos even once she calms down she will start with her 'suggestions' e.g. go to town, invite people over etc and if I say 'no' it all begins again.) She will continue like this for the whole day until bedtime, and she does this EVERY day of the holidays.

 

I have to be aware of what she is doing ALL the time as she has some pretty creative 'impulses' (putting a whole bottle of Fairy liquid down the toilet and flushing repeatedly to 'see how much bubbles would come', or peeing into a teapot because I told her she wasn't allowed to use water as we were going out soon! or the time she emptied a whole huge sack of dog food into every pot, pan,cup, glass,plate and bowl in the house because she 'wanted to see which the dogs would prefer' !)

 

During school term things are fine as she has classes every day after school (swimming, Brownies, horseriding etc) which keep her busy and tire her out.

 

I wish us both luck ! LOL, but at least you can guarantee our lives will NEVER be boring! LOL X

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi

It might be useful to see a sensory information therapist ;-)

He/she can see, overall, which senses are dominant and which are overall under of overly stimulated, normal with AS (and ADHD/ADD/...)

 

When there is ADHD, than can be caused by understimulation.. and the body having an active approach by overcompensating and seeking stimuli. But it can be a matter of overstimulating and your kind being highly wired.. Holidays and vacations are terrible for any parent with a child, let alone several children with sensory issues.. Normal routine falls away! :-(

Structure and insight (visual mostly) usually gives sóme piece of mind.

 

Back to the SI-therapists: They can help you get a Sensory Adjusting Program: tips and tricks to let the body get the stimuli it needs, and bring rest in overstimulation, by deep pressure or 'heavy work'.. There is also a book/program "How does your engine run", which helps your kid to see how the body functions. very necessary with ADHD.

 

Food and movement is important! Back to basics on that.. Be very aware what is in the food, not too must addetives!!

Some kids benefit a lot from salmon, avocado's, etc for omega 3 sours (or capsules). Drinks: not too much sugar (look at the ingredients!!)

 

As for the shouting.. make sure you make contact, touch her, before adressing her.. That will help a lot. Kids can be overly concentrated when playing, reading, watching a program.

 

Just thinking: Is she interested in dancing? That is usually sth very good.. and one needs to rehearse a lot ;-) ánd she would have to remember things for herself, thus doesn't lean on you

 

Interesting book for parents: Carol Stock Kranowitz: the out of sync kids, has fun (games by parents, therapists for kids with simular problems). Making sure the kid gets the stimuli it needs..

A trampoline is usually very useful (gives a tremendous amount of stimuly, useful for over- and understimulation!) or a hammock ;-)

 

Btw, kids don't mind if they can help out.. in the beginning it will take loads of your time, but I gather she's eager.. So help yourself and invest in next year ;-)

It's not a bad thing when kids know what to do and have chores, it teaches responsability .

 

Good luck and enjoy!

Love, Bfly

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

thank you so much spam and butterfly, I have not been online. i really appreciate your comments, I will reply tomorrow, as im falling asleep

Jax xx

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i think the book "thats the way i think" will appeal to both of you. Also "multicoloured mayhem" both mention ADHD, there are different types of ADHD, inattentive, hyperactive, combined and a few other types such as ADHD with anxiety or even severe types of "you expect them to be arrested at any time".

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...

×
×
  • Create New...