JoolieDoolie

Hi ya, my son was diagnosed with ASD (high functioning) at age of 4 yrs - we were told that SPD blurred into ASD - my son had "copied" imagination along with all the other triad concerns (communication and social interaction.......) and so ticked all boxes. Good luck ...

Hi everyone, I'm a Yorkshire mum with a 5 year old boy with ASD (high functioning). I also have a 3 yr old daughter (NT) and a 5 month old boy (too young!). My life is v. v. v. busy even now, gotta go as one of my boys is yelling for me ...... great forum this .........

Hi Jonathan, First of all, a big hug to you. It sounds like you are on a real downer ..... remember that is why we are all here - to listen and to support you. Secondly, I bet your mother would be very upset if she were to read your mail - have you tried talking to her? You know, I am really sorry to hear about your experiences with people. It must be v. upsetting to be called such names. These people are narrow minded, bigoted and not worthy of being friendly with. I don't quite know what to write to help. Are there any support groups near you? Is it worth speaking to the club's instructor? Well done on going to the club in the first place - that must have taken some courage. Are there other clubs around? Remember, people here value you, so don't be down ......

My son is 5 yrs old in June and he started school in Sept 06. He wouldn't even pick up a pencil let alone attempt to write/draw anything last summer. I decided not to pressurise him as I had read that many children such as ours have trouble with motor skills. So I brought his little table down and put it in the dining room where he had ready access to it. I put felt tips and paper out so that he could help himself (again without any pressure). Felt tips are easier to use than pencils or crayons. He loves numbers and so I did dot-to-dot numbers ..... I was really amazed when he wanted to do it! At the beginning of the summer holidays he didn't write a thing (or pick up a pencil/felt tip), by the end of the summer holidays writing was his obsession - we progressed onto letters, words etc. He doesn't like drawing, but he does love writing now. Good luck with my tip! Joolie

Well done on the course! The only thing I know about Kettering is that there is an extremely good theme park there called Wickstead Park (I went there as a kid on school trips) - v. good!

Hi, my husband has been offered a job in the state of Michigan for a year. My son is high functioning and aged 5 years. He is in foundation year at the moment with no statement (we have yet to apply as rumour has it that Bradford LEA believe Action Plus is enough). In the US the children are in kindergarten at 4 and 5 yrs, then start school at 6 yrs old. This means that my son would be in kindergarten for about 4 months, then start school for 8 months, then back to the UK again. It has taken him awhile to settle in to our primary school. He suffers from anxiety (typically) but he does seem to cope with things at school, but lets out his anxiety and worries when at home - behaviour problems, crying, weeing, etc. I am wondering whether the upheaval of going is worth it? We have to weigh up whether a year in Michigan is worth the upheaval of moving our family of five there and whether we are running the risk of having a really unsettled and anxious 5 yr old. Does anyone have any experience of moving? Any views on how ASD is handled in the USA (Michigan State?). Any advice would be really appreciated - many thanks. Joolie

My son has watched it once (he is 5 yrs and high functioning) and hasn't watched it since - I am leaving it around in a hope he will change his mind. My 2.5 yr old daughter loves it (she is NT)!!! I find it boring and predictable, but the emotions on the face are the main thing and they seem to work well. I would say, if your child enjoys it and watch it over and over then they can learn emotions from it. I think the faces are exaggerated on purpose and it works!!

Both AS and high functioning autism are terms bounded about but meaning the same - my son's diagnosis is high functioning autism (he is 5 yrs), but he the term Asperger's Syndrome is also used (by non-medical people) to describe him. As a plus, apparently if you have the word "autism" in the diagnosis then you are more likely to get funding in education (Statement), so I am told .....

Tony Attwood's book is my bible - very concise and thorough. Another book to read and show friends and family (only takes about 20 minutes to read) is "Can I tell you about Asperger Syndrome" by Jude Welton. Very simple to read. Good luck!

Hi again, that is good news that he points like that. My son's speech was delayed, but not too much. He showed the classic speech development patterns - echolia, 3rd person, etc. he was about 2 and a half. He started off with single words from about 1 and half. Had my first stilted conversation at 3.5 yrs. It was his pre-school who advised for him to be observed. I have always worried about him though. If you are worried then definitely go and see someone (GP, school, nursery etc). But you are right, boys are slower! Does he make eye contact?

Hi there, I am new to the forum. I have a 5 yr old son with high functioning autism (diagnosed in July, no statement yet but we're hoping!), 2.5 yr old daughter (NT) and 4 month old boy (too little, fingers crossed, we are doing a BabyLab Research project with him to monitor his development and provide research on autism). Have my hands full! This forum is quite a maze so I'm just getting to grips with it! Not too much to say yet (although my head is full of things to talk about!) apart from I managed to get my son to agree to a haircut (carried out by me!) on Friday and he agreed to me writing it on the calendar ... any tips?

hi ya, how old is your daughter? would she let you use glycerine suppositories? Rather invasive, i know, but they do work really well, when feeling "bunged up"!

i live in west yorkshire - snowing here .... blinking freezing too!

Fizz

Hi there, I have a high functioning autistic son who is 5 years old (diagnosed at 4 yrs). He is in mainstream and doing v. well. He does have social problems, but he does COPY the other children as he wants to be sociable. Basically, he is learning through copying. How old is your son? We live in West Yorkshire and have just been v. lucky with getting a good primary school with an inclusion policy. He is on action plus, but we are trying to get a statement for him.