Is Schizophrenia possible in my 11 who suffers with ASD & OCD

[GemT08]

My son has been showing common signs of Schizophrenia for 2 months now but I have been assured that it is part of his imagination and the ASD.

 

I myself believe it is not, he is very intelligent and he knows the difference between what is real and what isn't.

 

Things are getting a lot worst now in terms of him "hearing voices" and his beliefs.

 

I would be more than grateful for any advice.

[Gold MD]

Can you ask for an expert opinion? A GP could refer you. I don't think it's all that uncommon to have more than one mental health issue concurrently.

[GemT08]

Thanks for the reply GOLD. I am not getting any help or support from anyone at the moment, it was my GP who told me it is part of his ASD. Do you think it is worth me getting him privately assessed as I could be waiting months?

[Gold MD]

Yes, don't wait. Give it a try.

[100acrewood]

Can I ask what are his beliefs. How does he describe the voices. I can totally relate to your situation . My son has only just turned 9. It has been a long road. He first disclosed hearing voices to me when he was 7. I was told schizophrenia wasn't a possibility because he is not psychotic but as time goes by he is changing before my eyes. I have family who are schizophrenic so you can understand my concern. He has recently been diagnosed with atypical autism but the diagnosis needs further investigation and observation apparently because his adi r scored so high but ados low. He had extreme anxiety too and camhs keep saying to him the voices come from his imagination and so are using distraction methods which do not work. Whilst building his minecraft platforms in his head he now tells me the voices are worse but now won't tell me what they say.

[GemT08]

100acrewood

 

Thanks for replying, there was an incident at school just before he broke up for the Easter Holiday, his latest belief was another pupil in his class was "planning on killing him" he never told me this until he had attacked the boy in which he had to go to hospital, but apparently the boy in question had been bullying my son since he started in September.

 

He describes the voice as a males voice within in his, the voice has also got a name, he tells my son to do bad things, last month the voice told my son to cut himself on his arm with a knife which he did act on, every time he hears the voice he cries, I feel useless as I can't do anything to stop the voice, it does take a lot of work to get him to open up to me, sometimes can take days.

 

My Son is not under the help of CAHMS and I do not get any support from him.

 

I do not believe the voice is part of his imagination.

[Mihaela]

From what you say, Gem, it does sound like very-early-onset schizophrenia. Your GP is wrong; it's not 'part of the ASD' at all, but may possibly be related genetically, for there's a significant correllation between autism and childhood schizophrenia - that should never be ignored.

 

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and childhood onset schizophrenia (COS) are pediatric neurodevelopmental disorders associated with significant morbidity. Both conditions are thought to share an underlying genetic architecture.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3869044/

I think it's appalling that they aren't taking it seriously. You must insist that they do, and that they assess him, and the sooner the better.

Edited April 9, 2015 by Mihaela

[GemT08]

Thanks for the info Mihaela my son had a very bad day today he cried in my arms and asked me to kill him, that made me want to take him to A&E he is asleep now, I will see how he is when he wakes up. I hate seeing him in distress I feel like a useless mother.

[100acrewood]

I feel your pain gemt08. My son too has sobbed begging to die. He searched through draws for knives and told me his voices tell him bad things. Before he would say he would tell them no but now told his support worker he finds it harder to ignore them. He has become violent and told me the voices tell him to murder me. Camhs haven't been an amazing help because I too believe they are not his imagination. He also hallucinates day and night and has told various people lots of things he has seen. He thinks he has demons inside him and calls his voices angels and demons. He has started to be philosophical about God. Because of his age I was dismissed. However he has been consistent and as a result we have been referred to a family unit for further observation. We go as a family for 6 weeks. I want to stress there is help out there. I would recommend calling the camhs duty workers every time u are worried. Even if he hasn't been seen by camhs if a referral has been sent you have every right to contact then directly. Don't be deterred If his file is constantly being pulled from the bottom of the pile to the top they cannot ignore. Go to a and e every time u feel he us unsafe. I always believe low risk is not no risk hun. Hope he feeling safer now x

[Mihaela]

I feel so sorry for you all, and wish I could do more to help, but it's way out of my ability. ...and no, you're not a bad mother. You're naturally worried and have nowhere to turn - like me at the moment.

 

The mental health services are certainly not what they should be. Even basic awareness of this kind of mental health issue by GPs is sadly lacking. Just because childhood schizophrenia is very rare among NT children, they're applying that dodgy statistic to your neuro-atypical children, and seem oblivious that they should see a flashing red warning sign when you get symptoms of schizophrenia among autistic children.

 

Two of my cousins had schizophrenia, and I suspect both were on the autistic spectrum. The girl developed the symptoms at around 17, and the boy at about 21 (the more usual ages). The girl, is now in her late 30s, was originally taken to a Christian healing centre, which caused a lot of harm. Eventually she had to be 'sectioned' and was properly diagnosed. She never fails to take her medication, and lives a contented life in her own little house - but does need support. The boy took his own life and was never diagnosed. He became obsessed with God and took to carrying a Bible around with him. The system badly let him down.

I've found that you've really got to fight before they take serious notice. Never give up. Your children's futures are at stake. x

[100acrewood]

Thank you Micheal. Gemt08 have been thinking of you. Let us know how you both are. And any progress with getting help. One thing I would say. You can bypass any gp by going to a and e. CAMHS will see you no matter what and he cannot go home without a plan of action in place. I know this only from experience. Unfortunately limited resources mean bigger journeys but we have a choice in mode of transport. Xxx

[100acrewood]

Micheala. So sorry to hear about your cousins too x