gen Report post Posted August 30, 2005 hello everyone, this is the first time i have posted a message. I am new here and i have read lots of the other threads and i think this site is fab.. I will apoligise in advace aout the length of this message but on the basis of the bredth of experience here i wanted to ask a coiuple of questions. I'll give a little background 1st.. here goes he is 9, no/little speech until 2.5yrs, assessed by ed. psy at 2.5 and given home teaching 1 pm per week - to work on cooperation skills, was very difficult baby, hated noise, fussy about food presentation, colour of plate etc, mad mad rages, still hits head when stressed which happens less now that he is on a stimulant med., still blanks out total aeas of the day, is full on with other kids, very literal in his underdtanding, refers to his dad as 'yourhusband' (does this with everyone ie. 'your mum' for gran, your daughter for his sister etc) short term memory is appaling - beyond belief, can rote learn well , learns spellings for friday test but can't actually use them beyond that, very easly 'wound up' - my 2yr old can wind him up with no real effort, seems to be very immature, is beautiful, funny, loveable, cuddly, genorous (has no real concept of value of money) loves(x100000) computers, computer games - he is my son So, now you know something about him.. i took him to a private doc in may - i thought he may have an attention disorder - he said possibly be more likely to be aspergers - i laughed and said no way - then i read a book and freaked (sorry but i did) - doc gave me stim. med to see if it would help - it has brought calm but not improved attention - now we are scheduled for a more in depth assessment with a asperger specialist - i did talk to jer on the phone and she said based on the report she got from the doc i has seen in may and what i said on the phne to see the school and advise them that it was the 'likely diagnois' Saw the pricpal last week and she said - yeah, i thought you might say that!!! Said she would speek to sed and and class teacher and set up appointment for me this week to talk to them - but i donnt realyy know what to say can anyone help? Here are some q 1. is it typical that asd kids simply zone out - my guy is almost 9 and the major prob at school is that he is only there physically!! 2. what can i ask the teacher to do to help with this 3. his social skills are out of sync but more in that he is full on with people and very (read that ultra) direct 4. what can i do to make sure he gets the help needed I would really appreciate any help/advise as to the way forward Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BusyLizzie100 Report post Posted August 30, 2005 Hi, I just wanted to rattle off a reply quickly (I'm supposed to be working!) because your son sounds very like mine. My advice is to get a formal diagnosis for your son as soon as possible. Your GP can refer to you someone, or you could contact the National Autistic Society for advice. This is what we are doing for our son - sounds like we are a few steps ahead of you in the process. We had an extra clue because his younger brother already has a diagnosis of ASD, so when I expressed my concerns about N I was taken very seriously. The problem is that getting a diagnosis takes time (waiting lists etc), but it sounds like you have a good case so I advise you to push as hard as you can to get diagnosis. The benefit of having a diagnosis is that a. you will feel vindicated - your suspicions that all is not right are correct and you're not going mad! b. you can access support and services - eg DLA c. does school have access to autism advisory teachers? These are autism specialists who can advise school on how to support pupils with ASDs, no funding needed. d. the NAS, for example, has great info and advice on how teachers can accommodate ASDs in the classroom - I'm sure there's good stuff on this forum too. Sorry this is so rushed, but I just wanted to let you know you are not alone! We are currently trying to get N's school to provide additional support; they are listening to me but they need written evidence to get funding and expert advice on what to do, hopeefully this is in the pipeline. Asperger's is not the end of the world. My son is fabulous and I love him to bits, too. Good luck Lizzie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suze Report post Posted August 30, 2005 Hi welcome .As far as school goes it is very common to switch off , my son does this due to visual/auditory processing problems.The LSA who works with him uses visual prompts and his name with every instruction.He should be working in a less stimulating environment ...but thats inclusion for you .Don,t know if you mentioned an Ed physch but one should come and assess your son.The possibility of a statement should also be discussed with the school.Is your son on the SEN register?Definitely go for the DX it wil help to pave a path through Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
