Back in October I started the process of getting my son evaluated. I knew something wasn’t right with him. Once he started preschool in August it became clear that we needed to get him checked out. He will be starting kindergarten in the fall and I knew it would be important to know what was going on before then.
At first I wasn’t sure what it could be. He has a lot of trouble changing from one activity to the next. He likes certain things a certain way. At first we thought this could have been age but then he just wasn’t growing out of it. I started to notice how he would really focus on one thing. He would talk about it a lot. Only want to play with it. Right now that is Lego Star Wars. He only wants to wear Lego Star Wars shirts. I can get him to wear the regular Star Wars ones but only because the Lego ones need to be washed. He only plays with his Lego Star Wars. He knows a lot about them too. We bought him an encyclopedia book on all the different Lego Star Wars you can get. He will talk all day about it.
He just doesn’t get along with other kids too well. This is hard because I am social, his brother is social and so we like being around other people and kids. Usually he will either play by himself or play next to another child. Every once in a while he will play with another child and I get so happy to see that. He will tell me things like, “They weren’t playing with it right, ” when he gets mad at another kid.
He is awesome about washing his hands after he goes to the bathroom but if we are somewhere else and he can’t find the soap, he gets really upset. He has to wash his hands. He will get pretty upset about the little things too, like when he drops a fork or a toy. It can be hard to know how to react. I have learned to stay calm myself and just say something like, “It is ok. Let’s get you another one.”
I would say we have been dealing with this type of behavior since he was about two or three. But in the last year it has really gotten to where it felt like a big problem.
Today I found out that he has Asperger’s Syndrome. I was about 85% sure that was what he had after I did a lot of reading about it. I was right.
Tomorrow we will find out more information and start figuring out how to get him the right therapy. Right now I feel a mix of relief and fear. I am relived that we finally figured out what was going on. I am fearful because I just don’t know exactly what this all means for him.
Our son is in the middle of his assessments right now and that is was they are looking at for him, too. It's really timely that I saw this tonight, I was a little stressed out about the whole thing, I have to admit.
I feel for you and the stress it causes. Sometimes no matter how prepared you are, you weren't quite ready to see it.
Hope things continue to swing upwards in what this means for you guys AND him
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I'm praying so much for you and your family. I know already told you that. But I also know how closely related that is to Autism and how difficult that can be. Your child is so precious and you being a great Mommy will make it through anything. I'm just so glad you know what it is so you can do everything you can to help him. {{hugs}}
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My middle son was diagnosed with Asperger's about 2 years ago after having an alphabet full of autism-esque diagnosis prior to that (Sensory Processing Disorder, ADHD, PDD-NOS). Although each diagnosis was difficult it was also liberating because then I knew there was a name for what we were struggling with. The names didn't change who my son is or will be, but helped us gain the knowledge we need to help him grow to be the best of him. I'm sure if you're like me you're drowning in information right now, but I highly recommend the 100 days toolkit from the Autism Speaks organization. Basically it lays out a task list of what kind of information to gather and consider as you move through the first 100 days after the diagnosis. The other thing I highly recommend is getting an Occupational Therapy evaluation for your son. For my son the sensory diet makes a HUGE difference. And please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or just need to hear from a mom who's been there.
there is so much I want to say, it took me until my son was 10 to understand Aspbergers and get him evaulated. please oh please know that there is help. there are tons of coping techniques that can be used to teach them. there are also studies at places like Vanderbilt that can help. As silly as it sounds one of the biggest helps was having my son talk to a counselor (for us it was a christian counselor, someone that i knew i trusted and did not worry about what they were putting in his head). a big issue with his is perception vs reality so having someone else he can talk to helps. just a quick story. when he was 6 or 7 his teacher at church told him that it is not okay to use a Bible that things added to it (i think it is the mormon Bible that has extra chapters).a couple of days later he saw me writting in my Bible. it took my pastor, youth pastor, his SS teacher and his parents to explain it to him. I am thinking of you as you enter this journey and am SO glad that you are entering this journey early
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We have similar issues with Scott (who is 5) and decided to forgo testing at this time. I wrote about it here: Seeing the Negative Space: http://www.halleethehomemaker.com/2011/10/seeing-…
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Oh – within that post I linked is a link to a documentary titled, "Loving Lampposts" — you may really get a lot out of it.
Hallee
My recent post Lies Women Believe About Children