New here for 6 year old son recently partially diagnosed with AS. Help!

[NicosMommy]

It's been a struggle over the last few years trying to figure out what's going on with my 6 year old son, Nico. Traits are difficulty in school, not cooperating, not following directions, separating himself from the rest of the class and not interested in participating with anything that involves structure/ rules/ interacting with other kids, repeating phrases/ noises over and over, running up and down paths instead of playing with other kids at playgrounds, almost no attention span, wandering mind, plays mostly by himself... just to name a few. At the same time, he is a sweet, loving boy with a great sense of humor and very smart, above grade level in a lot of his classes. Finally there has been a little light shed on things for us. Upon a consult with his pediatrician yesterday, we were told that he could not be officially diagnosed with anything because he has here-and-there traits of Asperger's and Inattentive ADD, but not enough of either for a formal diagnoses. However, as his mother, I feel that AS explains him the best. They say AS is difficult to diagnose, so how do people know if their child has it? I also heard that they don't call it that anymore and it is referred to as just 'Autism Spectrum". But my son is not Autistic, and when you tell people that title, they immediately think they are. What do I call it? Mostly joined on here for support from other parents with young children with this condition. Looking for support, guidance and just to talk to someone who is going through the same thing as I am. Really interested to hear symptoms and actions of other children and the parents' strategies to deal with them. Hope to make some new friends on here soon
Thank you.....

 

[AutisticallyInclined]

Cool and welcome Nico's mommy! I'm new here too.

I don't know how many other parents you'll find on this site who are like you, parents of those will younger Aspie children. I kind of got the impression this is more a site for people who have aspergers themselves and are seeking other people like them whose company they can relate to and enjoy.

Not saying they don't exist but maybe another member knows another active site that could be a resource to you in addition to this one.

Anyway, happy posting! See you around the forum.

 

[Ereth]

Asperger's is autism---it's just on the higher-functioning end of the spectrum (though of course with the DSM-V, "Asperger's syndrome" is considered an outdated term). I'm certainly not an expert on the subject, but I've been aware of my presence on the spectrum for a few years now.

This forum aims to be a resource for everyone---we do have a few parents here, though as AI said, it's probably a good idea to find one devoted entirely to parents and their kids. But you can definitely hang out here too!

 

[Warwick C]

Welcome NicosMommy to aspie central, I have found all members to be helpful especialy Arsahi and others

 

[Vanilla]

Welcome

I'm no expert, but the symptoms you listed sound typical to AS. Perhaps you can list down various AS traits, which you'll find plenty of on this site, and ADD symptoms, and try to test which he responds more to.

For example, if he has AS, while he may not want to pay attention to everything, he may have one, or several chosen interests that he'll be obsessed with; for example, he may be obsessed with trains, or horses, or a game, or math. I'm not an ADD expert, but I assume that if he can hold his attention on at least one 'obsession', this may set him apart from an ADD diagnoses. If he does have an 'obsession', he'll love nothing better than to work on it alone, though may be happy to have someone to discuss his passions with.

I find as well that with AS, it's better to ask specific questions, rather that open-ended questions, or expecting him to approach you when he wants something. Ask the right questions, and you'll hopefully get the responses you want.

Hope that helps.

 

[rogersmom09]

hey I have a 5year old and he is textbook aspbergers, it's very hard to get people and doctors to listen, we had gone to the local school board for his problems due to him having to go to kindergarden in the fall and KNEW we could not put him in a classroom with 20 other kids his own age. the testing of his IQ was very high, I had taken a paper that I had written about all the things that we have seen sence he was a baby that indicates that he has aspbergers, the child pscy said "we don't see it he's such a bright boy!" I said why would a parent of a high function autistic make that up? we would love for him to be a normal 5 year old that was ready to go to school, it is what it is, we are not in denial. they are setting up an IEP hearing<special classes for him> because of his inability to color and write<very common in an aspy> also having testing done at a nurologist in febuary. and considering home school. so yes these kids seem normal to the everyday person they look normal too, just very smart and wise beyond their years. but they are different and should get the education and consideration they deserve, and it angers me when ppl and professionals take them at face value. so yes I understand how frustrating it can be. it's not easy for a parent of an aspy for someone to listen but you MAKE THEM you are their voice. hang in there it's tough I speak from experience. hope you have a stress free day.