My ds7 is being assess for apsergers

[pepsi]

DH and I had our appointment with consultant yesterday to go over the history of ds. she has made an appointment for us all to go back in May, at which time they should be able to make diagnosis. Im scared, had a bit of a breakdown last night. I know diagnosis wont change things, in my mind it will just underline the difficulties that are to come during the rest of his school life. Whatever it is she did say that it was mild and of course she might not diagnose aspergers. They also gave us a sensory checklist to fill in and a Movement Assessment Battery For Children form for school to fill in....is this something do with diagnosis of aspergers or looking for something else do you think. I found our meeting hard because it seemed that she jumped on everything that might possibly be connected with aspergers but didnt want to know about all the things he is which are deemed normal. From other threads Ive read that many children are quite aggressive and like to follow routine which is certainly not my ds, his main problems are eye contact when talking, concentration and knowing when to start/stop conversations or when someone really isnt interested in what she is sayint. I said to the consultant that asperges/dyspraxia/add seemed to cross over, but she replied that she didnt agree with some of the symptons of dyspraxia which you find on websites, I guess I shall have to wait and see what happens before I can unravel what is what. Im so afraid that he will be bullied in later life. Is is par for the course do you think or do aspergers children manage to go through mainstream school happily.

Don;t panic - whatever happens, at least then you'll know for sure which might help you to feel a little more 'settled' with the whole issue. I just wanted to say my dh has worked with several boys with Aspergers in his mainstream school (although independant) and most do very well indeed, although perhaps more academically than socially - the only thing which is ever said is that some are a little 'odd' - quite frankly as an adult, odd people tend to be much more interesting!!

If he gets the right support he may do well in M/S. How does he cope at the moment? Some children with AS cope well, others truggle but manage and others find it all too much and do better in a special school.

He has always been happy to go to school, never complains about other children and his currently teacher likes him, she says his behaviour if often "bizarre", but also describes him as the most soppy in her class....in a nice way. Academically he is about average I would say. His teacher says that the other children are very accepting of his odd behaviour....he's quite a comedian and enjoys being the class clown I think. i dont worry about primary school so much, its the big wide world or secondary that terrifies me. He has poor concentration, teacher told me this week that if he could have an adult with him the whole time he would be fine, but on the other hand he in himself certainly isnt bad enough to get one. He's got a little group of friends but unfortunately they do not get on with each other all the time.....thats not something thats due to ds, its how they are.

Poor you - the only useful bit of info I can give you is that the Movement Assessment Battery thingy was definately used in my DS2's diagnosis of Dyspraxia. And you're absolutely right that lots of these conditions overlap - eg my son has Dyspraxia but certainly shows some Asperger's traits. What age is your son? I worry about school life/being bullied etc too but social skills can be taught in the same way as anything else, and my son (8.5) has definately started to realise when the other person isn't listening and it's time to stop talking etc. I have explained about social signals and that he finds it harder to read them, and he does understand that - obviously it will depend on the severity, but remember these things can be taught, it just won't be instinctive.

He was 7 this month.

So, although your son has signs of aspergers diagnosis was just for dyspraxia. Why do you think?

Just to say that I know how you must be feeling. My DS is nearly 4 and we're going down the diagnosis route for Aspergers/High Functioning Autism as he exhibits a few symptoms and I'm sick of trying to self-diagnose via the Internet. I too felt scared about contacting my GP and HV; I think I was in denial that he had any problems and it's only since he's attended Nursery that it's been obvious that he has some communication and socialisation issues. He's bright as a button (he's been reading fluently since he was 3) but I think it'll be in his best interests for us to push for diagnosis so that the school can both understand and cope with his other needs. Wishing you all the best - keep us posted xxx

Hi Pepsi, I know this is a really hard time when dx. are being talked of. My DS was dx'd with Aspergers last August at the age of 5, albeit q. mild. His main diffs. were appropratie social interactions and how to interact in groups, probs. with reading, writing, co-ordination. Also q. rigid in thinking and a tendency to become completely obssessed by things (Happy Feet at the mo.)..sigh...
We decided that DS was so young that we would not use the label given as we were not sure it would be useful. This was a cause of considerable and s'times heated discussion bet. DH and myself (I wanted to tell school and DH thought it wouldn't make much diff. and didn't want to burden DS at such a young age in yr. 1)Our paediatrician was v. supportive saying her 16yo had AS but they had never applied the label etc. in school and other settings, as did the ed. psych on my DH's team. She did lots of tests on DS' co-ordination and said he was delayed in his development in terms of co-ord'n and movement. She said that he would prob. be viewed as somewhat eccentric / unusual in yrs. to come at school and we had an interesting discussion about the point at which what is essentially yr. personality becomes something more problematic which requires labelling. So far DS is doing well. I suspect that that is because he has a teacher who has sussed out his difficulties and idiosyncrasies early on and handled him wonderfully. At this pt. I'm not sure a label would have made any difference to him although I found that after the dx. I coped a lot better with my feelings and his behaviour.
DS finds reading v. diff. and we wonder if he's dyslexic but his progress this term has been great. He's v. bright but couldn't hold a pen or write his name till he was 5 - now all he does is draw all day long (another obssessive thing).
Sorry to ramble. I have to say things calmed alot for me after the paediatrician confirmed my thoughts - at times I thought I was going mad and the only person who thought DS was slightly diff. to other children his age. My BIL and sister are teachers and have taught a lot of children with AS at GCSE and A level v. successfully.

pepsi, it seems you are one step ahead of me in this whole diognosis thing. My DS is 7 in July and we are having huge difficulties with him at school etc. Just been referred to pead for assessment of aspergers. Know those scarey feelings but definately agree with statement knowledge is power. Will be watching closely to see how things go. Maybe we can support each other!

We been on this route for 4 years at least. When he was 2 he had lots of ear infections which caused delayed speech, when he was 3 he had grommets put in and immediately the speech improved. Once he started nursery the teachers began to raise concerns. Interestingly at the age of 4 his nursery teacher had concerns that he was dypraxic, but here we are several years later and only now is he of an age when a fair assessment can be made. He didnt start to read until he was almost five and he struggled to get his numbers. Ive noticed on other threads that many children diagnosed with aspergers do have very very good reading skills, I wouldnt put him in this category, I would say he was average. He finds writing hard, doesnt want to do it unless pushed, but is happy to sit down and do his maths homework. I notice also when he reads along he doesnt actually read, he just flicks through the pages, dont know what this means, perhaps he just hasnt got into reading by himself yet.

Thanks everyone, will keep in touch.

Pepsi - Dyspraxia diagnosis came first, followed by 6-monthly "how's he getting along?" sessions with paediatrician. At the last one of these I raised my concerns re lack of empathy, being unable to read my mood, social skills etc, after which the Asperger's thing came up - so it was just a matter of timing, i.e. the Dyspraxic concerns were the first to be addressed.

Re the labelling - I do understand all the concerns, but I actually pushed for a label, just because I wanted to prove to DS2, who was then very unhappy and quite disruptive, that the reason he could barely write and couldn't sit still etc was NOT HIS FAULT!!! And in terms of his self-esteem and the help from school, having that label is invaluable to him.

Hi Pepsi my DS has just been diagnosed with Aspergers. He is 7.5 yrs old. Bizzarely it took less than 3 months from my first visit to my GP to diagnosis, all through the NHS too.
DS has been unhappy at school for quite a long time & he has low self-esteem. He also has some dyspraxic symptoms.
However, my DS seems very aware that he is different from other children even though he knows nothing about his diagnosis.
The school are trying to help with various social strategies & he is on school action plus. I am thinking of moving both children to a smaller school to help him.
Good luck Pepsi. I've had loads of help & good advice from MNers with experience in this area.

I dont know if you all do this, but I find myself studying the habits of children with no special needs issues. This morning we went to pick up one of ds's friends because his mum was ill. When he opened the door I said in a jolly voice "Taxi for Mr....." he stared at me and said your not a taxi you are just a car. Last week when it was snowing and I gave him a lift home the snow was coming into the car and I said "oh, better get in quick or else we will have to build a snowman in the car", he replied "you cant build a snowman in a car", whilst my ds giggled and thought this would be great fun. Now if I had responded to questions about my ds with this childs answers she would have really picked up on that. This is what I find so hard is that a lot of the things he does loads of other children do to. I know I'll get used to it, but Im just feeling a bit touchy on the subject I guess.

Guess there are traits in all of us. I certainly look at my brother who had unidentified problems at school all those years ago and see shades of my father and my DS2, who is about to be assessed for 'what we are missing'. Am so keen to hear someone else's opinion on this after years of suggesting there may be something more we and the school could do (spelling, writing mostly but other things are becoming apparent the more I read).

MrsGumby, snap! My DS is 3.5 and we're going down the same route as you for much the same reasons. He's an early reader too - have you seen all the Hyperlexia stuff on the Internet?

I'm a TA & support a 12 year old in mainstream school. Academically he has no probs & is very intelligent - has great memory for facts etc. Socially he has his ups & down, but does a social skills class each week to help him appreciate how to 'get on' with others. His classmates are also great & look out for him a lot

Pepsi honestly it is better to know than not to know. For me the worst part was not knowing.
I think 7 is usually around the time most children with AS get dx.
My dd has AS and I am so relieved now I know.
I know that lots of children with dyspraxia have traits of AS and visa versa.
Knowing and helping your ds now is the most important thing IMO
For me my child is exactly the same person but we now all understand her more.

HTH