Its Aspergers

[Starxx]

My little boy (6.5) was dx'd with ADHD last year and has been on medication since November (and its been brilliant ....few ups and downs with food and sleep but they seem to be sorted now) and he is making real progress both at school and weight/height wise etc. We feel we made the right choice :D

Just recently he was also dx's with aspergers as a secondary disorder and I was just wondering if anyone had any 'how to' notes on how to deal with different situations etc?

With my little boy we never know from one day to the next what will work as we think we've found a solution and the next time we try it doesnt work...

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Star xx

there are lots of good books on Amazon to help you understand Aspergers.

I used this one as a complete guide to it all.
this one for friends, family and school to tell other children
this one for DS to read (as well as the one above.
this one for ideas of how to deal with DS thinking and understanding differently to me.

there are lots more and I am sure someone else will come along to give you their recommendations too.

My DS2 has asperger's and I really like this book: Can I Tell you about Aspergers. It's quite a small book but really clearly written, and there's a lot of info in there that is aimed at teachers .

Also, there are some good leaflets on the NAS website, some of which are free.

It's very up and down at times here as well, so I know how you feel! I'm sure there will be lots more advice on the way but the main thing that helps for us is just to make sure DS2 knows exactly what's going on if we are doing anything out of the ordinary. He has very fixed ideas so it helps to let him know what is going to happen and prepare him for any deviations from the plan! I've got very good over the years at anticipating what might upset him and plan for every eventuality .

Oh, just thought of another good book although it's more her experiences as a mum rather than a "how to" Multicoloured Mayhem

Marking a place so I can look up those resources too. Over the summer I will be introducing 'Aspergers' to my 8yo ASD son to help him understand why he finds things difficult. Thanks.

Some great advice many thanks :)

Star xx

The NAS run ' help' and 'Help 2 'courses for parents of children with recent dx's . You can l

(don't know how I managed to muck that up)
(cont)..... Look on the website to find one near to you.

Another book we all liked was ' All cats have Aspergers' by Kathy Hoopman

Hi DS also has AS plus ADHD as second dx.

All I can say is apart from the good books that you have already been told about is that its all trial and error.

You will gradually work out what works for your family as no one child is the same. :)

I do know with DS routine is paramount and forewarning of events you have planned. Same with school good notice of trips etc so you can prepare him. Understanding that its a bit like two people, the anxious, rigid and guarding side of AS and the impulsivity and sensory seeking of adhd. Its a mix and you have to have patience of a saint

Also come on here and shout as you go! There is always someone on here with some advice.

You'll probably want this too.

I'm interested to see Aspergers described as a secondary disorder, I would have thought it was more all-pervasive (is that a phrase? I mean it guides the personality so much) than ADHD if that can be helped with drugs. Do they mean that the AS doesn't cause him as many problems as the ADHD?

Thanks a lot for mentioning those resources, will have a look at them soon

Hi Starxx, you don't mention tantrums/meltdowns but we suffered a lot of these and I found that once I'd understood that DS2's anger was really his way of expressing/reacting to his anxiety it made it much easier to cope with. He wasn't really an angry, rude little boy - he was actually anxious and frightened because he didn't understand the world around him. Now he's a bit older he's getting better at admitting he doesn't understand and asking people to explain. He figured out himself that "my brain's not like everyone else's" (but in a good way )