DS (8) seems "floppy" or rather, doesn't resist 'force' properly (if that makes sense)

[PutItAwayDear]

Obvs I don't mean force as in forcing him to do stuff but as in anything where he should be resisting or keeping still. We've got an OT assessment coming up soon so I'll be asking them but interested in what anyone else can suggest.

DS is 8 and being investigated for suspected ASD and ADHD. He's also got sensory issues.

His motor skills seem ok at first glance but actually he's quite clumsy and his fine motor skills aren't great but this is kind of masked. IE he can pick up and follow fairly complex lego instructions easily but he doesn't actually squeeze the pieces together properly - but he seems dextrous at first glance so unless you pay close attention you wouldn't notice that there's anything not quite right.

Something I'm becoming increasingly aware of is that when helping him with self care tasks (hair brushing, putting on shoes, pulling up trousers, zipping coats etc) he's quite floppy - so when brushing his hair his head just moves away from the brush til his chin is on his chest. When trying to help him pull up trousers he just bends and sways in the middle, and when I try and help him push his foot into a shoe he just bends his knee so his foot doesn't push into the shoe at all. It's as though he doesn't resist any pressure on his body properly? But I don't know the right words to put it into so it makes sense to a professional!

Is this something to flag up to the OT? And if so, what's the terminology I need to be using?

Thanks

Should add btw that he's actually quite strong, he regularly does things like cycle 2 miles or carry logs from woodshed to house. It's just when he needs to resist or counter any pressure applied to him if that makes sense?

Makes perfect sense. Defs mention to OT.

Could he be hypermobile? Seems a lot of autistic kids are. All my kids are hypermobile and one had what the physio calls low muscle tone, and that sounds like a combination that might end up as you're describing. Defs ask about it, but I'm sure they'll pick it up.

I don't know tbh, he definitely had an uncanny ability to escape from straps/harnesses as a younger child and we had to buy one of those expensive car seats with an impact cushion after a terrifying incident where he got loose on the M5! So he does have form for being able to wiggle himself in ways I wouldn't have expected to be possible.

I mentioned it to the SENCO and GP and they both shrugged it off and seemed to assume it was behavioural but I'm convinced there's more to it.

When you see the Ot they should get you to fill out some multiple choice assessment questions. I remember a couple of them being about whether you child was/is 'floppy'.

I think it can be a proprioception issue. The body not knowing how hard to touch things.
It can also be to do with hyper mobility.

I think what you've said in your op makes sense and I'm sure they will pick up on it in the assessment.

DD is autistic and hypermobile and some of that sounds quite familiar. I'm sure I've also read they are associated (though obvs lots of kids are hypermobile without being autistic). Definitely worth mentioning to the OT.

Sounds very much like my DS too who is hyper mobile & has ASD.

The OT should be able to help you out with some strengthening exercises. Does he ever complain of pain in legs & hips? Does he ever say he’s got tired legs & tires easily especially when out walking or at park?

Hmmmm he does sometimes but it kind of gets lost in the general complaining tbh he's extremely demand avoidant and highly skilled at finding a way out of things he doesn't want to do, so I've never thought of it as anything that might have a physical cause until fairly recently. As he gets older he still needs far more help with self care than the average 8 yr old - I have to help him dress, wash his face, clean his teeth etc. So it's gradually dawned on me that the way he flops about when I'm trying to help him with things maybe isn't just about not wanting to do it. I feel rather crappy now for only recently starting to think about it differently but there have been so many issues to deal with that it's taken a while to get round to thinking about this one!

Proprioception issues sound more likely to me than hypermobility - we've already had a private sensory assessment that picked up on some proprioceptive stuff (inappropriate hugging/squeezing/sitting on other children for example) so maybe this is another aspect of that. He definitely can resist when he decides to - he really enjoys pushing himself against people and things for example.

Don't blame yourself for not spotting a prioperception issue! It's so difficult to imagine before you're told about it!

Floppieness can also be seen with some forms of cerebral palsy-it could be a mild form of it. Fine motor skills with clumsiness can be another. My son has the spastic type of CP. he also has other issues where he had a brain hemhorrage in his executive region of his brain. Either way best of luck for you and your son