Asperger's Syndrom

[Marne]

Hi, my dd1 has been to see a specialest this morning for the 2nd time (6 month follow up), she suffers from anxiety and has some phobia's. On our last visit i was told to put her into nursery to help her overcome some of her fears and anxiety (people and places), dd took a few month to settle in but is now doing well, she has also improoved at home.

I was looking forward to going today so i could tell the doctor that she was getting on well and has overcome some of her phobia's.

At the end of the apointment the doctor told me that she was reffering dd1 to a specialest at the hospital so she could be tested/assesed for Asperger's. I am a bit as after the first apointment with the doctor i was told she did'nt have aspergers, i thought as she had improoved that this would be the end of it.

The doctor gave me a web site to look at which has made me more worried, dd1 does fit into some of the characteristics of aspergers ( she gets upset easily, she's clever and she likes routine) but she does'nt fit others (she plays with others and she knows how others are feeling).

Are there any parents of children with Aspergers who can advice me, what should i be looking for etc?

Also are there any useful web-sites which may help?

Tony Attwood's book "The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome" is a comprehensive book which offers lots of useful information. You can order it from Amazon. Did the person you saw this morning tell you why she was considering Asperger's? Was it a paediatrician you saw?
I have 2 DSs diagnosed with Asperger's. They are very different, although having the same diagnosis, but share certain characteristics. Most children with AS will display some, but not all traits, so your DD may have Asperger's but will not exhibit every trait or symptom. What concerns do you have about her?

We saw the paediatrician at our local gp surgery. She gave me the web-site address for Tony Attwood, She said that dd did'nt show all the sign of aspergers but as she had a few traits which she would like to check out. Her main concerns were ;

how she handles changes in routine, she is worried that when she starts school in september that she may become unsettled, dd has taken a long time to settle into nursery as she finds it hard to be around people she does'nt know (mainly females).

The way she arange's things in order of size and colour (including her food)

The fears she has, including loud sounds (cars,hoover etc..)

And her shyness.

Most of the above has improoved over the last 6 months, she is alot better with people and plays with other children at nursery. The only thing that was realy bothering was introducing new food to her (she has a limited diet and wont try anything new).
Most of the time i would say she is a normal happy child with no signs of being different.

My youngest Ds was diagnosed when he was 6. My health visitor referred him when I mentioned at his 3 year check that he "hand-flapped". However, no-one at the CDC (or his nursery) picked up that he has Asperger's until his problems became more evident at primary school. He really did not cope; we had a few blips in reception, but in year 1 he completely went to pieces. Like your DD food has always been an issue, but it then became a major problem because he literally stopped eating. Luckily he was already in the system because of the earlier referral and he got an assessment and diagnosis really quickly after that.
He displays all the traits you mention your DD has by the way. He has had lots of phobias and extreme anxieties, to the point where the psychiatrist said he may have a separate anxiety disorder. as it went beyond the noraml level for AS.

We always thought she just suffered from Anxiety like dh, now after reeding the traits dh also has some of the traits, dh has been suffering from depression fo many years, does Aspergers run in the family? and is it possible that dh may suffer from Asperger's?

Also what are the chance's of dd2 having aspergers or any other children we may have in the future?

Sorry for all the questions

Sometimes dd1 refusses to eat, if there is something on her plate that she does'nt like the look of she wont eat anything.

She has suffered from anxiety since she could talk, she has always hated being around females but will happily talk to men.

It very much runs in families-as I mentioned, I have two DSs with the diagnosis. I have 5 DSs in all and to be honest I very strongly suspect two more may also have AS, but they are in their twenties and do not want to be assessed at the moment. So that is 4 out of my 5! It is also very common for a parent to realise thay have AS themselves when a child is diagnosed!
If your DD does get a dx they should explain to you what the chances are of other chilren being affected-I cant remember exactly what the odds are.

Thankyou Tiggiwinkle.

Its all a bit of a at the moment.

Dh has seen a few doctors about his depression and has been on Anti- depessants on and off for 4 years, when you here about aspergers you think of children having it and we never even thought that dh may have it.

I hope we get the to the bottom of it before dd1 starts school, she's so bright and like all parents we want her to do well at school. Will i need to discus this with the school (if she has aspergers) and what help will she recieve?

Also if she does receive an AS diagnosis I would seriously consider getting her a Statement of Special Need from your Local Education Authority. That legally binding document may enable her school life to run a bit more smoothly. Infact diagnosis or not I would look into getting a Statement for her anyway.

If i get a statement of special needs will this meen she will get help at school?

Sorry ,a bit new to all this.

Some schools are far better thann others when it comes to the whole special needs area but I would apply for a Statement. This would give her more support otherwise she could be left languishing on a plan like School Action Plus which is not legally binding and can be limited in scope. She may not get much help short of a Statement being in place.

There is nothing to stop you applying for such a document now. IPSEA are very good at all this and there are letters on there you can use:-

www.ipsea.org.uk

Also have a look at the website for the National Autistic Society. They can also be helpful.

She'll receive a set number of hours of week additional support if a Statement is in place.

The difficulty is getting the LEA to agree to assessment in the first place, many applications are initially refused. Do not give up, if this happens to you appeal their crass decision.

You are your daughter's best and only advocate.

Thankyou

Hi

It doesnt all mean that your child definitely has Aspergers. On this board you will come across a lot of people whos children do.

Our son has been identified as possible Aspergers at age 4 by an ed psych. But I think he may not have it. He has some aspects of it but others he doesnt. Also as he matures he has for example just recently developed really good imaginative play that he didnt have before. As your child matures they may change.

A child may display several typical behaviours of aspergers but they may just be that - separate behaviours.

Thanks mumfun,

Deep down i don't think she has it but after reading about Aspergers in adults i have started thinking maybe dh has it so dd1 may have it too.

I should'nt realy be reading up on it until we know if she has it but the doctor gave me some info so i had a look.

Dd1 has a great imagination and she is a very bright little girl (not sure where she gets it from)

The doctor said children with Aspergers are bright and good at solving problems. Today i picked her up from nursery and she started to read the names on the peg's, i did'nt know she could read so i asked her ' how do you know thats Conner's peg' she repied 'because it has C O R N N E R on it'