Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

SN children

Here are some suggested organisations that offer expert advice on special needs.

Flip

Original poster

Why is DS so heavy but has normal weight?

23 replies

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 21:46

My ds has recently been dx with Autism and i forgot to ask a question in the Discussion with the 'experts'.
He weighs 2st 7lb and a friends little boy who is NT weighs 2st 5lb but OH MY GOD when you pick them up it feels like my DS weighs about 1st more! Why is this?

Is it typical in ASD children? Anyone else in same situation? He is only 3yrs so still loves to be picked up and i can only hold him for a short time as he hurts my back and arms.

OP posts:

Madlentileater · 21/05/2008 21:54

sorry I'm not an expert, but wanted to point out- I always remember when carrying dcs when they were little, how they always seemed much heavier when asleep- as if when awake, somehow the fact that they responded to your movements made them easier and so seemed lighter...does your ds sit very still and unresponsive? could that be it?

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:04

"does your ds sit very still and unresponsive? could that be it?"

If only...

Never could my ds be described as very still!

He is like a dead weight but sits on my hip or in my arms just like any other child!?

OP posts:

edam · 21/05/2008 22:08

I don't know about autism, but ds is sooooo much heavier than his friends, even though he's not noticeably bigger (a bit taller than most, but still heavier than the other tall ones).

I think he's just very muscley. You can see his muscles quite clearly when he moves - noticed it tonight walking back from school with a little friend the same age/height/ Ds's calf muscles were very obvious, friend's not showing at all.

staryeyed · 21/05/2008 22:10

My Ds has always felt like he ways a tonne ASD btw. Even when he was a baby I couldnt use the baby carrier because he was so heavy, He has is tall and heavy for his age though.

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:13

edam ds is the same, taller than most and big calf muscles(from walking on tip toes alot) but i still can't figure out why on the scales he weighs 2lb different to friends ds but when picked up the difference seems massive! Very strange!

OP posts:

coppertop · 21/05/2008 22:14

I think Edam's probably right about the muscles.

Ds2 (5) seems to be far heavier than his older brother but actually weighs less. He has never been able to stay still. He is always either jumping off something, running about, hanging upside down off something or climbing somewhere.

Ds2 looks a bit like a miniature bodybuilder as he is very muscular. I suspect that's why he feels so heavy in comparison to his brother who is just tall and thin.

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:17

staryeyed- i wonder if there is a link between this and ASD?

Madlentileater- you mentioned about children being heavier when asleep (ikwym), well my ds weighs the same awake or asleep in my arms.

Must remember to ask pead next time i see her.

OP posts:

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:20

coppertop thanks for reply but i'm still confused as to why they feel so different in arms to what the scale says? Am i missing something or have i had enough wine for tonight?

OP posts:

Madlentileater · 21/05/2008 22:25

could it be just that when you lift your friends ds you know it won't be for long, you can give him back, but when you carry your own ds you know it could be for a looong time?

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:32

Not really as everyone agrees with me, mum, friends etc. In fact if my mum says it one more time....

OP posts:

Madlentileater · 21/05/2008 22:45

hhhmmm....then I'm completely stumped. Have you weight ds and friend's ds on the same scales? they can be very inaccurate.

Original poster

fannysparkle · 21/05/2008 22:51

Yes i look after friends ds a couple of days a week and it was then that i noticed huge difference in picking them up, so i put them both on my bathroom scales and was shocked at results. Puzzler hey!?

OP posts:

Madlentileater · 21/05/2008 22:56

curiouser and curiouser

sphil · 21/05/2008 22:59

DS2 is very heavy too - but only just above the 50th centile for weight. Weird!

Arabica · 21/05/2008 23:12

Do your kids have hypotonia? DD feels heavier than she should, and has low muscle tone. I think the 2 are connected.

TheodoresMummy · 22/05/2008 07:54

Interesting...

DS (Aspergers) is very very heavy.

He is tall and a big lad but he is also just so solid.

I can hardly carry him. Makes it very difficult to remove him from shops when he loses it .

misscutandstick · 22/05/2008 08:03

I know exactly what it is... my DS4 (NT) has this thing going with gravity, when he wants to be picked up (no easy feat as hes only just 3 and is the size of a 5y/o) hes not so heavy... however when he doesnt want to be picked up its like gravity takes over and he weighs twice as much!

If only i could use his power for evil ... mwah ha ha {evil laugh}

magso · 22/05/2008 09:29

Oh I know what you mean! I thought it was just my son!
My mum said it is because ds doesn't know how to 'carry his weight'! For Ds I think it is because he cannot work (balance) or think in harmony with his lifter (and still can't at 8)! An Nt child who wants to be carried will instinctively help by not wriggling, getting upright (even tinies lift their arms) for the lift, wrapping around to keep their centre of gravity close to the adult. - Not my ds - he has no instinctive feel for how the adult may struggle!
I always say Ds hasn't quite figured out gravity - but perhaps he knows more than we do !

TinySocks · 22/05/2008 13:13

Oh God, this is making so much sense. My DS (brain injury, GDD) is skinny, but has always been to heavy to lift.
When he was little I thought it was because of his hypotonia and the inability to sit straight and therefore even out his weight as I lifted him, now that his muscle control is better I really don't know what the problem is.

NineYearsOfNappies · 22/05/2008 13:20

Could it be that he isn't doing the subtle things that NT children do automatically - that although he may put his arms around you or snuggle in, it isn't in the automatic flow-y kind of a way nt children do? So it's the awkwardness which makes lifting him harder work?

ouryve · 22/05/2008 13:43

DS1 is moderately heavy (3 stone at 4.5) but feels much heavier. He's rock solid, all muscle and very rigid so never feels like he moulds to me when I carry him. DS2 is about 2 stone and does have slight hypotonia, but he's cuddly and squidgy feeling and moulds to me, so I can carry him for much longer periods than I ever could DS1.

Original poster

fannysparkle · 22/05/2008 20:51

magso i think your mum has it in a nutshell there! Ds has poor balance and can also be quite ridgid like ouryve ds1.

I don't think he has hypotonia from what i have read, if anything he has big muscles and is VERY strong for a 3yr old, god help me when he is 6!

OP posts:

Romy7 · 22/05/2008 22:45

low toned kids are easier to carry in a lycra bodysuit... just thought I'd add! Mine all weigh a ton. I blame their father. We're working on co-operation with DD2 - 'lean in to me, arms up' but it's either like getting hold of spaghetti or trying to get the stranglehold off your windpipe, there's no middle ground... I think I'm going to stop carrying her - my chiropractor thinks it's a good idea!

Flip