Should I push with school???

February 14, 2012

Aidan, my 7 yo ds, has fairly mild OCD compared to so many on here. I first

noticed it when he was 2, but figured there wasn't much I could do about it

until he was older. Especially since he also had a bad speech disorder & would

only speak to a few people. Then he was in a center-based early intervension

program for 2 years, so his teachers were able to handle anything. I finally got

him dx at the end of K, because it was starting to get in the way. He even had

a meltdown one day because there weren't any orange chairs left at the table he

sat at & he couldn't sit in a blue chair.

School got a little better last year because of the structure in 1st grade & 2nd

grade is even more structured. As long as they stick to the same

schedule/routine, he's fine and it can go pretty much unnoticed at school.

However, if there's an unexpected change (sub, change in rooms, etc) he can't

cope. Usually with enough advance notice of a change, he can deal with it. All

of the teachers at his current school know, although they do tend to forget at

times. But if he has a meltdown, they know why & he doesn't get punished for it.

And it has happened several times in the last 2 years. However, his school may

be closing at the end of this year & I'm concerned for next year.

I requested he be evaluated by the school district so they would add his OCD to

his IEP (currently speech only), so I don't have to worry about him being

unjustly punished for a meltdown next year. I even got a letter from a therapist

he saw breifly over the summer. Although, her letter was fairly vague with a

recommendation for him to be evaluated by the SD. When the SD psycholgists came

in, the staff told them to look for autism, not OCD, & they gave him IQ & VMI

tests. So I now have confirmation that he is not autistic & a recommendation for

him to be placed in a gifted program, but nothing for his OCD. So, should I

continue to push the issue, or continue as I've been - speaking to his teachers

at the beginning of the year & reminding them at every PT conference that he has

OCD?

We aren't seeing a therapist right now because I haven't been able to find one

thru our insurance that works with both young children & OCD. With 3 other kids,

work, school, 3 nights of activities, speech appts, & crazy weekends scheduling

can be fun too! Since my husband has OCD also, I'm used to dealing with it &

think I've been doing a fairly good job working with him while between drs. But

not having a therapist also means that I don't have anyone to get another letter

with a more definite dx to turn into the SD. So, should I leave it for now &

hope for the best? Or push the issue to have the school evaluate him again

without a dx from a dr?

Sorry this is so long, I'm just a little frustrated...

Dani

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