Re: Getting a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD? Which is it?

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 2/18/2007 12:34:22 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,

yvonne_uk_ok@... writes:

Hi. My son has now turned 2 and is showing signs of autism. We are

having

problems getting an official diagnosis. His paediatrician puts autism

and

global delay 'with a question mark' on all her letters. At 18 months old

lost his previous ability to say words and still wasn't pointing

Hi,

the symptoms you list sound a lot like autism, at least on the spectrum.

Things like ADD/ADHD and Sensory Integration Disorder (SID) and even OCD and

ODD

have many of the same characteristics,/many overlays. That's why it is so hard

to dx and why many parents get many different dxs. THE MIND INSITITUTE in

California, a new and renowned center on autism research, is trying to find

ways to dx these kids as young as one year, but they don't have anything

definitive yet until kids are closer to age 2-3.

That said, there is a terrific doctor in the UK (I think near London) who is

a neurologist and who, herself has/had an autistic son, has worked some

fabulous turnarounds with autistic kids. Her name is Dr. Natasha

-McBride.

You can also get her book GUT AND SPYCHOLOGY SYNDROME which explains what might

be causing autistic behaviours (and also ADD, dyslexia, etc.) and how to

reverse most, if not all, of the problems. A friend of mine put me on to her

because her adult autistic son sees Dr. C-McBride and has changed tremendously

(as

an adult!)

Her book is only available in the UK but i recommend it to people in the

states by telling them to go to amazon.com.uk. If you need more info, feel free

to e-mail me. I may also have the dr's phone number and she does do consults

over the phone. If I can't find the number, I can contact my friend and get it

from her.

Good luck....by starting early, your son can have a chance at recovery!

mother to son with ADHD, LDs, SID and somewhat on the spectrum

Special Ed Teacher for over 30 years

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

IMHO, it does not matter what the diagnosis is, except to get help with

services. In the US, a dx of autism qualifies for many services, but so does

ADHD when a child reaches school age.

It does matter that your son is doing certain things with his body to cope

with " being out of sorts " and not feeling well. Have you explored the GFCF

diet? www.tacanow.com has an excellent guide to the diet (and many other

things). My son was hyper with soy, and got sick frequently with corn, so

those are out of his diet, too. And, food dyes and preservatives, especially

combined with sugar, make him hyper and often aggressive.

When my little guy does not feel well, he presents the most " autistic-like " ,

but when his body is feeling well, he's a pleasure and also able get the

most from his numerous therapies. Like your little boy and many others on

the spectrum (ADHD is on the spectrum), music is very important to my son.

Are you thinking about trying the protocol with your son?

All the best as you get started on this journey,

Kristy

BTW, my son may be losing his autism diagnosis and getting one of ADD.

Either way, he's a handful!

[Guest guest]

Hi

Yes it all sounds familiar. I am not in the UK, and am not familiar

with all procedures. But based on my experiences, your son sounds

ill. We have consistently found more behavior and communication

improvements with antivirals and antibioitcs than any other med or

therapy. If you can get medical screening, do so even at age 2.

Check out the Files section and it will tell you what blood work can

be done to see if your child's body is healthy.

Hope this helps.

>

> Hi. My son has now turned 2 and is showing signs of autism. We are

> having

> problems getting an official diagnosis. His paediatrician puts

autism

> and

> global delay 'with a question mark' on all her letters. At 18

months old

> lost his previous ability to say words and still wasn't

pointing

> -

> he would have failed every aspect of the CHAT (checklist for autism

in

> toddlers) yet the specialists still said they couldn't officially

> diagnose

> him.

>

> Last autumn we took him to 6 special needs group sessions whereby

the

> speech

> therapist was going to assess and try to help him with his

> 'significant communication disorder'. He didn't point until 21

months

> old

> and still has limited language skills, though he now says around 20

> single

> words. He also has hyperactivity issues and more recently he has

began

> pacing up and down the front room for hours, making strange noises

and

> turning his wrists round in circles - often he walks around in

circles.

> Recently he has began circling his feet as well as the circling

flapping

> motion he does with his hands. is getting very distressed

when

> we

> are out and seems to have huge problems coping at the moment. He

usually

> loves going to the indoor play areas, yet last friday he had a

meltdown

> because he was unable to climb up a ramp in one of the play areas we

> take

> him to. We showed him another way to climb the equipment and he

usually

> climbs that way without any problems, yet once he decided the ramp

was

> the

> only way up he got completely fixated with it and threw himself

around

> on

> the floor screaming. He was inconsolable and we had to bring him

home.

> He

> has very limited ability to communicate what he wants, and he is

very

> impatient and unable to wait a second for anything. He doesn't sleep

> well

> and the other night he was crying but kept laughing at the same

time and

> he

> often cries or laughs for no obvious reason. He is the youngest of

my 6

> children and lacks the imaginative play my older children had at his

> age.

>

> has now began a second course at the special needs centre

(an

> hour

> each week without us present) and the therapist is going to write a

> report

> on his difficulties. However she is still saying that he is too

young to

> diagnose as he is only 2 and she says most aren't diagnosed until

the

> age of

> 3. We are in the UK and I am hoping for a diagnoses so that we can

move

> forward with therapy to help and teach him some coping

skills.

> He

> seems to have a good few days followed by a really bad week whereby

he

> is

> extremely active and cannot sit still for a second, and gets

extremely

> distressed all of the time and is unable to wait a second for

anything.

> In

> fact spends a lot of the time distressed which is why we

are so

> desperate to help him learn some coping skills. We find that

discipline

> is

> very difficult with as his understanding is limited and I

don't

> feel

> that he should be disciplined for his fixated ways if he is unable

to

> help

> the way he behaves.

>

> We know that loves music and is extremely musical. He can

> perfectly

> repeat a tune after hearing it only once. So we thought music would

be a

> good therapy and took him to a music school for an hour but he

couldn't

> cope

> with the structure. He hates car drives as he cannot cope with

sitting

> still - he can be extremely distressed, but as soon as we put the

Crazy

> Frog

> song on the stereo he is silenced imediately. So music could be

> something

> that helps cope when he is distressed. The transformation

was

> amazing - one minute he was hysterically screaming, yet stopped

> immediately

> when the Crazy Frog tune came on.

>

> We are wondering if has ADHD as well as autism as he is

> extremely

> hyperactive and lacks concentration.

>

> Does any of the above sound familiar, and have any of you have

similar

> experiences? We would really appreciate some advice.

>

> Below is a list of things about that I printed off for the

> special

> needs co-ordinator last week.

>

> Regards,

>

>

> - signs of autism / ADHD at 2 years old. Febuary 2007

>

> 1. doesn't say Mum or refer to us as Mum and Dad.

>

> 2. He doesn't understand the word Mum and doesn't understand his 5

> sibling's

> names.

>

> 3. He has very poor general understanding and does not follow

> instructions.

>

> 4. is constantly stimming - circling his hands, and now

circles

> feet

> as well. Sometimes bites his hands. His stimming happens

most of

> the

> time. For example when he is in the buggy his wrists are permanently

> turning

> or flapping, unless he is holding something.

>

> 5. bounces up and down on his knees and rocks up and down

making

> a

> noise.

>

> 6. Sometimes appears in his own little world and tunes us

all

> out.

>

> 7. Other than on two occasions, (and echolalic phrases such as

> " thereyougo " )

> does not say two word sentences. Previously had a

few

> words

> at 14 months old, but lost them and didn't talk again until around

21

> months.

>

> 8. had fairly normal development up until around a year old

> (though

> he wasn't pointing) - he sat up early and crawled early (which is

why we

> don't

> believe he has just global delay). Then around 14 or 15 months his

> development suddenly changed drastically and he lost his previously

> learnt

> speech.

>

> 9. often appears to be deaf even though we know he can hear

as

> he

> has grommets now and had his hearing tested. He was difficult to

test as

> he

> rarely turned for the sounds and sometimes looked in the wrong

> direction. We

> believe has auditory processing problems as he sometimes

looks

> the

> wrong way for a sound. Both hearing specialists who tested 's

> hearing

> said that he was very difficult to test because of his disorder.

However

> they have both stated that his hearing is at normal levels now.

>

> 10. Most of the time is unable to tell us what he wants. He

is

> able

> to say 'cup' and 'muslin' but generally will scream instead.

>

> 11. paces backwards and forwards every day sometimes for

hours

> on

> end. From one end of the room to the other, often making little

noises.

>

> 12. He gets extremely distressed frequently and often for no

apparent

> reason. This is results in huge and frequent trantrums.

>

> 13. Circle walking - when holding our hand will try to pull

us

> to

> walk round in a circle and when standing on his own often walks

round in

> circles.

>

> 14. doesn't engage in imaginary or pretend play other than

> pushing

> toy cars.

>

> 15. doesn't play with toys in the way my other 5 children

did.

> For

> example he will not sit on a sit on and ride car, and does not play

with

> imaginary toys.

>

> 16. has sleep problems and wakes up screaming several times

a

> night

> as if in a panic. He is then hard to settle.

>

> 17. He often laughs or cries for no apparent reason. He has got the

> giggles

> for no apparent reason in a play area before and had funny looks

from

> other

> kids.

>

> 18. Mixed crying and laughing. Last weekend woke up crying

in

> his

> sleep. The crying then turned to hysterical laughing at the same

time,

> even

> though he was still clearly extremely distressed - it switched back

and

> forth from hysterical laughter to crying at approximately 5 second

> intervals. This was extremely strange and frightening to watch.

>

> 19. doesn't show affection.

>

> 20. is extremely over-active and in general will not sit

still

> for a

> second. He gets very distressed during car journeys and will scream

very

> loudly until we put on Crazy Frog tune to settle him down. Also

> will

> not tolerate being in the buggy unless the buggy is constantly on

the

> move,

> and even then at times he cannot cope with it.

>

> 21. He often spends hours at a time with total avoidance of any eye

> contact.

>

> 22. Lack of gesturing. started pointing to show at 21

months and

> pointing to ask for things at 23 months and occasionally waves, but

has

> no

> other body gestures. He doesn't nod his head or shrug his shoulders.

>

> 23. doesn't find hidden objects ie a crisp that was hidden

under

> a

> block while he was watching.

>

> 24. He refuses to scribble with pencil and prefers to throw all the

> pencils

> on floor.

>

> 25. compulsively empties out toyboxes and any containers. He

> tantrums if he is not able to empty everything out. He'll go round

> emptying

> all his pots of things eg toy cars, alphabet letters and if we try

to

> put

> the small things back in their containers he has huge tantrums and

tries

> to

> stop us. He seems to be obsessed with scattering things and any toys

> with

> detachable pieces must be detached.

>

> 26. gets overwhelmed in crowds. If there are a lot of people

> around

> he will scream and scream eg round a car boot sale. Also in the play

> area he

> is fine and does very well, until there are a lot of people. When

that

> happens he gets extremely distressed.

>

> 27. has fixated play. He has a whole tub of different shaped

> wooden

> blocks but will always dig out the red cylindrical blocks and line

those

> up.

>

> 28. He is still unable to feed himself without my hand over his

guiding

> the

> spoon. is a very fussy eater and is unable to eat certain

> textures

> and foods. We have to blend up most of 's food in order to

get

> him to

> eat. Although we do encourage finger foods for one meal per day.

>

> 29. He is still unable to undress or dress himself without

significant

> help

> and will often tantrum during the dressing or undressing process

while

> putting arms through etc.

>

> 31. has certain food sensitivities and gets extremely

> hyperactive

> after bananas. He is also allergic to cow's milk as it make him

vomit.

>

>

>

> 32. cannot cope with structure, for example the structure

and

> his

> music lesson. We had to pull him out of his course as he could not

cope

> with

> it.

>

> 33. He cannot cope with changing direction. If we're driving

somewhere

> and

> have to do a 3 point turn or turn around and go back the other way,

he

> screams. Also at the music lesson, he got very upset when each

person in

> the

> group was marching round in a circle had to turn around. He was OK

until

> we

> had to turn around and march the other way.

>

> 34. cannot cope with any sort of waiting! He is extremely

> impatient

> and even while waiting for us to sign him in at the play area he

screams

> and

> has powerful tantrums. Even something simple like sitting in the

car for

> a

> few seconds after the engine has stopped, waiting for us to get him

out

> of

> the car, can lead to him being very distressed and screaming.

>

> 35. answers any question with the word " yeah " and his tone

for

> the

> word " yeah " is almost a questioning tone. Example, if you said " do

you

> want

> a car or a book? " he will reply " yeah? " with a questioning tone.

>

> 36. Mood swings. has the strangest changes of mood. We've

found

> in

> the past he'll have one week where he isn't quite as bad and is

actually

> able to learn and doesn't scream as much. Then something will click

and

> he

> will have a terrible week after that where he doesn't sleep and

spends

> all

> day and night distressed and not coping with anything. During his

bad

> periods his pacing gets non-stop throughout the day. Just recently

we're

> finding that he can change from good to bad very quickly indeed. For

> example

> at the play area last week when it got too crowded had a

> complete

> meltdown as he couldn't cope with the amount of people.

>

> 37. has claustrophobia and gets distressed in small areas

such

> as

> the changing rooms in the swimming pool.

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

You are describing my son at two years old. Amazing. I filled out

the autism research institutes form for free diagnosis at that time

and they diagnosed him with Kanners Autism. Though, since then he

has been tested for accompanying seizures and was not positive.

Though, I think I've seen what I would call an absent seizure or

two. You have let me see what a long way we have come and how

improved our child is. I don't think that I'd call it Kanners

autism now...maybe , or possibly Panda's.

The laughing in the night and then distress for no apparent reason

can be related to yeast over growth, and or gas. IE gut issues. We

did not know it for quite some time. But, when our child was

tested for gut bugs he had the bug that causes ulcers. That's

painful. Get some diflucan and start treating for yeast (and buy

some healthy bacteria). Go to Wal Mart where they sell baby gas

drops quite inexpensively and give it to him before he goes to bed.

And throughout the day. Have his gut bugs tested through a lab if

your doctor doesn't want to do it. Such as Great Plains lab.

He's extremely sensory and probably awakes to any sound in the room

such as a furnace coming on. Try plugging in a small fan...out

of reach that will provide a light background noise to cover night

sounds. See if he will get used to and tolerate that. If he

doesn't like it. Turn it on after he is asleep and let him awaken

to it. What I have found with Cameron is that first-he can't

tolerate something like the sound of the vacuum or toilet flushing,

or turning the car in an unsuspected direction. But, after a

little practice he seeks out the sound. For awhile vacuums were his

favorite thing and toilet flushing was great fun. We'd practice

over and over again taking a small piece of TP and flushing it.

Then, I found if I'd sometimes go in the wrong direction and take

all kinds of directions...One day when we passed our street, he

laughed and it became a great joke to go the wrong way.

I'd let him take things off of certain shelves and out of boxes.

Lock up the one's you don't want touched. He is practicing needed

skills and needs alot of practice. The skill of removing things has

to be mastered before the skill of placing on a shelf, or in a box

can come. He will one day start to slowly place something on a

shelf if he is allowed the opportunities to do so. My son first

wanted to place small cans of baby food where they went on a shelf.

He did things that really annoyed my mother...like trying to removed

the silverware from the dishwasher holder. She'd reprimand him and

this was slowing his progress. So, I had to purchase a dish

stacker for him with silverware holder and place some big spoons in

it. So, that he could practice. He then wanted to learn to take

the silver out of the drawer and put it back in.

My mother reprimands me and I guess thinks I'm crazy for letting him

do these things. But, all children do them...Just at a different

pace and some take more times to learn each thing. Let him learn

it! This means at some point he has watched you taking things out

of a box and/ or off a shelf. That's good! Now my son's father has

taught him to set the table. Wow! amazing for a child who was

unable to follow a simple direction. It's a matter of being as

determined as his illness is.

It was very hard to take him anywhere. Because, the sounds, sights

and people, and the excitement overwhelmed him. My husband was

better at taking him to the store. I couldn't stand it. So, he

did that. Everytime he went to the store, he took Cam. And now

Cam loves to shop and helps take something from the shelf and put it

in the cart. He's also helped take things from the cart and put on

the checkout. It just takes time and persistance. I was better

able to take him on field trips. I'd take him to all kinds of

places all summer long. I'd take him to the places his pre-school

was going to next year. At first, he had to stay in the stroller.

It was too hard. But, now we can go to many places and participate

in many more things. Autism is stressful on parents. But, every

success is a beautiful thing of which to be proud.

For skin sensitivity issues we used a brushing therapy with a soft

brush. An OT can help with this.

However, this is an illness and so I think it is most important to

remember to treat the medical issues.

>

> Hi. My son has now turned 2 and is showing signs of autism. We are

> having

> problems getting an official diagnosis. His paediatrician puts

autism

> and

> global delay 'with a question mark' on all her letters. At 18

months old

> lost his previous ability to say words and still wasn't

pointing

> -

> he would have failed every aspect of the CHAT (checklist for

autism in

> toddlers) yet the specialists still said they couldn't officially

> diagnose

> him.

>

> Last autumn we took him to 6 special needs group sessions whereby

the

> speech

> therapist was going to assess and try to help him with his

> 'significant communication disorder'. He didn't point until 21

months

> old

> and still has limited language skills, though he now says around 20

> single

> words. He also has hyperactivity issues and more recently he has

began

> pacing up and down the front room for hours, making strange noises

and

> turning his wrists round in circles - often he walks around in

circles.

> Recently he has began circling his feet as well as the circling

flapping

> motion he does with his hands. is getting very distressed

when

> we

> are out and seems to have huge problems coping at the moment. He

usually

> loves going to the indoor play areas, yet last friday he had a

meltdown

> because he was unable to climb up a ramp in one of the play areas

we

> take

> him to. We showed him another way to climb the equipment and he

usually

> climbs that way without any problems, yet once he decided the ramp

was

> the

> only way up he got completely fixated with it and threw himself

around

> on

> the floor screaming. He was inconsolable and we had to bring him

home.

> He

> has very limited ability to communicate what he wants, and he is

very

> impatient and unable to wait a second for anything. He doesn't

sleep

> well

> and the other night he was crying but kept laughing at the same

time and

> he

> often cries or laughs for no obvious reason. He is the youngest of

my 6

> children and lacks the imaginative play my older children had at

his

> age.

>

> has now began a second course at the special needs centre

(an

> hour

> each week without us present) and the therapist is going to write a

> report

> on his difficulties. However she is still saying that he is too

young to

> diagnose as he is only 2 and she says most aren't diagnosed until

the

> age of

> 3. We are in the UK and I am hoping for a diagnoses so that we can

move

> forward with therapy to help and teach him some coping

skills.

> He

> seems to have a good few days followed by a really bad week

whereby he

> is

> extremely active and cannot sit still for a second, and gets

extremely

> distressed all of the time and is unable to wait a second for

anything.

> In

> fact spends a lot of the time distressed which is why we

are so

> desperate to help him learn some coping skills. We find that

discipline

> is

> very difficult with as his understanding is limited and I

don't

> feel

> that he should be disciplined for his fixated ways if he is unable

to

> help

> the way he behaves.

>

> We know that loves music and is extremely musical. He can

> perfectly

> repeat a tune after hearing it only once. So we thought music

would be a

> good therapy and took him to a music school for an hour but he

couldn't

> cope

> with the structure. He hates car drives as he cannot cope with

sitting

> still - he can be extremely distressed, but as soon as we put the

Crazy

> Frog

> song on the stereo he is silenced imediately. So music could be

> something

> that helps cope when he is distressed. The transformation

was

> amazing - one minute he was hysterically screaming, yet stopped

> immediately

> when the Crazy Frog tune came on.

>

> We are wondering if has ADHD as well as autism as he is

> extremely

> hyperactive and lacks concentration.

>

> Does any of the above sound familiar, and have any of you have

similar

> experiences? We would really appreciate some advice.

>

> Below is a list of things about that I printed off for the

> special

> needs co-ordinator last week.

>

> Regards,

>

>

> - signs of autism / ADHD at 2 years old. Febuary 2007

>

> 1. doesn't say Mum or refer to us as Mum and Dad.

>

> 2. He doesn't understand the word Mum and doesn't understand his 5

> sibling's

> names.

>

> 3. He has very poor general understanding and does not follow

> instructions.

>

> 4. is constantly stimming - circling his hands, and now

circles

> feet

> as well. Sometimes bites his hands. His stimming happens

most of

> the

> time. For example when he is in the buggy his wrists are

permanently

> turning

> or flapping, unless he is holding something.

>

> 5. bounces up and down on his knees and rocks up and down

making

> a

> noise.

>

> 6. Sometimes appears in his own little world and tunes us

all

> out.

>

> 7. Other than on two occasions, (and echolalic phrases such as

> " thereyougo " )

> does not say two word sentences. Previously had a

few

> words

> at 14 months old, but lost them and didn't talk again until around

21

> months.

>

> 8. had fairly normal development up until around a year old

> (though

> he wasn't pointing) - he sat up early and crawled early (which is

why we

> don't

> believe he has just global delay). Then around 14 or 15 months his

> development suddenly changed drastically and he lost his previously

> learnt

> speech.

>

> 9. often appears to be deaf even though we know he can

hear as

> he

> has grommets now and had his hearing tested. He was difficult to

test as

> he

> rarely turned for the sounds and sometimes looked in the wrong

> direction. We

> believe has auditory processing problems as he sometimes

looks

> the

> wrong way for a sound. Both hearing specialists who tested

's

> hearing

> said that he was very difficult to test because of his disorder.

However

> they have both stated that his hearing is at normal levels now.

>

> 10. Most of the time is unable to tell us what he wants.

He is

> able

> to say 'cup' and 'muslin' but generally will scream instead.

>

> 11. paces backwards and forwards every day sometimes for

hours

> on

> end. From one end of the room to the other, often making little

noises.

>

> 12. He gets extremely distressed frequently and often for no

apparent

> reason. This is results in huge and frequent trantrums.

>

> 13. Circle walking - when holding our hand will try to

pull us

> to

> walk round in a circle and when standing on his own often walks

round in

> circles.

>

> 14. doesn't engage in imaginary or pretend play other than

> pushing

> toy cars.

>

> 15. doesn't play with toys in the way my other 5 children

did.

> For

> example he will not sit on a sit on and ride car, and does not

play with

> imaginary toys.

>

> 16. has sleep problems and wakes up screaming several

times a

> night

> as if in a panic. He is then hard to settle.

>

> 17. He often laughs or cries for no apparent reason. He has got the

> giggles

> for no apparent reason in a play area before and had funny looks

from

> other

> kids.

>

> 18. Mixed crying and laughing. Last weekend woke up crying

in

> his

> sleep. The crying then turned to hysterical laughing at the same

time,

> even

> though he was still clearly extremely distressed - it switched

back and

> forth from hysterical laughter to crying at approximately 5 second

> intervals. This was extremely strange and frightening to watch.

>

> 19. doesn't show affection.

>

> 20. is extremely over-active and in general will not sit

still

> for a

> second. He gets very distressed during car journeys and will

scream very

> loudly until we put on Crazy Frog tune to settle him down. Also

> will

> not tolerate being in the buggy unless the buggy is constantly on

the

> move,

> and even then at times he cannot cope with it.

>

> 21. He often spends hours at a time with total avoidance of any eye

> contact.

>

> 22. Lack of gesturing. started pointing to show at 21

months and

> pointing to ask for things at 23 months and occasionally waves,

but has

> no

> other body gestures. He doesn't nod his head or shrug his

shoulders.

>

> 23. doesn't find hidden objects ie a crisp that was hidden

under

> a

> block while he was watching.

>

> 24. He refuses to scribble with pencil and prefers to throw all the

> pencils

> on floor.

>

> 25. compulsively empties out toyboxes and any containers.

He

> tantrums if he is not able to empty everything out. He'll go round

> emptying

> all his pots of things eg toy cars, alphabet letters and if we try

to

> put

> the small things back in their containers he has huge tantrums and

tries

> to

> stop us. He seems to be obsessed with scattering things and any

toys

> with

> detachable pieces must be detached.

>

> 26. gets overwhelmed in crowds. If there are a lot of

people

> around

> he will scream and scream eg round a car boot sale. Also in the

play

> area he

> is fine and does very well, until there are a lot of people. When

that

> happens he gets extremely distressed.

>

> 27. has fixated play. He has a whole tub of different

shaped

> wooden

> blocks but will always dig out the red cylindrical blocks and line

those

> up.

>

> 28. He is still unable to feed himself without my hand over his

guiding

> the

> spoon. is a very fussy eater and is unable to eat certain

> textures

> and foods. We have to blend up most of 's food in order to

get

> him to

> eat. Although we do encourage finger foods for one meal per day.

>

> 29. He is still unable to undress or dress himself without

significant

> help

> and will often tantrum during the dressing or undressing process

while

> putting arms through etc.

>

> 31. has certain food sensitivities and gets extremely

> hyperactive

> after bananas. He is also allergic to cow's milk as it make him

vomit.

>

>

>

> 32. cannot cope with structure, for example the structure

and

> his

> music lesson. We had to pull him out of his course as he could not

cope

> with

> it.

>

> 33. He cannot cope with changing direction. If we're driving

somewhere

> and

> have to do a 3 point turn or turn around and go back the other

way, he

> screams. Also at the music lesson, he got very upset when each

person in

> the

> group was marching round in a circle had to turn around. He was OK

until

> we

> had to turn around and march the other way.

>

> 34. cannot cope with any sort of waiting! He is extremely

> impatient

> and even while waiting for us to sign him in at the play area he

screams

> and

> has powerful tantrums. Even something simple like sitting in the

car for

> a

> few seconds after the engine has stopped, waiting for us to get

him out

> of

> the car, can lead to him being very distressed and screaming.

>

> 35. answers any question with the word " yeah " and his tone

for

> the

> word " yeah " is almost a questioning tone. Example, if you said " do

you

> want

> a car or a book? " he will reply " yeah? " with a questioning tone.

>

> 36. Mood swings. has the strangest changes of mood. We've

found

> in

> the past he'll have one week where he isn't quite as bad and is

actually

> able to learn and doesn't scream as much. Then something will

click and

> he

> will have a terrible week after that where he doesn't sleep and

spends

> all

> day and night distressed and not coping with anything. During his

bad

> periods his pacing gets non-stop throughout the day. Just recently

we're

> finding that he can change from good to bad very quickly indeed.

For

> example

> at the play area last week when it got too crowded had a

> complete

> meltdown as he couldn't cope with the amount of people.

>

> 37. has claustrophobia and gets distressed in small areas

such

> as

> the changing rooms in the swimming pool.

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Oh, ya. Do not see a therapist who will not allow you in the room.

Or, atleast watching from a one way mirror.

We've had several problems with therapists who didn't want to do

their jobs or, were abusive with the child. I caught one therapist

being very abusive with him when I left the room and returned

without notice. And we had a speech therapist who was mocking him

and being rude. This isn't helpful. And we wouldn't have known this

if we hadn't been watching.

> >

> > Hi. My son has now turned 2 and is showing signs of autism. We

are

> > having

> > problems getting an official diagnosis. His paediatrician puts

> autism

> > and

> > global delay 'with a question mark' on all her letters. At 18

> months old

> > lost his previous ability to say words and still wasn't

> pointing

> > -

> > he would have failed every aspect of the CHAT (checklist for

> autism in

> > toddlers) yet the specialists still said they couldn't officially

> > diagnose

> > him.

> >

> > Last autumn we took him to 6 special needs group sessions

whereby

> the

> > speech

> > therapist was going to assess and try to help him with

his

> > 'significant communication disorder'. He didn't point until 21

> months

> > old

> > and still has limited language skills, though he now says around

20

> > single

> > words. He also has hyperactivity issues and more recently he has

> began

> > pacing up and down the front room for hours, making strange

noises

> and

> > turning his wrists round in circles - often he walks around in

> circles.

> > Recently he has began circling his feet as well as the circling

> flapping

> > motion he does with his hands. is getting very

distressed

> when

> > we

> > are out and seems to have huge problems coping at the moment. He

> usually

> > loves going to the indoor play areas, yet last friday he had a

> meltdown

> > because he was unable to climb up a ramp in one of the play

areas

> we

> > take

> > him to. We showed him another way to climb the equipment and he

> usually

> > climbs that way without any problems, yet once he decided the

ramp

> was

> > the

> > only way up he got completely fixated with it and threw himself

> around

> > on

> > the floor screaming. He was inconsolable and we had to bring him

> home.

> > He

> > has very limited ability to communicate what he wants, and he is

> very

> > impatient and unable to wait a second for anything. He doesn't

> sleep

> > well

> > and the other night he was crying but kept laughing at the same

> time and

> > he

> > often cries or laughs for no obvious reason. He is the youngest

of

> my 6

> > children and lacks the imaginative play my older children had at

> his

> > age.

> >

> > has now began a second course at the special needs

centre

> (an

> > hour

> > each week without us present) and the therapist is going to

write a

> > report

> > on his difficulties. However she is still saying that he is too

> young to

> > diagnose as he is only 2 and she says most aren't diagnosed

until

> the

> > age of

> > 3. We are in the UK and I am hoping for a diagnoses so that we

can

> move

> > forward with therapy to help and teach him some coping

> skills.

> > He

> > seems to have a good few days followed by a really bad week

> whereby he

> > is

> > extremely active and cannot sit still for a second, and gets

> extremely

> > distressed all of the time and is unable to wait a second for

> anything.

> > In

> > fact spends a lot of the time distressed which is why we

> are so

> > desperate to help him learn some coping skills. We find that

> discipline

> > is

> > very difficult with as his understanding is limited and

I

> don't

> > feel

> > that he should be disciplined for his fixated ways if he is

unable

> to

> > help

> > the way he behaves.

> >

> > We know that loves music and is extremely musical. He can

> > perfectly

> > repeat a tune after hearing it only once. So we thought music

> would be a

> > good therapy and took him to a music school for an hour but he

> couldn't

> > cope

> > with the structure. He hates car drives as he cannot cope with

> sitting

> > still - he can be extremely distressed, but as soon as we put

the

> Crazy

> > Frog

> > song on the stereo he is silenced imediately. So music could be

> > something

> > that helps cope when he is distressed. The

transformation

> was

> > amazing - one minute he was hysterically screaming, yet stopped

> > immediately

> > when the Crazy Frog tune came on.

> >

> > We are wondering if has ADHD as well as autism as he is

> > extremely

> > hyperactive and lacks concentration.

> >

> > Does any of the above sound familiar, and have any of you have

> similar

> > experiences? We would really appreciate some advice.

> >

> > Below is a list of things about that I printed off for

the

> > special

> > needs co-ordinator last week.

> >

> > Regards,

> >

> >

> > - signs of autism / ADHD at 2 years old. Febuary 2007

> >

> > 1. doesn't say Mum or refer to us as Mum and Dad.

> >

> > 2. He doesn't understand the word Mum and doesn't understand his

5

> > sibling's

> > names.

> >

> > 3. He has very poor general understanding and does not follow

> > instructions.

> >

> > 4. is constantly stimming - circling his hands, and now

> circles

> > feet

> > as well. Sometimes bites his hands. His stimming happens

> most of

> > the

> > time. For example when he is in the buggy his wrists are

> permanently

> > turning

> > or flapping, unless he is holding something.

> >

> > 5. bounces up and down on his knees and rocks up and

down

> making

> > a

> > noise.

> >

> > 6. Sometimes appears in his own little world and tunes

us

> all

> > out.

> >

> > 7. Other than on two occasions, (and echolalic phrases such as

> > " thereyougo " )

> > does not say two word sentences. Previously had

a

> few

> > words

> > at 14 months old, but lost them and didn't talk again until

around

> 21

> > months.

> >

> > 8. had fairly normal development up until around a year

old

> > (though

> > he wasn't pointing) - he sat up early and crawled early (which

is

> why we

> > don't

> > believe he has just global delay). Then around 14 or 15 months

his

> > development suddenly changed drastically and he lost his

previously

> > learnt

> > speech.

> >

> > 9. often appears to be deaf even though we know he can

> hear as

> > he

> > has grommets now and had his hearing tested. He was difficult to

> test as

> > he

> > rarely turned for the sounds and sometimes looked in the wrong

> > direction. We

> > believe has auditory processing problems as he sometimes

> looks

> > the

> > wrong way for a sound. Both hearing specialists who tested

> 's

> > hearing

> > said that he was very difficult to test because of his disorder.

> However

> > they have both stated that his hearing is at normal levels now.

> >

> > 10. Most of the time is unable to tell us what he wants.

> He is

> > able

> > to say 'cup' and 'muslin' but generally will scream instead.

> >

> > 11. paces backwards and forwards every day sometimes for

> hours

> > on

> > end. From one end of the room to the other, often making little

> noises.

> >

> > 12. He gets extremely distressed frequently and often for no

> apparent

> > reason. This is results in huge and frequent trantrums.

> >

> > 13. Circle walking - when holding our hand will try to

> pull us

> > to

> > walk round in a circle and when standing on his own often walks

> round in

> > circles.

> >

> > 14. doesn't engage in imaginary or pretend play other

than

> > pushing

> > toy cars.

> >

> > 15. doesn't play with toys in the way my other 5

children

> did.

> > For

> > example he will not sit on a sit on and ride car, and does not

> play with

> > imaginary toys.

> >

> > 16. has sleep problems and wakes up screaming several

> times a

> > night

> > as if in a panic. He is then hard to settle.

> >

> > 17. He often laughs or cries for no apparent reason. He has got

the

> > giggles

> > for no apparent reason in a play area before and had funny looks

> from

> > other

> > kids.

> >

> > 18. Mixed crying and laughing. Last weekend woke up

crying

> in

> > his

> > sleep. The crying then turned to hysterical laughing at the same

> time,

> > even

> > though he was still clearly extremely distressed - it switched

> back and

> > forth from hysterical laughter to crying at approximately 5

second

> > intervals. This was extremely strange and frightening to watch.

> >

> > 19. doesn't show affection.

> >

> > 20. is extremely over-active and in general will not sit

> still

> > for a

> > second. He gets very distressed during car journeys and will

> scream very

> > loudly until we put on Crazy Frog tune to settle him down. Also

>

> > will

> > not tolerate being in the buggy unless the buggy is constantly

on

> the

> > move,

> > and even then at times he cannot cope with it.

> >

> > 21. He often spends hours at a time with total avoidance of any

eye

> > contact.

> >

> > 22. Lack of gesturing. started pointing to show at 21

> months and

> > pointing to ask for things at 23 months and occasionally waves,

> but has

> > no

> > other body gestures. He doesn't nod his head or shrug his

> shoulders.

> >

> > 23. doesn't find hidden objects ie a crisp that was

hidden

> under

> > a

> > block while he was watching.

> >

> > 24. He refuses to scribble with pencil and prefers to throw all

the

> > pencils

> > on floor.

> >

> > 25. compulsively empties out toyboxes and any

containers.

> He

> > tantrums if he is not able to empty everything out. He'll go

round

> > emptying

> > all his pots of things eg toy cars, alphabet letters and if we

try

> to

> > put

> > the small things back in their containers he has huge tantrums

and

> tries

> > to

> > stop us. He seems to be obsessed with scattering things and any

> toys

> > with

> > detachable pieces must be detached.

> >

> > 26. gets overwhelmed in crowds. If there are a lot of

> people

> > around

> > he will scream and scream eg round a car boot sale. Also in the

> play

> > area he

> > is fine and does very well, until there are a lot of people.

When

> that

> > happens he gets extremely distressed.

> >

> > 27. has fixated play. He has a whole tub of different

> shaped

> > wooden

> > blocks but will always dig out the red cylindrical blocks and

line

> those

> > up.

> >

> > 28. He is still unable to feed himself without my hand over his

> guiding

> > the

> > spoon. is a very fussy eater and is unable to eat certain

> > textures

> > and foods. We have to blend up most of 's food in order

to

> get

> > him to

> > eat. Although we do encourage finger foods for one meal per day.

> >

> > 29. He is still unable to undress or dress himself without

> significant

> > help

> > and will often tantrum during the dressing or undressing process

> while

> > putting arms through etc.

> >

> > 31. has certain food sensitivities and gets extremely

> > hyperactive

> > after bananas. He is also allergic to cow's milk as it make him

> vomit.

> >

> >

> >

> > 32. cannot cope with structure, for example the

structure

> and

> > his

> > music lesson. We had to pull him out of his course as he could

not

> cope

> > with

> > it.

> >

> > 33. He cannot cope with changing direction. If we're driving

> somewhere

> > and

> > have to do a 3 point turn or turn around and go back the other

> way, he

> > screams. Also at the music lesson, he got very upset when each

> person in

> > the

> > group was marching round in a circle had to turn around. He was

OK

> until

> > we

> > had to turn around and march the other way.

> >

> > 34. cannot cope with any sort of waiting! He is extremely

> > impatient

> > and even while waiting for us to sign him in at the play area he

> screams

> > and

> > has powerful tantrums. Even something simple like sitting in the

> car for

> > a

> > few seconds after the engine has stopped, waiting for us to get

> him out

> > of

> > the car, can lead to him being very distressed and screaming.

> >

> > 35. answers any question with the word " yeah " and his

tone

> for

> > the

> > word " yeah " is almost a questioning tone. Example, if you

said " do

> you

> > want

> > a car or a book? " he will reply " yeah? " with a questioning tone.

> >

> > 36. Mood swings. has the strangest changes of mood.

We've

> found

> > in

> > the past he'll have one week where he isn't quite as bad and is

> actually

> > able to learn and doesn't scream as much. Then something will

> click and

> > he

> > will have a terrible week after that where he doesn't sleep and

> spends

> > all

> > day and night distressed and not coping with anything. During

his

> bad

> > periods his pacing gets non-stop throughout the day. Just

recently

> we're

> > finding that he can change from good to bad very quickly indeed.

> For

> > example

> > at the play area last week when it got too crowded had a

> > complete

> > meltdown as he couldn't cope with the amount of people.

> >

> > 37. has claustrophobia and gets distressed in small

areas

> such

> > as

> > the changing rooms in the swimming pool.

> >

> >

> >