I'm new to the group

[Guest guest]

My son was diagnosed with apraxia at about age 2. He is now 6-1/2.

At the time of his diagnosis, I had never heard of apraxia and

naively thought that once he was done with his speech therapy he was

at better. Since his diagnosis, I have realized other deficits and

have learned a lot about this life long issue.

We began homeschooling this year (he is in 1st grade) and now I am

really noticing some things that I'm not sure whether it is apraxia

or him or something else. I recently began researching and have

learned so much. I realize my son's deficits are minimal compared to

many stories I have read. However, I am also aware that the

struggles I am seeing could definately progess in the future.

My question, how much does concentration/ability to focus and apraxia

correlate? When he was little, in speech therapy, he had a really

good concentration level and his attention span was long for his

age. Now, however, I am finding it difficult to keep him focused for

his school work.

Also, I don't see alot of information about gross motor skills and

apraxia but my son has had definate gross motor deficits that he has

had to/and is having to over come. He was a late crawler, late

walker and even to this day gross motor activities are more difficult

for him compared to other boys his age.

Don't get me wrong, my son is doing very well; he is doing well

academically and progressing in his motor skills through sports

acitivities but the problems I'm seeing are beginning to concern me

about problems for the future. My concerns led me to have him

retested and he passed all the therapists tests but I realize that

doesn't mean he doesnt' still have some deficits or other issues.

Any comments would be appreciated. I'm just not sure if the

concentration and gross motor typically are seen with apraxia or if

this is possibly another issue going on. I have been searching and

just havn't found much on these issues.

[Guest guest]

Welcome!

Have you read about Sensory Integration Dysfunction and Dyspraxia

also known as global apraxia?

Dyspraxia info below:

http://www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk/services/dys_dyspraxia.php

Dyspraxia Foundation

http://www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk/services/gu_symptoms.php

Symptoms listed

Sensory Integration Dysfunction below:

http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/index.html

At the bottom of the page is a lot of highlighted information you can

choose to read through. The comprehensive Sensory Processing

Disorder Checklist might be helpful to read through.

My apraxic son had trouble with attention span and focus when he was

2 years old because of the Sensory issues he was having, but now at 5

is doing fine. My older typical son had problems with attention span

around the same age as your son because he was bored with the school

work and needed to be challenged more. Is your son interested in what he is

learning? Did his Kindergarten teacher notice problems with concentration in the

class room last year?

Hope you find your answers-

Tina

>

> My son was diagnosed with apraxia at about age 2. He is now 6-

1/2.

> At the time of his diagnosis, I had never heard of apraxia and

> naively thought that once he was done with his speech therapy he

was

> at better. Since his diagnosis, I have realized other deficits and

> have learned a lot about this life long issue.

>

> We began homeschooling this year (he is in 1st grade) and now I am

> really noticing some things that I'm not sure whether it is apraxia

> or him or something else. I recently began researching and have

> learned so much. I realize my son's deficits are minimal compared

to

> many stories I have read. However, I am also aware that the

> struggles I am seeing could definately progess in the future.

>

> My question, how much does concentration/ability to focus and

apraxia

> correlate? When he was little, in speech therapy, he had a really

> good concentration level and his attention span was long for his

> age. Now, however, I am finding it difficult to keep him focused

for

> his school work.

>

> Also, I don't see alot of information about gross motor skills and

> apraxia but my son has had definate gross motor deficits that he

has

> had to/and is having to over come. He was a late crawler, late

> walker and even to this day gross motor activities are more

difficult

> for him compared to other boys his age.

>

> Don't get me wrong, my son is doing very well; he is doing well

> academically and progressing in his motor skills through sports

> acitivities but the problems I'm seeing are beginning to concern me

> about problems for the future. My concerns led me to have him

> retested and he passed all the therapists tests but I realize that

> doesn't mean he doesnt' still have some deficits or other issues.

>

> Any comments would be appreciated. I'm just not sure if the

> concentration and gross motor typically are seen with apraxia or if

> this is possibly another issue going on. I have been searching and

> just havn't found much on these issues.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Michele:

Here are some other links that you might be interested in. Link to

the link section for this group:

/links

The folders are done by subject...Dyspraxia, Sensory Integration

Dysfunction, therapy ideas - for at home, list of books, etc.

You might also want to get private evaluations by a speech therapist

(if speech is still an issue) and an Occupational Therapist familiar

with Sensory Integration Dysfunction and dyspraxia/global apraxia.

There are members here that can suggest different therapies/exercises

based on trouble areas you are seeing. The archives are also a great

place for you to find helpful information. If you are reading through

email, here is a link to the search page where you can search the

archives (9 years worth).

/msearch_adv

Advanced search--put in subject you are looking for--or certain words

you are looking for in the " message body " box.

HTH,

Tina

>

> Tina,

>

> Thank you so much! This is exactly the information I am needing.

> There are things I have seen my son do that I just thought was him

> or " just boys " but now after reading information on the links you

> sent, I realize it is not " just him or " just being a boy " . This

> information is very valuable. I think with it I will be able to

help

> him progress and hopefully eliminate or minimalize problems in his

> near future. Thank you again so much.

>

> Michele

>

[Guest guest]

Hi

Welcome to the group. You will find that there is a lot of support here.

Sometimes even just reading that someone is dealing with the same issues as you

can make you feel better, and not so terribly alone!

My son will be 6 at the end of June and I can relate to your teacher

problems. is always in trouble because of his social problems. The school

works on a dot system for punishment - a little bit bad gets you a yellow dot, a

big bad gets you a red dot and for good behaviour you get a green dot. These

dots are glued into a book which is sent home every day. Parents are expected to

hand out appropriate punishment for the " sin " that was comitted. We started off

doing our bit and taking away games or TV, but it seems like the teacher gives

yellow or red dots rather than trying to understand and deal with the situation.

gets so anxious and upset when he has a bad dot in his book, and it takes

hours to calm him after school. We now hardly ever punish and will rather just

have a chat with him to find out what happened. Most of the time he merely

reacted inappropriately in a situation with other kids. We now rather discuss

the situation and give him options of how to respond the next time this happens.

He learns quite well and will now respond to most " hello's " in a trained

robot-like manner which seems to satisfy the teachers at least! I think many

teachers really battle to 'get' our kids. They know about the social

difficulties, but do not truely understand. The other day was rude at

school and got a yellow dot. Later that same day the teacher wanted to

remember to tell me something. To help remember to give me the message the

teacher glued a yellow dot on his hand! How confusing is that! Two yellow dots

on one day!! And one of them glued onto your hand for all to see!!! My poor boy

- he was in a state that afternoon. I felt so sorry for him, and wanted to cry

with him! He never gave me the message! Some people just do not understand.

I hope your new teacher will have more sympathy and understanding. And remember,

there are many of us out here dealing with the same problems everyday. When you

are feeling alone, just visit this group.

Mirinda (mom to , 5 and Annika, 3)

>

>

> Hi everybody []

>

>

>

> My name is , and I live in CA. I have two children; my daughter is

> 12, and my son is 5 1/2. My son Hayden was diagnosed with ADHD in

> February 2009. He was diagnosed last month with OCD, Anxiety, and

> Asperger's. I always knew something else was going on besides ADHD, and

> it took a long time to get approved to see his Neurologist. I love my

> children more than anything, and I'm tired. I want to do the best for my

> little boy, but I don't know what that is. He used to be much more

> loving; he still is, just not as interested in anything else but Art. He

> had a terrible year in Kindergarten, with a teacher that didn't know how

> to work with him. I communicated with her for months, until this one

> e-mail that did me in. She puts him down all the time, makes him turn

> cards for punishment and gets angry at him when he doesn't respond to

> " Good Morning " or " Hello " . She also reprimands him for not being social.

> I gave up communicating with her, and went to the top, and it still

> continued. Fast forward, he's repeating K with a new teacher next year,

> In the meantime, I have started the IEP process, and it's now a waiting

> game I guess. I fell alone. I feel sad. I do my research on AS, and make

> the calls, but I haven't been able to help myself. Oh, I am also a

> divorced Mom, and their Dad is in another state with his new family. I

> am looking for support, and some friends. Hopefully, I can in some way,

> offer some help too.

>

>

>

> Take care

>

[Guest guest]

Welcome, . I am so sorry for what your son went through in school. From: tanya9804@...Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2010 19:55:04 +0000Subject: ( ) I'm new to the group

Hi everybody

My name is , and I live in CA. I have two children; my daughter is 12, and my son is 5 1/2. My son Hayden was diagnosed with ADHD in February 2009. He was diagnosed last month with OCD, Anxiety, and Asperger's. I always knew something else was going on besides ADHD, and it took a long time to get approved to see his Neurologist. I love my children more than anything, and I'm tired. I want to do the best for my little boy, but I don't know what that is. He used to be much more loving; he still is, just not as interested in anything else but Art. He had a terrible year in Kindergarten, with a teacher that didn't know how to work with him. I communicated with her for months, until this one e-mail that did me in. She puts him down all the time, makes him turn cards for punishment and gets angry at him when he doesn't respond to "Good Morning" or "Hello". She also reprimands him for not being social. I gave up communicating with her, and went to the top, and it still continued. Fast forward, he's repeating K with a new teacher next year, In the meantime, I have started the IEP process, and it's now a waiting game I guess. I fell alone. I feel sad. I do my research on AS, and make the calls, but I haven't been able to help myself. Oh, I am also a divorced Mom, and their Dad is in another state with his new family. I am looking for support, and some friends. Hopefully, I can in some way, offer some help too.

Take care

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[Guest guest]

Hi ,

We went thru the same thing in kindergarten. I suspected my son had Attention issues--but never in a million years aspergers. When I did my graduate work in ESE, I was taught children with Aspergers, were aloof, touch- me -nots, that didn't like anything social. Only one side of the aspie spectrum. Now we know so much more--aspie kids can be SOOOO different--so many different levels.

I'm a teacher and principal by trade. I have my Masters in Educational Leadership, with minor in ESE. I was teaching and my KID hated school. Can you imagine? Well let me tell you, school has just never been a comfortable place for him. I think he tolerated it because I was upstairs--near him.

So I want you to know, it's not your child. Public school is pretty difficult for any kid that is not a traditional audio-visual learner. Everything is geared toward AVERAGE children. So school for my son was really difficult.

You are NOT alone--even kids with a minor learning disability struggle. I taught 4'th grade inclusion--40% ese and 60% regular two years ago. I saw that my gifted child was not be challenged, and that my ESE kids were struggling, my ADD/ADHD kids were struggling, my artistic eccentric kids were struggling. The only ones NOT struggling were average kids.The ones who can adapt quickly, who learn even if they were not in school, type kids.

I hope we can be some help to you--and I will be praying for you and your son. I'm at the point that I don't CARE what an average kid can do, and what my kid SHOULD be doing. I'm teaching him to learn in the way he is good at, and do the best he can. He will succeed because I believe in him, because we can find his strengths, and the world is changing. Someone will needs his talents one day. Who cares if he isn't a success in public school? Many great minds were not. Alva Edison is a great one to remember.

Purrs & Kisses,

Kristal of Digi Kitty

The Kitty who loves Digi!

Designer for the VDBC "More" Team - you can see my designs HERE!!!

From: Barbara Pinckney <b-pinckney@...>Subject: RE: ( ) I'm new to the groupAspergers Treatment Date: Thursday, June 3, 2010, 9:10 AM

Welcome, . I am so sorry for what your son went through in school.

From: tanya9804@sbcglobal .netDate: Wed, 2 Jun 2010 19:55:04 +0000Subject: ( ) I'm new to the group

Hi everybody

My name is , and I live in CA. I have two children; my daughter is 12, and my son is 5 1/2. My son Hayden was diagnosed with ADHD in February 2009. He was diagnosed last month with OCD, Anxiety, and Asperger's. I always knew something else was going on besides ADHD, and it took a long time to get approved to see his Neurologist. I love my children more than anything, and I'm tired. I want to do the best for my little boy, but I don't know what that is. He used to be much more loving; he still is, just not as interested in anything else but Art. He had a terrible year in Kindergarten, with a teacher that didn't know how to work with him. I communicated with her for months, until this one e-mail that did me in. She puts him down all the time, makes him turn cards for punishment and gets angry at him when he doesn't respond to "Good Morning" or "Hello". She also reprimands him for not being social. I gave up

communicating with her, and went to the top, and it still continued. Fast forward, he's repeating K with a new teacher next year, In the meantime, I have started the IEP process, and it's now a waiting game I guess. I fell alone. I feel sad. I do my research on AS, and make the calls, but I haven't been able to help myself. Oh, I am also a divorced Mom, and their Dad is in another state with his new family. I am looking for support, and some friends. Hopefully, I can in some way, offer some help too.

Take care

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[Guest guest]

Hello !(((BIG HUGS))) I am so sorry for your and your son's pain. I think it's natural for all of us to want to look into as much information as we can at first and (maybe this is just me?) explore every way we think we failed our children after we first get the diagnosis. Mind you, I'm really only a little under two years into having one. But, I think if there's anything I would tell that younger me; it's that the guilt really serves no good purpose. It's emotionally, physically, and spiritually draining. And for me, maybe even a little indulgent as there was a masochistic part of me that wanted to punish myself because my son was suffering. Coming from a happier place now, with more of a handle on

how I can best help my son, I would say that there is no way I can be my son's best advocate unless I am in a healthier place.I will say to you, that I will lovingly support you in every way I can. But, I know that in my case, I went through a period of severe anxiety (complete with panic attacks) and depression, and there were other factors besides my son that contributed to this. I improved considerably when I put myself in counseling, and I was a more effective advocate for my son thereafter. I only attended sessions for about 8 weeks and it wasn't to rehash what my son was going through. I did enough of that with the pediatric experts. Instead, I focused on how I was feeling, what I needed help coping with, and how to implement the best strategies to deal with MY issues. And again, once I was in a healthier place, I found I was able to really be a better communicator and happier mama - which led to

happier children. I don't in anyway doubt that you have been giving it your all, fighting the good fight for a year or more. But, you say that NOW you are tired and confused as how to best help your son. I think it's worth reminding that we all think our clearest and do our best when we are happier and have more energy. Remember the flight attendant's advice, put your mask on first! My best wishes and prayers are with you.From: proud_ca_mom <tanya9804@...>To:

Sent: Wed, June 2, 2010 2:55:04 PMSubject: ( ) I'm new to the group

Hi everybody

My name is , and I live in CA. I have two children; my daughter is 12, and my son is 5 1/2. My son Hayden was diagnosed with ADHD in February 2009. He was diagnosed last month with OCD, Anxiety, and Asperger's. I always knew something else was going on besides ADHD, and it took a long time to get approved to see his Neurologist. I love my children more than anything, and I'm tired. I want to do the best for my little boy, but I don't know what that is. He used to be much more loving; he still is, just not as interested in anything else but Art. He had a terrible year in Kindergarten, with a teacher that didn't know how to work with him. I communicated with her for months, until this one e-mail that did me in. She puts him down all the time, makes him turn cards for punishment and gets angry at him when he doesn't respond to "Good Morning" or "Hello". She also reprimands him for not being social. I gave up

communicating with her, and went to the top, and it still continued. Fast forward, he's repeating K with a new teacher next year, In the meantime, I have started the IEP process, and it's now a waiting game I guess. I fell alone. I feel sad. I do my research on AS, and make the calls, but I haven't been able to help myself. Oh, I am also a divorced Mom, and their Dad is in another state with his new family. I am looking for support, and some friends. Hopefully, I can in some way, offer some help too. Take care