RE: No meds for tests WAS:Frustrated, deflated, and dealing with those who Already have all the answers...

[Guest guest]

I am mostly concerned about them NOT getting an accurate

depiction of his strengths and NEEDS, if he’s on medication. I know the meds

help with “ADHD†type symptoms, but they also lesson his echolalic stimming,

amongst other things. So I don’t want to wait ALL this time to get the test

done, and then have the results be “inaccurate†because of the meds. Make

sense? Maybe? LOL

Thanks all

=)

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Roxanna

Sent: Tuesday, May 26, 2009 12:32 PM

Subject: Re: ( ) No meds for tests WAS:Frustrated,

deflated, and dealing with those who " Already have all the

answers " ...

To go off the

meds, talk to your med doc. They can help you figure out the best idea

for going off the med. It is so hard to tell you over the internet

because each child is different and also, the type of med and the dosage all

matter in these cases. And we aren't doc's, lol. That might be most

important. <g> So give them a call and discuss what your ds

needs!

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Frustrated, deflated, and dealing with those who

" Already have all the answers " ...

Had my meeting

with the school yesterday. I am completely frustrated and I failed yesterday at

trying not to cry in front of the kids (glad I held it together in front of the

teachers/principal DURING the meeting).

The meeting

didn’t go at all the way I’d hoped. I started the meeting off by saying that I

wanted this to be a positive meeting, that it wasn’t about me against them, or

them against me. That this had to be child focused. That was responded to with

a story about asking the kids what their primary job was, that it was not to

teach them, that it was actually to “keep them safeâ€. That set the tone for the

rest of the meeting, where it was clear they were focused on “my children’s

behavior†and “keeping the other children safeâ€. Sigh.

The rest of the

meeting, I felt like every time I’d say something, they’d come back at me=2

0with a reason why what I was saying was irrelevant, and they needed to “Focus

on the behaviors.†I20told them I didn’t want them to IGNORE the behaviors, but

rather I wanted them to understand and acknowledge that the YEARS of dealing

with my kids, different schools, different psychologists, psychiatrists,

specialists of all kinds… that I had learned a thing or two, and could provide

them with some ideas to save them from the headache of trying strategies that just

aren’t going to work. I told them I wasn’t needing to be focused on a “labelâ€

or “DX†per say… but that my children are two very bright little boys who

clearly need some help… now. And while we can’t change anything on paper

without an official diagnosis, certain strategies applicable to one “behavioral

condition†(as they called it) aren’t going to work with Aspergers… and THAT is

why we have to focus on trying different strategies.

I requested speech language

assessment for my youngest. I requested that he be placed under a

“developmental delay†“labelâ€, I guess you could call it, so that we could

start an IEP for him. I requested FBA for both children. We will see what comes

of a ll of that.

I don’t have my hopes up.

We’ve already

dealt with teachers who wanted to write my eldest off. Who figured that he had

“ODD†and therefore, was just a defiant brat, who needed to be “Taught a

lessonâ€. And THEN, after all their efforts didn’t work, he was written off as

the child who “didn’t learn from his mistakesâ€. HA! When are they going to get

a clue?

I am ser iously

considering pulling them both and homeschooling until we get a diagnosis. I

emailed our premier for the province, I emailed our local MHA in my riding to

complain about wait times… because WITHOUT that diagnosis, families are

expected to just suffer.

And mine is. My

relationship with my husband has paid the ultimate price… and if we can’t get

things turned around quickly, I am scared for where we’ll end up

When did

teaching become so negative and self-righteous? When did it stop being about

empowering these children through positive affirmation and approaches?

Sigh.

=)

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the ' Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

0A

Wanna slim down for summer? Go to America

Takes it Off to learn how.

[Guest guest]

To go off the meds, talk to your med doc. They can help you figure out the best idea for going off the med. It is so hard to tell you over the internet because each child is different and also, the type of med and the dosage all matter in these cases. And we aren't doc's, lol. That might be most important. <g> So give them a call and discuss what your ds needs!

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Frustrated, deflated, and dealing with those who

"Already have all the answers"...

Had my meeting

with the school yesterday. I am completely frustrated and I failed yesterday at

trying not to cry in front of the kids (glad I held it together in front of the

teachers/principal DURING the meeting).

The meeting

didn’t go at all the way I’d hoped. I started the meeting off by saying that I

wanted this to be a positive meeting, that it wasn’t about me against them, or

them against me. That this had to be child focused. That was responded to with

a story about asking the kids what their primary job was, that it was not to

teach them, that it was actually to “keep them safeâ€. That set the tone for the

rest of the meeting, where it was clear they were focused on “my children’s

behavior†and “keeping the other children safeâ€. Sigh.

The rest of the

meeting, I felt like every time I’d say something, they’d come back at me=2

0with a reason why what I was saying was irrelevant, and they needed to “Focus

on the behaviors.†I20told them I didn’t want them to IGNORE the behaviors, but

rather I wanted them to understand and acknowledge that the YEARS of dealing

with my kids, different schools, different psychologists, psychiatrists,

specialists of all kinds… that I had learned a thing or two, and could provide

them with some ideas to save them from the headache of trying strategies that

just aren’t going to work. I told them I wasn’t needing to be focused on a

“label†or “DX†per say… but that my children are two very bright little

boys who clearly need some help… now. And while we can’t change anything on

paper without an official diagnosis, certain strategies applicable to one

“behavioral condition†(as they called it) aren’t going to work with Aspergers…

and THAT is why we have to focus on trying different strategies.

I requested

speech language assessment for my youngest. I requested that he be placed under

a “developmental delay†“labelâ€, I guess you could call it, so that we could

start an IEP for him. I requested FBA for both children. We will see what comes

of a ll of that.

I don’t have my hopes up.

We’ve already dealt

with teachers who wanted to write my eldest off. Who figured that he had “ODDâ€

and therefore, was just a defiant brat, who needed to be “Taught a lessonâ€. And

THEN, after all their efforts didn’t work, he was written off as the child who

“didn’t learn from his mistakesâ€. HA! When are they going to get a clue?

I am ser

iously

considering pulling them both and homeschooling until we get a diagnosis. I

emailed our premier for the province, I emailed our local MHA in my riding to

complain about wait times… because WITHOUT that diagnosis, families are

expected to just suffer.

And mine is. My

relationship with my husband has paid the ultimate price… and if we can’t get

things turned around quickly, I am scared for where we’ll end up

When did teaching

become so negative and self-righteous? When did it stop being about empowering

these children through positive affirmation and approaches?

Sigh.

=)

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the ' Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner.

What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

0A

Wanna slim down for summer? Go to America Takes it Off to learn how.

[Guest guest]

Sure, makes a lot of sense to me. But you still might want to talk to the med doc about how to go off the meds so it doesn't hurt anything or cause worse problems. Then you will probably want to titrate back on the meds afterwards. Also, the doc can tell you how long in advance you will need to have him off the meds to have it out of his system.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Frustrated, deflated, and dealing with those who

"Already have all the answers"...

Had my meeting

with the school yesterday. I am completely frustrated and I failed yesterday at

trying not to cry in front of the kids (glad I held it together in front of the

teachers/principal DURING the meeting).

=0

A

The meeting

didn’t go at all the way I’d hoped. I started the meeting off by saying that I

wanted this to be a positive meeting, that it wasn’t about me against them, or

them against me. That this had to be child focused. That was responded to with

a story about asking the kids what their primary job was, that it was not to

teach them, that it was actually to “keep them safeâ€. That set the tone for the

rest of the meeting, where it was clear they were focused on “my children’s

behavior†and “keeping the other children safeâ€. Sigh.

The rest of the

meeting, I felt like every time I’d say something, they’d come back at me=2

0with a reason why what I was saying was irrelevant, and they needed to “Focus

on the behaviors.†I20told them I didn’t want them to IGNORE the behaviors, but

rather I wanted them to understand and acknowledge that the YE

ARS of dealing

with my kids, different schools, different psychologists, psychiatrists,

specialists of all kinds… that I had learned a thing or two, and could provide

them with some ideas to save them from the headache of trying strategies that just

aren’t going to work. I told them I wasn’t needing to be focused on a “labelâ€

or “DX†per say… but that my children are two very bright little boys who

clearly need some help… now. And while we can’t change anything on paper

without an official diagnosis, certain strategies applicable to one “behavioral

condition†(as they called it) aren’t going to work with Aspergers… and THAT is

why we have to focus on trying different strategies.

I requested speech language

assessment for my youngest. I requested that he be placed under a

“developmental delay†“labelâ€, I guess you could call it, so that we could

start an IEP for him. I requested FBA for both children. We will see what comes

of a ll of that.

nbsp;

I don’t have my hopes up.

We’ve already

dealt with teachers who wanted to write my eldest off. Who figured that he had

“ODD†and therefore, was just a defiant brat, who needed to be “Taught a

lessonâ€. And THEN, after all their efforts didn’t work, he was written off as

the child who “didn’t learn from his mistakesâ€. HA! When are they going to get

a clue?

I am ser iously

considering pulling them both and homeschooling until we get a diagnosis. I

emailed our premier for the province, I emailed our local MHA in my riding to

complain about wait times… because WITHOUT that diagnosis, families are

expected to just suffer.

And mine is. My

relationship with my husband has paid the ultimate price… and if we can’t get

things turned around quickly, I am scared for where we’ll end up

When did

teaching become so negative and self-righteous? When did it stop being about

empowering these children through positive affirmation and approaches?

Sigh.

=)

0A

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the ' Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

0A

Wanna slim down for summer? Go to America

Takes it Off to learn how.

Wanna slim down for summer? Go to America Takes it Off to learn how.

[Guest guest]

These were my precise concerns, Roxanna I’d really rather have

an accurate depiction of his strengths and needs. BUT I will definitely enquire

with the examiner, etc… to find out the best course of action here

=)

From:

[mailto: ] On

Behalf Of Roxanna

Sent: Thursday, May 28, 2009 1:15 PM

Subject: Re: ( ) No meds for tests WAS:Frustrated,

deflated, and dealing with those who " Already have all the

answers " ...

I think that

meds would affect communication. In some people it can make a huge

difference. I can think of so many ways it can do that. Just a few

- it can affect your ability to pay attention and provide correct answers, your

ability to organize what you want to say, to retrieve correct words/answers in

a timely manner, it can alter your mood so that it will affect the kinds of

answers you give or your desire to participate and give correct answers in the

first place, and then to lower anxiety levels so that you have the ability to

communicate at all. But of course, you can always check with the examiner

to find out if they want the person off meds for the testing or not.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

Re: ( ) No meds for tests WAS:Frustrated, deflated, and

dealing with those who " Already have all the answers " ...

>

> I am mostly concerned about them NOT getting an accurate depiction of his

strengths and NEEDS, if he’s on medication. I know the meds help with

“ADHD†type symptoms, but they also lesson his echolalic stimming, amongst

other things. So I don’t want to wait ALL this time to get the test done, and

then have the results be “inaccurate†because of the meds. Make sense?

Maybe? LOL

I also think it would be helpful to talk to the evaluator about the pros and

cons of testing unmedicated. The ADOS (we have had it for our son) seemed to be

an evaluation of one's communication abilities. I'm not so sure the results

will be all that affected by medication. The ADOS seemed kind of like a very

comprehensive speech eval with a pragmatic bent. It does look at behaviors too,

but they know they aren't going to see everything in a clinic setting and will

be relying on parent input a s well as the direct clinic observation.

Ruth

Wanna slim down for summer? Go to America

Takes it Off to learn how.