Re: Need Mommy/Daddy opinions. Aspergers?

March 30, 2010

Hi My name is carlene. I am sorry for being a day late to respond to your letter. I also have a child who was diagnosed with Aspergers. is 10 now. Most of the symptoms you are describing has done or is doing. Since baby he was delayed on walking, stuttered, felt more comfortable to be on floor, didn't like the swing, certain clothing bothered him, he would get very obsessed over a movie, or show, had constipation alot, always wanted to be home, we put him daycare and he would crawl under tables, squeal loud, never participated in coloring, games, sports ect. always kept to himself. we took him out also, he seemed to do better. When in pre-k he was tested for adhd and they diagnosed him with aspergers and adhd. He gets very obsessed with one subject for a long time. If

something is out of place or broken, We had major meltdowns.

Today he is very talkative, draws well, reads well, can do alot of things himself, but has to have constant reminders and supervision.

He is not involved in any sports, games, or hand held games. He does not have any friends.

From: momwholovesgod365 <momwholovesgod365@...> Sent: Mon, March 29, 2010 1:45:42 PMSubject: ( ) Need Mommy/Daddy opinions. Aspergers?

My daughter, Lucy, is almost four years old. She has always been quirky and has had some sensory issues since she was very young. Her most difficult sensory problem is an extreme oral defensive issue. She couldn't eat solid food until 14 months. I'm talkin a cheerio would cause her to gag. Other than that she was just quirky and cautious. No slides, swings, screamed in the car, did not like to get dressed, etc. Lots of sensory things. She developed normally otherwise. Pointed, waved on time. Crawled and walked on time. She spoke in full sentences at her 2nd birthday. Her favorite movie at 18 months was Winged Migration and she could name 25 birds by sight at that age. We just thought she was smart. About 6 months ago we started a co-op preschool. Within a month all of her sensory problems got much worse, her sleep was disrupted, she became very constipated and started to get very upset every time we would need to leave the house. We weren't sure

what was going on but we decided to pull her out of school since that seemed to trigger the issue. Since this a co-op preschool I was with her the entire time and was sure there was not a tramatic event. (I am a stay at home mom by the way) Sure enough a few weeks at home helped the problem. Everything seemed to regulate. She still had her sensory problems but they were managable. After a month we decided to try the school again. In A few weeks all the same "flare ups" came back. At this point I spoke to the teacher about what was going on. I mentioned to her that I had looked up Asperger's and asked her opinion. She agreed that Lucy fit many of the criteria and referred to her as "high functioning" .Very difficult to hear. I took her to the pediatritian who assured me that Lucy did not have Asperger's. Relief...She said she was way too engaging for that. She sent us to a Psycologist who said Lucy has anxiety. She bites her nails, grind's her teeth,

gets constipated, still doesn't want to leave the house. The ped also sent us to a speech therapist since her oral problems are still signifigant. The speech therapist was with her for about 10 min before asking if we had heard of Aspergers. She said she was seeing some ritualistic behaviors, resistant behaviors, pragmatic speech issues and a bit of the "little professor" thing. She has referred us to a developmental specialist and a behavioral specialist. She said the food issues are all behavioral. We are currently waiting for the developmental specialist to contact us with an appointment. So...I am questioning everything everyone tells me at this point, even myself! I've always thought Lucy was very engaging but I am beginning to notice that she will only engage when it's on her terms. It is difficult to have a two way conversation with her. Is this typical of Aspergers? It's very difficult at times to get her attention or get her to look at my

face but if I work at it she usually will do it. (I had her hearing tested when she was two) She does engage in imaginative play with dolls but it's usually acting out what she has seen on tv. Does that count? It is typical for Asperger's kids to have good days and bad days. meaning one day they seem very in tune/connected and other days in their own world? She likes to play with other kids but only if they will play what she wants, She seems unable? to join their games. More than one kid overwhelms her. She also gets stuck on something and I can't distract her or reason with her. For example, her wand broke and she wanted me to fix it. I said sure as soon as her sister woke up from her nap we would walk to the store and buy some glue. She broke down in tears and just kept saying "but I want it to be fixed now" I repeated what I had told her and it was as if she was unable to process what I was telling her. She was so stuck on what she wanted. Is this

an Asperger's trait? I've also noticed she says sorry all the time for things I am would never get upset with her for...spilling some water or something. I am wondering if this is because she cant identify anger? I have heard Asperger's looks differn't in girls so I thought this might be the place to find out. I'm sorry for the length and would appreciate any thoughts you might have.

March 30, 2010

I think it's hard at an early age to know if your child has Asperger's, but you are on the right track to get her diagnosed. Many of the things you mentioned are consistent with Aspergers - the anxiety, the one way conversations, the getting "stuck" on certain things. And AS kids can be very engaging with adults, but have a hard time fitting in with other children. So whatever happens with Lucy's diagnosis, if you want to talk here, people will understand what you are dealing with and be glad to share advice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suzanne

suzmarkwood@...

From: momwholovesgod365 <momwholovesgod365@...>Subject: ( ) Need Mommy/Daddy opinions. Aspergers? Date: Monday, March 29, 2010, 11:45 AM

My daughter, Lucy, is almost four years old. She has always been quirky and has had some sensory issues since she was very young. Her most difficult sensory problem is an extreme oral defensive issue. She couldn't eat solid food until 14 months. I'm talkin a cheerio would cause her to gag. Other than that she was just quirky and cautious. No slides, swings, screamed in the car, did not like to get dressed, etc. Lots of sensory things. She developed normally otherwise. Pointed, waved on time. Crawled and walked on time. She spoke in full sentences at her 2nd birthday. Her favorite movie at 18 months was Winged Migration and she could name 25 birds by sight at that age. We just thought she was smart. About 6 months ago we started a co-op preschool. Within a month all of her sensory problems got much worse, her sleep was disrupted, she became very constipated and started to get very upset every time we would need to leave the house. We weren't sure

what was going on but we decided to pull her out of school since that seemed to trigger the issue. Since this a co-op preschool I was with her the entire time and was sure there was not a tramatic event. (I am a stay at home mom by the way) Sure enough a few weeks at home helped the problem. Everything seemed to regulate. She still had her sensory problems but they were managable. After a month we decided to try the school again. In A few weeks all the same "flare ups" came back. At this point I spoke to the teacher about what was going on. I mentioned to her that I had looked up Asperger's and asked her opinion. She agreed that Lucy fit many of the criteria and referred to her as "high functioning" .Very difficult to hear. I took her to the pediatritian who assured me that Lucy did not have Asperger's. Relief...She said she was way too engaging for that. She sent us to a Psycologist who said Lucy has anxiety. She bites her nails, grind's her teeth,

gets constipated, still doesn't want to leave the house. The ped also sent us to a speech therapist since her oral problems are still signifigant. The speech therapist was with her for about 10 min before asking if we had heard of Aspergers. She said she was seeing some ritualistic behaviors, resistant behaviors, pragmatic speech issues and a bit of the "little professor" thing. She has referred us to a developmental specialist and a behavioral specialist. She said the food issues are all behavioral. We are currently waiting for the developmental specialist to contact us with an appointment. So...I am questioning everything everyone tells me at this point, even myself! I've always thought Lucy was very engaging but I am beginning to notice that she will only engage when it's on her terms. It is difficult to have a two way conversation with her. Is this typical of Aspergers? It's very difficult at times to get her attention or get her to look at my

face but if I work at it she usually will do it. (I had her hearing tested when she was two) She does engage in imaginative play with dolls but it's usually acting out what she has seen on tv. Does that count? It is typical for Asperger's kids to have good days and bad days. meaning one day they seem very in tune/connected and other days in their own world? She likes to play with other kids but only if they will play what she wants, She seems unable? to join their games. More than one kid overwhelms her. She also gets stuck on something and I can't distract her or reason with her. For example, her wand broke and she wanted me to fix it. I said sure as soon as her sister woke up from her nap we would walk to the store and buy some glue. She broke down in tears and just kept saying "but I want it to be fixed now" I repeated what I had told her and it was as if she was unable to process what I was telling her. She was so stuck on what she wanted. Is this

an Asperger's trait? I've also noticed she says sorry all the time for things I am would never get upset with her for...spilling some water or something. I am wondering if this is because she cant identify anger? I have heard Asperger's looks differn't in girls so I thought this might be the place to find out. I'm sorry for the length and would appreciate any thoughts you might have.

March 30, 2010

I think it could be a possibility but the specialists you see should

be able to tell you if it is, if its something else, or ???

I do think it being a girl makes things harder sometimes and also,

even doctors " ideas " of aspergers symptoms are things that may not

even be part of the diagnostic criteria just more things that are seen

with aspergers so ppl assume if they don't see one of them it means

the child doesnt have it and that's not always the case.

On 3/29/10, momwholovesgod365 <momwholovesgod365@...> wrote:

> My daughter, Lucy, is almost four years old. She has always been quirky and

> has had some sensory issues since she was very young. Her most difficult

> sensory problem is an extreme oral defensive issue. She couldn't eat solid

> food until 14 months. I'm talkin a cheerio would cause her to gag. Other

> than that she was just quirky and cautious. No slides, swings, screamed in

> the car, did not like to get dressed, etc. Lots of sensory things. She

> developed normally otherwise. Pointed, waved on time. Crawled and walked on

> time. She spoke in full sentences at her 2nd birthday. Her favorite movie at

> 18 months was Winged Migration and she could name 25 birds by sight at that

> age. We just thought she was smart.

> About 6 months ago we started a co-op preschool. Within a month all of her

> sensory problems got much worse, her sleep was disrupted, she became very

> constipated and started to get very upset every time we would need to leave

> the house. We weren't sure what was going on but we decided to pull her out

> of school since that seemed to trigger the issue. Since this a co-op

> preschool I was with her the entire time and was sure there was not a

> tramatic event. (I am a stay at home mom by the way) Sure enough a few weeks

> at home helped the problem. Everything seemed to regulate. She still had her

> sensory problems but they were managable. After a month we decided to try

> the school again. In A few weeks all the same " flare ups " came back. At this

> point I spoke to the teacher about what was going on. I mentioned to her

> that I had looked up Asperger's and asked her opinion. She agreed that Lucy

> fit many of the criteria and referred to her as " high functioning " .Very

> difficult to hear.

> I took her to the pediatritian who assured me that Lucy did not have

> Asperger's. Relief...She said she was way too engaging for that. She sent us

> to a Psycologist who said Lucy has anxiety. She bites her nails, grind's her

> teeth, gets constipated, still doesn't want to leave the house. The ped also

> sent us to a speech therapist since her oral problems are still signifigant.

> The speech therapist was with her for about 10 min before asking if we had

> heard of Aspergers. She said she was seeing some ritualistic behaviors,

> resistant behaviors, pragmatic speech issues and a bit of the " little

> professor " thing. She has referred us to a developmental specialist and a

> behavioral specialist. She said the food issues are all behavioral. We are

> currently waiting for the developmental specialist to contact us with an

> appointment.

> So...I am questioning everything everyone tells me at this point, even

> myself! I've always thought Lucy was very engaging but I am beginning to

> notice that she will only engage when it's on her terms. It is difficult to

> have a two way conversation with her. Is this typical of Aspergers? It's

> very difficult at times to get her attention or get her to look at my face

> but if I work at it she usually will do it. (I had her hearing tested when

> she was two) She does engage in imaginative play with dolls but it's usually

> acting out what she has seen on tv. Does that count? It is typical for

> Asperger's kids to have good days and bad days. meaning one day they seem

> very in tune/connected and other days in their own world? She likes to play

> with other kids but only if they will play what she wants, She seems unable?

> to join their games. More than one kid overwhelms her. She also gets stuck

> on something and I can't distract her or reason with her. For example, her

> wand broke and she wanted me to fix it. I said sure as soon as her sister

> woke up from her nap we would walk to the store and buy some glue. She broke

> down in tears and just kept saying " but I want it to be fixed now " I

> repeated what I had told her and it was as if she was unable to process what

> I was telling her. She was so stuck on what she wanted. Is this an

> Asperger's trait? I've also noticed she says sorry all the time for things I

> am would never get upset with her for...spilling some water or something. I

> am wondering if this is because she cant identify anger? I have heard

> Asperger's looks differn't in girls so I thought this might be the place to

> find out. I'm sorry for the length and would appreciate any thoughts you

> might have.

>

--

Sent from my mobile device

-mommy to Emma, Becca, ,

and

Girl Scout cookies are coming!

March 30, 2010

It does sound like AS to me. The ridgidness in her thinking is

one part that is very AS like. And the extent of her anxiety.

If she was just anxious and shy at school she would cope

by being quiet and observe others. She would not refuse to go

to school unless someone challenged her.

I would recommend reading all the assessments that Yale Child

Study Center recommends. It is very extensive. You daughter is

very young. Look for a good OT to document her sensory

issues in a report. The OT should be able to test some

of her visual processing. Some kids with AS get overwhelmed with too much

movement.

http://www.med.yale.edu/chldstdy/autism/asdiagnosis.html

Probably your daughter does well with doctors 1:1 and they won't

see AS until she is much older (9 years old seems to be an age

you can make a case by taping social interaction with peers.

If it is AS she will lock into her interests in spite of

what the peer talks about).

I think the two things that make a case for AS are 1) obessive

interests, ridgid thinking and difficulty stopping. 2) social communication is

all about there special interests a lot of the time.

Many kids with AS have a very distinctive monotone voice

and flat expression (not all though). These are the kids

that are easy to DX. Although that is not a critieria for the DX.

My daughter was always very expressive about talking about

her interests so the nuerologist at age 7 said she had OCD

not AS. But the OCD community said no she didn't. So at age

9 she was old enough to do a neuropyschological evaluation.

You may be interested to know that for my daughter

zoloft greatly reduced her panic over sensory input

like loud noise and too many people and clothes.

I am guessing my daughter has a panic disorder too.

Pam

>

> My daughter, Lucy, is almost four years old. She has always been quirky and

has had some sensory issues since she was very young. Her most difficult sensory

problem is an extreme oral defensive issue. She couldn't eat solid food until 14

months. I'm talkin a cheerio would cause her to gag. Other than that she was

just quirky and cautious. No slides, swings, screamed in the car, did not like

to get dressed, etc. Lots of sensory things. She developed normally otherwise.

Pointed, waved on time. Crawled and walked on time. She spoke in full sentences

at her 2nd birthday. Her favorite movie at 18 months was Winged Migration and

she could name 25 birds by sight at that age. We just thought she was smart.

> About 6 months ago we started a co-op preschool. Within a month all of her

sensory problems got much worse, her sleep was disrupted, she became very

constipated and started to get very upset every time we would need to leave the

house. We weren't sure what was going on but we decided to pull her out of

school since that seemed to trigger the issue. Since this a co-op preschool I

was with her the entire time and was sure there was not a tramatic event. (I am

a stay at home mom by the way) Sure enough a few weeks at home helped the

problem. Everything seemed to regulate. She still had her sensory problems but

they were managable. After a month we decided to try the school again. In A few

weeks all the same " flare ups " came back. At this point I spoke to the teacher

about what was going on. I mentioned to her that I had looked up Asperger's and

asked her opinion. She agreed that Lucy fit many of the criteria and referred to

her as " high functioning " .Very difficult to hear.

> I took her to the pediatritian who assured me that Lucy did not have

Asperger's. Relief...She said she was way too engaging for that. She sent us to

a Psycologist who said Lucy has anxiety. She bites her nails, grind's her teeth,

gets constipated, still doesn't want to leave the house. The ped also sent us to

a speech therapist since her oral problems are still signifigant. The speech

therapist was with her for about 10 min before asking if we had heard of

Aspergers. She said she was seeing some ritualistic behaviors, resistant

behaviors, pragmatic speech issues and a bit of the " little professor " thing.

She has referred us to a developmental specialist and a behavioral specialist.

She said the food issues are all behavioral. We are currently waiting for the

developmental specialist to contact us with an appointment.

> So...I am questioning everything everyone tells me at this point, even myself!

I've always thought Lucy was very engaging but I am beginning to notice that she

will only engage when it's on her terms. It is difficult to have a two way

conversation with her. Is this typical of Aspergers? It's very difficult at

times to get her attention or get her to look at my face but if I work at it she

usually will do it. (I had her hearing tested when she was two) She does engage

in imaginative play with dolls but it's usually acting out what she has seen on

tv. Does that count? It is typical for Asperger's kids to have good days and bad

days. meaning one day they seem very in tune/connected and other days in their

own world? She likes to play with other kids but only if they will play what she

wants, She seems unable? to join their games. More than one kid overwhelms her.

She also gets stuck on something and I can't distract her or reason with her.

For example, her wand broke and she wanted me to fix it. I said sure as soon as

her sister woke up from her nap we would walk to the store and buy some glue.

She broke down in tears and just kept saying " but I want it to be fixed now " I

repeated what I had told her and it was as if she was unable to process what I

was telling her. She was so stuck on what she wanted. Is this an Asperger's

trait? I've also noticed she says sorry all the time for things I am would never

get upset with her for...spilling some water or something. I am wondering if

this is because she cant identify anger? I have heard Asperger's looks differn't

in girls so I thought this might be the place to find out. I'm sorry for the

length and would appreciate any thoughts you might have.

>

March 30, 2010

First, keep in mind that its a spectrum disorder and many of the kids aren't

showing the same pattern of symptoms. Personally, I think it is important for

you the parent to read up on Aspergers and understand what it is. Then if the

diagnosis you get from a doctor doesn't fit what you know about your child, get

a 2nd or 3rd opinion.

Second, regardless of the diagnosis, you can focus on getting help for the

symptoms. If your child has sensory issues (sensory integration problems)

requiring OT, GET OT. If they have behavior issues that need behavior

modification stuff then get the behavior mod. With sensory problems, not only

is there the immediate issue of the sensation they can't deal with, but there is

also a sensory overload component. If they are overstimulated for too long a

period, they have a hard time coping. With my son he is often problem free

doing an activity for the first hour or so, but then he reaches that point and

he'll have problem after problem until we leave.

-