The frustration continues - locating therapy for older ASD children, grrr.

[rafiki]

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[Tokyomarie]

Michele, I certainly wish I had answers for you or ideas to try, but I don't.

 

I empathize with the struggles of finding therapies for older children. I have been so blessed with our writing tutor. She has so much experience with kids like my son, the depth of her knowledge base, and her ability to build a relationship with a resistant adolescent is just amazing. After going through another evaluation recently with some some professionals who don't seem (as yet) to grasp who my son is, and then having a conversation with his tutor today, I realize afresh what a gem we have in this person.

 

What specific issues are you hoping to address at this time?

[itsheresomewhere]

See if there are any colleges/universities near you that offer degrees in the therapies you need. Call them and ask if they have a clinic for the students or if they have a suggestion for therapy for older kids. Also, some hospitals have therapy for all ages. DS is around the same age and we are using students in training and they have been wonderful. So energetic and loving their soon to be job. DS gives them a run for it as he is ASD,OCD,ADHD and who knows what else.

[peacefully]

:grouphug::grouphug:

 

Is there a local Autism Support Network in your area? Surely they must know of resources for older children.

 

Finding help for our children shouldn't have to be this hard!

[PeterPan]

Michele, I'm really surprised you're having this trouble. I used the IM provider list to contact OT's in our area, and NONE of them had these age limits you're describing, none. (And I've looked at listings in two large cities in our state, not just one.) Have you tried the IM list or someone private as opposed to in a large practice?

[Jennifer-72]

I have no helpful advice. Just some :grouphug:. Waiting sucks!

[NCW]

This is a strange problem, and I don't understand their rationale. Are you in the US? Do any of these clinics have anyone else they refer older children to? You would think they might have a list of providers to meet the needs of those they don't serve. I am really saddened that you're running into this issue.

 

Many training providers for specific modalities list those who've taken their courses on their websites, so if you know of a specific technique you're interested in you can check the provider website. In addition to Interactive Metronome, here are a few more options to try:

 

SI certified therapists:

http://portal.wpspublish.com/portal/page?_pageid=53,83247&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

 

http://www.spdfoundation.net/directory/index.html

 

http://www.vitallinks.net/locator/index.php

 

http://www.hwtcertification.com/index.cfm

 

Best of luck!

[peacefully]

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[AmyinMD]

I'm sorry you are having such a rough time. I don't think there is anything easy about dealing with Autism. Not having appropriate therapies in place make it even harder.

 

Our OT sees lots of older kids but that is because it is next to impossible in our school district to get school based OT. My son's school doesn't even staff an OT and they have over 600 kids enrolled. As a result if your child needs OT you seek it privately so there are lots of school aged kids at the few private clinics in the area. I wonder if lack of older children enrolled in these places in your area means that the school district is good about providing services.

 

My boys use the same speech therapist. She's used to working with kids of all ages. My 7 yo is NT and my 3 yo has ASD.

 

If you are looking for behavioral therapy I've heard of lots of people not getting coverage for it after age 7. A mom I know on another board is about to lose her ds's behavioral coverage because it is only covered until age 7. If that is common in your area a lot of people probably stop behavioral therapy due to no coverage and that's why these clinics aren't used to treating kids over 7. Here in MD it takes years and years to get onto the waiver program that pays for behavioral therapy so most of the kids getting it are older. My son is the only child under age 10 our ABA trainer works with.

 

I've had more the opposite experience you are having. Most things covered for Autism on my plan (play therapy, social skill classes, etc) my son is too young for. Stuff for younger kids like behavioral therapy isn't covered at all and OT/Speech has so few visits allowed we pay most of it out of pocket anyway. We've also had to go out of network to find places with experience dealing with ASD. Most everything in network when I called was not set up for kids with ASD.

[rafiki]

n/t

[PeterPan]

Well cool! The right connection and you got the name you needed! Awesome! :)

[peacefully]

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that there is a great outcome here. The fact that she is homeschool-friendly is so awesome. Is it too much to hope that this person also offers a sliding scale or something?