Doctor thinks youngest has Asperger's

[BFamily]

I took my youngest to the doctor this week, because he has started covering his ears a lot and getting irritated by certain noises - it kind of came out of nowhere about 3 weeks ago. She said she thinks it may be Asperger's, due to some other issues, too, but we won't know for sure for another 6 months - that's how long the wait list is for testing through Children's Hospital. What can or should I be doing at home in the meantime to help him?

[Critterfixer]

What are the other issues?

 

For noise sensitivities ear plugs can be helpful, but he has to be able to tolerate them.

[BFamily]

Well, here are just a few of his other issues:

 

He has what the doctor calls "fleeting eye contact," but he will make eye contact with me. He will play chase or hide-and-seek or catch with other kids, and he will directly ask other kids if they want to play catch, but he will not play anything that requires him to hold a conversation or pretend play with other children, but he will pretend play with me or his older brothers. He is extremely hyperactive. He does not like for people to look at him for too long - and he'll be sure to let people who do look at him too long to stop. He does a strange thing with his fingers whenever he gets in trouble or gets excited about something. He has some odd facial expressions that don't match the circumstances.

 

Those are just a few of the odd things I can think of right now. I've known for some time now that something was different with him, but I could never place my finger on exactly what it might be.

 

The one thing that threw me off with the Asperger's is the fact that he did not talk until a few weeks before he turned three. I always thought that those with Asperger's did not have a speech delay, and while he can speak in complete sentences, it's not all clear and his words are sometimes mixed up - like "Park, it rain there" instead of "It rained at the park." I guess I'll have to wait several months before I know for sure.

[Chris in VA]

Well, here are just a few of his other issues:

 

He has what the doctor calls "fleeting eye contact," but he will make eye contact with me. He will play chase or hide-and-seek or catch with other kids, and he will directly ask other kids if they want to play catch, but he will not play anything that requires him to hold a conversation or pretend play with other children, but he will pretend play with me or his older brothers. He is extremely hyperactive. He does not like for people to look at him for too long - and he'll be sure to let people who do look at him too long to stop. He does a strange thing with his fingers whenever he gets in trouble or gets excited about something. THis is stimming. Mine does it, too, and I did, as a child. He has some odd facial expressions that don't match the circumstances.

 

Those are just a few of the odd things I can think of right now. I've known for some time now that something was different with him, but I could never place my finger on exactly what it might be.

 

The one thing that threw me off with the Asperger's is the fact that he did not talk until a few weeks before he turned three. I always thought that those with Asperger's did not have a speech delay, and while he can speak in complete sentences, it's not all clear and his words are sometimes mixed up - like "Park, it rain there" instead of "It rained at the park." I guess I'll have to wait several months before I know for sure.

 

:grouphug: My aspie is really not diagnosed with Aspergers, but we know he has it (the testing was inaccurate). Have you looked at HFA? It sounds to me like your dc may be closer to that part of the spectrum. It's hard to wait--Just sending :grouphug:

[PeterPan]

You should go ahead and get a speech eval and not wait on that. Others can disagree, but our SLP, who specializes in kids with apraxia (most common symptom being late-talking), says that basically all kids going beyond 2 without speech have clinically diagnosable issues, even if they "seem" to outgrow them. In your case he hasn't outgrown them. So even though he's now talking, he still has things they can identify and work on. And yes, verbal apraxia and autism are strongly correlated unfortunately.

 

Since his speech was so late, you really can't tell to what degree his social issues are due to that. You might get some changes on the social side with speech therapy. There are actually kids who *lose* a spectrum label after appropriate speech therapy. I'm not saying that to get your hopes up, because it might not happen. I'm just saying the effect of speech on social is that strong. They'll also integrate social skills work INTO the speech therapy if the therapist is worth her salt.

 

Since the dc was a late-talker, I encourage you to look for a PROMPT therapist, someone who can check the motor control side of things as well. The PROMPT institute website has a provider locator. It's worth the drive, especially if you can find one who is certified (ours is).

 

In our area it's much faster to get into an SLP than the neuropsych, so that's what I would do now. They'll typically screen for spectrum (seems like everybody does, ugh), and they'll probably have a pretty good sense of where he's at just by working with him. But I'd definitely pursue the speech and see what they can do to improve his life now. My ds opened up quite a bit socially as his speech improved. I never even considered him reclusive socially, so it was just this unexpected blossoming. And I gather that is NOT uncommon with good therapy. There's also some stuff you can do like flax or fish oil to help the speech. Not a replacement for therapy, just one of those things that helps get the connectors going.

[BFamily]

OhElizabeth - I have wondered how much his speech might be affecting his ability to socialize. He really desires to play with other kids, but his speech does limit him in that area. For instance, a few weeks ago, he was playing catch with another boy, and the boy would not throw the ball back to him. I could tell he was starting to get irritated, so I told him to ask the boy to throw the ball back politely. He looked at me and told me he couldn't talk and for me to do it - he can tell somebody to throw the ball back (he tells his brothers that all the time), but I'm thinking his confidence in his ability to get his wording out correctly prevents him from trying with strangers. I felt really bad for him, and this was not the first occasion for him to tell me he can't talk. I will look into PROMPT therapists in our area during his naptime today. For the record, I was never too concerned about his speech, because we had family telling us about all the late-blooming boys in the family who started talking between 3-3 1/2, so when he started using some words right before his 3rd b-day, I was sure that was the case. I also figured that having two older brothers who did everything for him made it possible for him to get along without having to talk - guess I should have had him checked out then instead of letting it slide.

Also, what kind of fish oil would he need? I started him on cod liver oil a couple weeks ago, because I had read that it might help with some sensory-type issues. Is there something else that might be better?

 

Chris - I was thinking that might be some type of stimming. He does a very fast pinching motion with his pointer finger and thumb.

 

Critterfixer - I'll look into some ear plugs for him until we can find a way to help him better cope. He has used his brothers' ear buds for playing games on the iphone in the past, so I figure he should be able to tolerate them.

 

Thanks for your help. Although, I knew that the doctor might suggest some testing for some type of autism, it was still a blow to hear it. As long as I didn't have that suggestion in my ear from a doctor, I could hold onto hope that it might just be phase that he would grow out of, but all of the signs are pointing towards it. Maybe getting his some speech therapy while we wait for testing will allow him to be a bit more social at the very least.

[PeterPan]

I have sound sensitivities myself (long story) and wear earplugs, and while they work, used too much they affect auditory processing and leave you more sensitive. What I would do first is get that PROMPT eval, get therapy, and let them refer you off to an OT who is known for being good with the therapy for sound sensitivity. It's on my hit list for myself, and I just haven't done it yet. You think it's questionable getting therapy when you're 3? Try when you're 36, lol. But that PROMPT therapist, if you get a good one, is going to be a gem of a resource for stuff like that.

[PeterPan]

Although, I knew that the doctor might suggest some testing for some type of autism, it was still a blow to hear it. As long as I didn't have that suggestion in my ear from a doctor, I could hold onto hope that it might just be phase that he would grow out of, but all of the signs are pointing towards it. Maybe getting his some speech therapy while we wait for testing will allow him to be a bit more social at the very least.

 

Yeah, it takes time. You'll get used to it though and move on. No, I don't think they outgrow stuff. The kids who seem to usually have it pop up later as other problems and people just don't connect the dots that it's more manifestation of a problem that was going on all along.

 

And yes, absolutely good speech therapy can radically affect the social side. In PROMPT they specifically target social skills and work them into the speech therapy sessions. You'll see. I'll be curious to see who you find. Get a certified if at all possible. In our area it's hard to find someone, a long drive, but I remember someone else from the boards here who lived down south and had a ton of options. You never know.

[Tiramisu]

I have sound sensitivities myself (long story) and wear earplugs, and while they work, used too much they affect auditory processing and leave you more sensitive. What I would do first is get that PROMPT eval, get therapy, and let them refer you off to an OT who is known for being good with the therapy for sound sensitivity. It's on my hit list for myself, and I just haven't done it yet. You think it's questionable getting therapy when you're 3? Try when you're 36, lol. But that PROMPT therapist, if you get a good one, is going to be a gem of a resource for stuff like that.

 

:iagree: about seeing an SLP. I think they'll be able to pick up on and help with a lot of issues.

 

I've found with multiple children in our family, sensitivities spike at age three. They seem to come out of nowhere and suddenly they take over your life. Not fun.