Autism / Autism Spectrum Support Group
Autism is classified as a neurodevelopmental disorder which manifests itself in markedly abnormal social interaction, communication ability, patterns of interests, and patterns of behavior. Although the specific etiology of autism is unknown, many researchers suspect that autism results from genetically mediated vulnerabilities to environmental triggers.
I have just had my 4 year old daughter assesed for the 3rd time this month, Her first assesment went ok, we covered vertually everything from her lack of verbal skills and refusal to eat most foods to her lack of imaginary play, The second was much the same but she is so extremly delayed that they decided to have her assessed for a third time.
Yesterday the speach and language therapist assessed her and to say she caused confusion is an understatment, My little girl has no verbal skills the only word she can say is "Da" she does not no body parts, dogs,cats,spoons,horses or balls. So when asked to hand me these items she sat very quietly and didnt move, the therapist did what my father calls facilitating and she held her hand and passed me these items.. Now it seems that she has decided that this has to be dyspraxia rather than autism... From what i have read she does not have dyspraxia and yet has so many symptoms of autism.
She has the following symptoms,
Lack of a varried diet, she will only eat 4 things and in a certain order.
she is obsessed with poker chips and domino's, to the point of making sure they are in the case and next to her bed in order.
she has no verbal skills, she never babbled as a baby until she was 18 months old.
she does not partake in imaginary play, nor does she play with dolls or teddybears.
she will only go to certain stores/shops and when she does they have to be done in a certain order, much like going in a circle.
and she has very regular tantrums
I would be very gratefull for any help or advice on how to proceed and how to get my daughter diagnosed. and basicly what to do next...
Thank you all in advance
Rachel (Mother of Kai'Lie)
Yesterday the speach and language therapist assessed her and to say she caused confusion is an understatment, My little girl has no verbal skills the only word she can say is "Da" she does not no body parts, dogs,cats,spoons,horses or balls. So when asked to hand me these items she sat very quietly and didnt move, the therapist did what my father calls facilitating and she held her hand and passed me these items.. Now it seems that she has decided that this has to be dyspraxia rather than autism... From what i have read she does not have dyspraxia and yet has so many symptoms of autism.
She has the following symptoms,
Lack of a varried diet, she will only eat 4 things and in a certain order.
she is obsessed with poker chips and domino's, to the point of making sure they are in the case and next to her bed in order.
she has no verbal skills, she never babbled as a baby until she was 18 months old.
she does not partake in imaginary play, nor does she play with dolls or teddybears.
she will only go to certain stores/shops and when she does they have to be done in a certain order, much like going in a circle.
and she has very regular tantrums
I would be very gratefull for any help or advice on how to proceed and how to get my daughter diagnosed. and basicly what to do next...
Thank you all in advance
Rachel (Mother of Kai'Lie)
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I have been here before, a long long time ago and now I am back.Forgive me for not just saying what I want to say,even under a triple dose of antidepressants it is still raw and seeping and I am hesitant at revealing it as at least under the bandages around my heart I don,t have to look at how raw and wounded.My child was cleaved from my heart by his own actions. my child of ten,turning eleven...
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I gave my 2 week notice last Friday 13th. Now to join you fine people in a life of leisure and nothing else to do but to look out for myself....is it just me or does that sound pretty boring? My goal was to live to retire and I guess having to take early retirement because of health reasons wasn't exactly the way I had planned things. I just can't stay in that building that is reeking mildew...
Well, I think if your gut is telling you that it is autism them you unfortunately are probrably right. My older son did a lot of those things and some he still does. He has just graduated from one obvious thing to a less obvious thing. My younger son Brett just got diagnosed from developmental delay / hyperlexic to PDD-NOS. The one good thing is that he is getting everything he needs. You need to go to someone else and get the diagnosis that you know in your heart is right (I know this is painful). Good Luck. Did your daughter get any Early Intervention? Is your daughter in a pre-school disabled class? If she is not in a pre-school disabled class I would call your local school district and get an evaluation done on her through the school. Our district had Sean checked by the neurodevelopmental that they use and that is how Sean got his diagnosis. Hope this helps. Denise
Hope this helps. I would lend you my copy but my mother has it and we live 3 hours apart. In any case,it's a great addition to have in your library.
"Dyspraxic people may have Sensory Integration Dysfunction, a condition that creates abnormal oversensitivity or undersensitivity to physical stimuli, such as touch, light, and sound[citation needed]. This may manifest itself as an inability to tolerate certain textures such as sandpaper or certain fabrics, or even being touched by another individual (in the case of touch oversensitivity) or may require the consistent use of sunglasses outdoors since sunlight may be intense enough to cause discomfort to a dyspraxic (in the case of light oversensitivity). An aversion to loud music and naturally loud environments (such as clubs and bars) is typical behavior of a dyspraxic individual who suffers from auditory oversensitivity, while only being comfortable in unusually warm or cold environments is typical of a dyspraxic with temperature oversensitivity. This typically occurs if the dyspraxia is comorbid to an autistic spectrum disorder (PDD) such as autistic disorder or Asperger syndrome[citation needed]."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyspraxia
I hope this may help you in your search. It is very possible that doctor is correct. But, I feel as a parent you truly know your child and there may be something else. I sounds to me like she may be on the spectrum. Keep searching. My AS son has several comorbid conditions.
Take care.
"Dyspraxics may have other difficulties that are not due to dyspraxia itself but often co-exist with it. They may have characteristics of dyslexia (difficulty with reading and spelling), dyscalculia (difficulty with mathematics), expressive language disorder (difficulty with verbal expression), ADHD (poor attention span) or Aspergers Syndrome (poor social cognition, and a literal understanding of language, making it hard to understand idioms or sarcasm). However, they are unlikely to have problems in all of these areas. The pattern of difficulty varies widely from person to person, and it is important to understand that a major weakness for one dyspraxic can be a strength or gift for another. For example, while some dyspraxics have difficulty with reading and spelling due to an overlap with dyslexia, or numeracy due to an overlap with dyscalculia, others may have brilliant reading and spelling or mathematical abilities. Similarly, some have autistic traits such as lacking an appreciation of irony or social cues, while others thrive on an ironic sense of humour as a bonding tool and a means of coping. [6]"