
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.
Telling your child that they have Aspergers

deleted_user
I was just trying to get some advice from parents that have been through this. My son is 7 and although I have always thought he was different, we just got our Aspergers dx. At what age and under what circumstances did you tell your child about their disorder? How did they respond to it? Do you wish you had waited?
His father and I have dicussed it and decided he was too young. His therapist agreed. But I have having a change of heart. I think he has a right to know, but I am worried that it might scare him. He has asked me in the past ( before dx) what was wrong with him and why he didn't have friends... Any input would be helpful... Thanks ya'll!
His father and I have dicussed it and decided he was too young. His therapist agreed. But I have having a change of heart. I think he has a right to know, but I am worried that it might scare him. He has asked me in the past ( before dx) what was wrong with him and why he didn't have friends... Any input would be helpful... Thanks ya'll!
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My son is 7 too and dx'd with AS, AD/HD, OCD and Sensory Issues. Up til lately, we have only discussed the AD/HD because he had to take medication for it and questioned it. We explained that it helped him calm down and focus. We actually went last summer without the medication and he asked to be on it again because he realized it helped him with his impulisivity and focus.
However, in the last two months, we started encountering something different. Jacob started talking more and more about hearing voices. We ended up discovering that he has kind of figured out what has been going on himself and has used the voices as sort of a self diagnosis. He says he hears a bad voice when he's dealing with his OCD compulsions. This makes sense because adults are always trying to redirect him, when all he wants to do is do what his body is telling him to do. Therefore, he feels it is a bad voice. Once is over, there's a good voice because he feels bad and wants to make everyone feel good around him. This is his conscience.
He got the idea of "voices" from a Spongebob episode on TV and thought there are lots of little Jacob's in his head that do specific things. One that reads, one that does math, one that works with legoes, one that does bad things, one that does good things, one that does homework, one that does gymnastics, ect. He basically categorizes everything based on what he saw in this cartoon. He thought this was how everyone's brain works. I had asked him the question one night, "Jacob, does your brain move alot." Thinking about the AD/HD. He laughed and told me, "Mom, that's such a great question, no one has ever asked me that question." "Yes, it does." Then he told me about all the jobs, each of the little Jacob's do. I then, asked... you mean like in this Spongebob show? And, he replied, "Yes, exactly." It was then that everything began to click in place. My husband and I began to realize that we needed to explain his dx's to him. He was ready. We didn't think we would be at 7. But, he was.
We found two books. One is called, Asperger's Huh? A child's Perspective. It's written by a 10 year old who has been dx'd with AS. I have not received this book yet. I've been told it is good, but it is very specific with the attribute this child has. I just figured we could talk about the things he deals with and the things this boy deals with. This boy interest is weather, my son's is legoes and video games. I think it is good to recognize what other people deal with too. So, I was fine purchasing this book. The other book, actually it's a workbook to be done with the parent and child is called, Asperger's: What Does It Mean to Me? This has been recommended to me by several sources. None of the sources have done it as young as my son is. The youngest was 9. But, we feel Jacob is totally ready based on how reflective and willing he is to talk about everything. Again, we are waiting for theses to arrive anyday.
However, given all that. We have sat down and talked with him about the dx about 2 weeks ago. He handled it very well. My husband more or less was there as support and backed me up. He jumped in here and there. But, for the most part let me talk. I spoke of going to the doctors and about what we talk about. I told him what he was dx'd with and had him reiterate the name. I talked about how he has asked us to help him and that he knows we are always there to help him, as is his teacher and his aide. We talked about the brain and how sometimes things get confusing. I asked him what types of things confused him and he started telling me a few things. I told him they were attributed to the AS and gave him examples. We talked about motor breaks that he takes in school and why they help him feel better. All sorts of things. I kind of let him set the pace with his questions. But, I did prompt him now and then. It didn't last a terribly long time, but we did address it several times during a weekend. We told him that we are always there for him and if he is ever confused about anything to please come to us and just ask. His teachers/aide are there for him as well. Since doing this, we have had a couple times where he has started to get upset and I have been able to say, I understand you're frustrated. What is it about? Please let me know, I'm here to help. Sometimes, before, he'd just close up on me...I found now, he's opening up and talking about it more, especially if it is a pragmatics issue. Since explaining, it seems he isn't so hard on himself, if that makes sense.
Also, it's helped when he's had problems dealing with a particular boy that lives down the street that he struggles with sometimes.