AS vs Autism

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Registered: 02-20-2001
AS vs Autism
6
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 2:32pm
Well Bobby had his last evaluation this past thursday.

 


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iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2003
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 3:56pm

Tina,

There is really very little difference between AS and HFA (High functioning Autistic). Really, it comes down to when a child develops (consistent) functional language, and says nothing to prognosis.

Peter ';develop functional language until almost 4½, but since then has done so incredibly well, that he looks like a very high functioning Aspie -although because of the delayed speech, technically, he is not. Therefore you have a kid who is technically HFA who is probably now higher functioning than many kids his age with Asperger's syndrome. (and some of that comes down to catching it early -thanks to the speech delay!)

It's all a muddle. in the end you learn not to put too much stock in the DX -until you are leaning on the Drs or the school.

(((Hugs))) I know this is very difficult.

-Paula

-Paula

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iVillage Member
Registered: 09-16-2005
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 5:31pm

I was under the impression that Aspie's do NOT have speech problems - is that correct - anyone?

My DH's cousin has AS - he has been talking non stop since he was 10 months old ( 10 now )

Avatar for betz67
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 5:58pm

(((HUGS)))

I know it's hard to deal w/ this. We had the same thing earlier this summer. We had gone along for over a year thinking that our son had AS, but when we actually got the Dx they said Autism, high functioning but autism because of the speech delay and the severity of his ritual behaviors and very low social skills. It was a blow but I really feel that we're the lucky ones. We have this Dx and he's getting the help he needs to live a good life in the least restrictive environment.

as for the actual Dx. Autism is a spectrum disorder. One professional will Dx as AS another will Dx as autism another may Dx as PDD-NOS. it's somewhat objective. One professional may put more weight on the speech delay another on the obsessive/ritual behaviors, another on the sensory or social disfunction. In the last few months I've discovered it doesn't really matter what the Dx is, my son is still my son. We're doing the best we can for him and the label doesn't really matter as long as he gets what he needs.

HTH!

Betsy

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-13-2004
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 6:06pm

Aspie kids typically have no speech delays. This is why it generally doesn't get diagnosed until they are in school. It's the lack of social skills and rigigity that are the telling cues in Aspies.

My son is 8 and has moderate autism. While he's not on the same emotional level as his 6yo sister, he is very aware of others and communicates frequently. If I say "ouch" he will say "are you OK mum?". When we shop, he shows his sister the Barbie displays. Yesterday he was reading a toy catalogue and found a scrapbooking kit and said "this is for you mum" (yes, I scrapbook). Just now, I heard a crash in the living room and he said "oops, sorry. It was accident". Your son asking what you were eating would be quite normal for my son.

Try to not get hung up on the diagnosis. You may well have a high functioning autistic on your hands :-) Besides, if your school funding is like here in Australia, the worse dx gets more funding at school.

Dress Up Games, Doll Makers and Cartoon Dolls @ The Doll Palace
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 7:08pm

Like the others I would say don't get hung up on which ASD they have. I have known people with autism diagnosis to be more independent and higher functioning than some with Asperger diagnosis. It is a misnomer that auism is automatically worse than AS.

It is more an overlap and spectrum than rigid lines between one diagnosis and another. In fact my cait has been diagnosed PDD-NOS, AS and autistic. She is now the classic aspie but she was originally significantly delayed, particularly in language. Most was echolalic and or mixed up. I used to call her yoda with word retrieval issues. "Blue lunch want I" meaning I want my lunch on a blue plate.

But like you when she was dx'ed PDD-NOS at 4, I felt Asperger's was more right. She was "upgraded" to AS at 7.

In fact, my Aspie son is more impaired in many ways than some HFA children I know and certainly more than Cait. He can't function in mainstream, etc. But he never had a langauge delay. Cait is in a middle school program that is mostly mainstreamed. Mike will likely need to go to a specialized school for ASD kids when he reaches middle school.

There is one nice thing. You are getting him services early and you will find it easier to access services with an autism diagnosis than with an Asperger diagnosis. Early intervention means the world. that is the one thing Mike didn't get.

Renee

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-11-2003
In reply to: rwctlc1107
Mon, 09-26-2005 - 8:55pm

My son's dx was autism spectrum disorder more indicative of AS. He had a language delay but by age 3 1/2 was caught up. So the Dr. diagnosing him didn't know what to pick, lol.

Samantha

Samantha