new and nervous...
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| Mon, 06-19-2006 - 10:48am |
I am a little nervous about all of this. My son age 9 was observed in March at school by a specialist they brought in. His findings were that it is probable my son has AS. I have always known since my son was a baby he was just "a little off". Meaning there was just something I could never put my finger on but knew something wasn't quite right. My son is my angel. He is such a sweet boy and I just love him so much. He is just the most loving little boy I know. I also have a 12 yr old son who is not diagnosed with AS. I have a hard time with the two of them together because they seem to fight with each other quite often. Now I understand a little better why my oldest gets so frustrated with his brother. I'm still not sure what to think of all of this. I'm scared for my boy and wonder what kind of a life he has ahead of him. I know this is not the end of the world type thing...I guess I am just scared at the not knowing and need to get educated about AS. I am going to have him evaluated and try to get more support and info to help us all at home. Everything is in the beginning stages so bascially I would just like some reassurance that maybe others have felt this way in the beginning.
I hope all this rambling makes sense.
THANKS!

Hi and Welcome! Nice to meet you! I am relatively new to this as well (son is 6 years old, and the idea of him being probable AS was first suggested this past August).
I can't speak for others, but I had the same feelings that you did of my son from infancy on up....something not quite right, but can't put your finger on it. We did PT with him for hypotonia, knew he had sensory and vestibular issues, but somehow I knew that wasn't the whole picture. It is absolutely normal to feel scared right now. There is a lot of unseen territory out there to you right now. I found that this board has helped alot as well as doing as much research and reading as possible. I also have the good fortune of knowing a couple people that are extremely knowledgeable about PDDs. Not actually knowing for sure that AS is, in fact my son's diagnosis is the A #1 frustration I am having now, which as you said, is part of the being scared. It is a long process, but the people here are a wonderful support system and source of encouragement. To me getting a diagnosis (whether it ends up being AS or something else) will be positive. Yes, it will come with a "label" to others, but for me, as a parent seeing my child struggle with some things, it will be a relief to have a definative diagnosis knowing that with that diagnosis comes knowledge and tools. Not just to help them, but to help me as a parent understand and better work with my son so that he will have the absolute best education and future instead of to keep floundering having no clue how to help him. I don't know if that is a take on the diagnosis portion that might help you not feel so scared or not, but I hope it may help a bit.
Take care,
Heather
Hi and Welcome!
I hope you find what you need here.
Hello and welcome.
I had a really hard time when I first began to suspect DS had special needs. At first it was
visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com
Wow, thanks for all the kind words and encouragement. I think I am just getting out of my denial about his dx. For the longest time I've said to the teachers that couldn't he just be a very sensitive boy with a low self esteem etc etc etc.....Now, I can really see the problems I have been having with him regarding fitting in with the other kids, and I'm having problems with the parents of these kids. Jake just doesn't know when he is going to far. I feel like I have to explain about Jake, and I hate it. Jake has always been a very loving, sensitive kid. Always putting himself last and thinking of others first. That's why I didn't think for awhile it was Asperger's. But latley his anger is just unbelievable. I am going to have him see a counselor and see if I can get an appointment with the hospital in Boston to get a true dx. Until then, I think I'll check out this board and do some reading. You all seem very supportive and knowledgeable about everything.
Specialmom, your family sounds alot like mine. I too, have a younger sister with bipolar, a brother with tourette's and I really think he is Asperger's too, but not sure. There is alot of depression in my family. For myself I am sure I have OCD and have always had major depression. So who knows, maybe all of this is intertwined somehow.
The only other trouble I have right now if with my DH, he doesn't want to talk about the dx with my son that leaves me feeling very alone. The irony of this thing is that my DH used to work at a group home as a night attendant for autistic people. He knows alot about autism and refuses to believe what Jake has is AD. He worked at the group home over 20 years ago, and I know he has no idea what autistic spectrum disorder even is.
Thank you for welcoming me to this board. I do not have alot of computer access at home because my computer is currently broken. I do this from my local library, sooner or later I'll be back online regularly. Thanks again!
HI and welcome to the board.
I completely understand.