suzanne thanks for the input-my son 3 1/2 diag with asd will go into ppcd in sept. he will go all day the bus picks him up at 8:30 and will get off the bus at 2:45.I hope he does good i am scared to death. i know he will do well in his class and learn alot.
Cyndie,
Where are you from? I'm in Texas and they only offer PPCD 1/2 day. You can choose am/pm session. I felt Callie was more receptive in the morning and she really needs her naptime in the pm to function. They nap at the daycare right after lunch so the schedule was perfect for her. Surely, they will nap or have resttime for your guy in the afternoon. I think you will see lots of progress after he begins. I know it is scary, but it is well worth it. Good luck to you. Let me know how things are going. Keep posting.
Suzanne,
I am in South Carolina and they also offer full days here in preschool. Well it depends on the child though and their evaluations to whether they get full days/half days and also how many times per/week. Here they also have i believe 3 different autism specific classes in the district along with all the other preschool classes that are available. The autism classes are all day 5 days a week and with the special ed preschool that is not autism specific they offer a variety of days/hours etc.
Karrie
the key is early intervention-get him into preschool-education early. my son is 3 1/2 and they just kept telling me was slow due to his speech (boys will be boys)and other problems he needs ot due to all his sensory issues. i should have gotten his dx over a year ago and started early but i just went off what his ped. said i did not know anybetter. well we now have a dx of asd. and he is starting preschool specail education in sept. we hope he will learn and talk alot more at this time. he is also been accepted for esy-he really needs it.
Hi!
My dd was dx at 2 1/2 with Pdd-nos and she is 2 weeks from turning 4. I put her in early intervention before the diagnosis for speech and OT. There were strange behaviors that have subsided, but resurface when she is ill or overwhelmed. Most of the behaviors are mentioned above, but I might add a few that were specific to my dd. I noted fixations on objects - bubbles in the tub, bright objects (CD's and mirrors), need for 2 objects to hold - one in each hand, craved movement - swinging, aloofness, page turning in books, stuffing food into mouth, and lots of others that come to mind. Each child is different due to the severity of the disorder and the sensory issues. My dd was undersensitive to movement and sound - which explains the apparent "deafness" and the motion factor. However, recently she seems very afftected by loud noises and clothes are a huge issue right now. She wants to choose her own clothes (I don't see a career in fashion-sigh!) and dress herself.
I have her in a PPCD program and it has done wonders. I tried everything to encourage speech with her and she just would not talk. About 2 months into her preschool program, she started talking and now she talks all of the time. The pattern is sometimes strange, but she does verbalize her needs for the most part. I suggest that you get the therapies in place and keep reading. There's always something new to learn about. Good luck to you - we all understand how overwhelmed you feel. Keep us posted.
jcam,
Our son is 5 and was just diagnosed this past year with PDD NOS. He also was a preemie born at 26 weeks and has hydrocephalus. He has always received ST and OT services since he was a baby because he has hydro and was a preemie. Since the age of 2 we had wondered about him falling on the autism spectrum but did not push for a label at that time since he was already receiving services. Our son is highly verbal talks all the time but his talking is not always functional. He does a lot of echolalia but improves all the time. For example if I say to him "Say Hi Isaiah" he'll say "Say Hi Isaiah" If I say "How are you today?" He'll say "How are you today?" etc... He has always loved game shows. When he was two he loved Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune but has now moved on to Win Ben Stein's Money and Whammy. He use to bang his head in frustration but now at the age of 5 we rarely see this. He loves doors and that is one of the struggles we continue to have with him. He'll play with any door over and over shut and open shut and open. He'll watch the door close and jump up and down giggling and screaching with excitement til it closes so that he can open it again. He has sensory issues and didn't transition from smooth textured baby foods to solids until this past year. He never explored with his mouth as a baby. He loves to rock and still at the age of 5 will crawl in my lap and say "rock with mommy". Of course the whole time we're in the chair he'll say repeatedly Is the chair leather? Is it cloth? Is is beige? Is it green? Is it grandma's? Even though he knows the answer to the questions he will say them over and over and over again the whole time we are rocking. Then he'll ask about rocking chairs at other locations. Is the chair at grandma's cloth? Is it leather? Is it blue? Is it mommy's chair? over and over again. Sometimes things will upset him that wouldn't bug typical people. For example if we are in the car and my husband puts his hand on my chair he'll scream like he's in pain. One day we were all riding in the car and his sister's foot was touching the chair in front of her and he started screaming. It took me a while to figure that one out. Anyway I could go on and on and on, probably more info than you wanted. Hope this helps,
Trudy
Kellie,
PPCD stands for Preschool Program for Children with Disabilities. I called Early Intervention when she was 2 and started her with home therapies. When she turned 3 she was automatically enrolled in the special education program for children 3-5 who recieve the same services. She attends the program from 8-11 at the elementary school in my school district and then she is transported to the daycare that her sister attends for the remainder of the day. I think the intense work done at the school and the exposure to other children in the afternoon has really helped her. My son attends school in the town we live in, but I teach middle school in a neighboring town. My girls commute with me everyday. We are off for the summer, but she begins PPCD again in August.
If you don't have him enrolled in ECI, call them in your area. They will come out and observe and evaluate, then begin therapies in your home. When he turns 3, he will be arded into you school district, if he qualifies - most likely for speech. I know sending them to school at 3 is very scary, but I quickly learned that it has been wonderful for her. She has made so much progress. Let me know if you have any other questions. I know where you are and how you are feeling right now. These ladies have lots of knowledge and I am so glad I started coming here for information.
Suzanne
Hi my son is in the middle of being dx with pdd or pdd-nos. (that is what they are saying he has) I have read so much info on autism and I am getting what pdd is now. It just has so many diffrent symptoms. My little boy just turned two he dose not make eye contact all of the time but he will and he will smile at people. He likes to socialize with adults and children. He hugs them and interactes. He is speech delay he is saying about two words consistantly. But he dosen't say mom he dosn't really try to speak if we try to make him he gets mad. He refuses to do the sign laugage. He also pretends not to hear us sometimes. His grandmother asked us once if he was deaf. They want me to agree or disagree with them on there dx I just don't really get what pdd-nos is. But the good thing is he seems happy he eats anything, he wants to be held and is now progressing with st. He seems so young to be dx. Does any one have any advise about this I have never met any other kids with pdd, pdd-nos and I know each one is diffrent. What are some of the more quirky thinks your kids do. My son is my first child and they tell me that normal kids should be hard wired to know these things my son is lacking. I just thought he was normal cause I have never been around alot of young children. Hi Momo,hey momo, your right all autism specturm disorder kids are different, like my son carlo who is 5 and got adx of pdd-nos about 4 and a half months ago, he also has a seizure disorder,adhd,cpw/diplegia to say the least.
carlo does weird things to like he eats uneatable items,doesn't sleep well,licks everything in sight at times, and hates being around a lot of people at one time. he going to recevie ot and pt services. no st cause he's very verbal so they also say that he has some asperger tendacies because he's never had a speech delay, so u see there all different in one way or another, but there all great kids,
so as far as your son stay strong with therapy and be by his side always cause he's gonna need you. good luck to u and your son. also take care.mom2carlo
Hello Momo,
Having now my second child with Autism (PDD-NOS) I can say that for my 9 year old and others, there is hope. From starting her early years 2yrs of age having to have actual hands on directional therapy to now starting to read and write at first grade level, there is hope. She had little/to no motor skills, listening capabilities and lost most of the words she had been speaking at the 2 - 2 1/2yr age mark. Now that she is speaking up a storm from all the special education / physical therapy / speech therapy / picture therapy/ etc., over the years, I am not as worried about my latest 3 yr old with PDD/NOS. He has all the motor skills a kid would want but doesn't speek (loosing his 5-10 words he knew at 2yrs of age). Classical wont look at you all the time but like the last person who posted he is starting to come around due to early intervention. (Home visits starting at 2yrs of age and starting 1/2 day schooling at age 3yrs, and now summer school).
Definitely get set up with services with your local educational / medical specialist. The earlier the better. It is not a quick fix but with consistent help, as with my 9yr old, they can come around. I never thought she would, I always worried, and I wondered everyday if I was doing enough for her. Or even if I was doing the right things. For some people it might not work out as well but you have to keep hope and never give up on them. I am glad I didn't with my daughter.
If you need help let me know. I will do what I can for you. Mr. Quinn