My son is 3 and half and I feel he may be autistic, he has violent outbursts for no reason, he's having problems with his speech his speech isnt where it si supposed to be, he refuses to potty train, he cant tell me what he wants unless he points it out, he doesnt follow directions, he tunes me out, he is hyperactive. his doctor doesnt think he's autistic but I dont know what to think. is my son autistic?
Chiapet1976,
No one here is going to be able to tell you if your son is autistic or not. I can tell you to have an evaluation done if you have concerns about his development. Is your son in speech therapy? OT therapy? Before he turned 3 was he in the early intervention program? Is he now in the public school system for preschool for his delays?? There are a lot of things out there that can cause speech delays etc. If you feel that there is something there then I would recommend contacting your local resources to find out where to get him evaluated. There is a newbie thread at the top of the message board that is filled with educational material websites and also contact information to get started. Welcome to the board,
Karrie
I agree with the above post. If you are concerned, absolutely look into having your son screened (you can often go through the public schools, even if your child doesn't attend one yet), or get a script from your physician to receive an outside evaluation. Good luck with everything.No offense but I wouldn't suggest going thru the public schools for any type of evaluation. By law they can only do a educational diagnosis, not a medical diagnosis. Check in your local area for day treatment facilities that deal with developmental disorders. Now you could check to see if your local school district has a contract with an outside agency that deals specifically with developmental delays. Or if you live in a big city, check with your local health department and see what they suggest.
Tammy
Yes I agree w/ Tammy above. I had birth to three check out ds, and while he was having a very good day when they came to our home to see him, they still weren't really getting what I was telling them. They would say "well that can be common, " or "he may outgrow that." They were nice and trying to help, but I felt they weren't understanding the full situation. They ended up just saying he had an 8mth speech delay (a little less in receptive speech) and possible sensory integration disorder, which they said could be causing him to have the other "strange" behaviors. I figured I'd try out their methods for sensory int disorder and it really didnt' change his behavior at all. I now am going through a place called Child Care Center that I discovered recently in my town. There are so many signs that could mean or could not mean autism that it's very hard to say if your son is. However, what you mentioned COULD possibly be signs, and if you have any concern at all it doesn't ever hurt to find out. Good luck and welcome!
Amber
Chiapet, WELCOME TO THE BOARD!!! I would check with your pediatrician and get names of a developmental ped. or pediatric nuerologist. When we had early intervention here b/c my son was speech delayed thay the team came n evaluated him for services but we still had to wait to get into our local CHLDRENS HOSP. SATELITE DIVISION 8MONTHS TO SEE THERE DEVE.PED. but services were in session prior to this, which got the ball started.he got 3days a wk OT INHOME 1HOUR A DAY AT THAT AND SPECIAL INSTRUCOR 3DAY 3HRS. ALSO.we waited for speech therapy waiting list.SCHOOLS CANT GIVE A DIAGNOSIS only a developmental pediatrician or ped. nuerologist and pyschiatrist.I used to ask his ot n st all the time "what do you think it can be" by law they cant say..which i understood.. once he started his specialized preschool program, he got speech therapy n ot his speech started to come out..B/C i never thought he would speak..now hes 4 1/2 and is doing well. WELL the violent outbursts are still there, but we have mental health services suporting us and that helps out. But def. check out the NEWBIES FORUM IN THE BEG. OF THIS FORUM and take the test on PDD IN CHILDBRAIN.COM YOU WILL SEE IT ONCE YOU CLICK ON THAT POST..GOOD LUCK.. I agree do not let the school do the eval go to an outside source. My gut feeling is THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST PSYCHOLOGISTS AND PSYCIATRISTS DO NOT GO TO WORK FOR THE SCHOOL SYSTEM TO MAKE PEANUTS.. I applaud the many teachers and people who work for the school making not enough money, but the truth is when you are dealing with a complicated diagnosis you want the best doing it. You dont want to risk getting a wrong dx or soemoen over looking somethign or not listening to you. I would suggest trying to find an autism center to have your child tested at. I hope i did not offend the many caring people who work for our schools as teachers etc who do wonderful jobs it is not my intention.WELCOME TO THE BOARD CHIAPET!!!!
I know some people on this board would say & have said "Don't go through the school system to find out if your child has autism", but that's EXACTLY how WE found out that our Son Tony (now 9y/o) has HFA (High Functioning Autism). I didn't even THINK about going to a doctor for a dx...don't ask me WHY...I just looked up "special needs" in the school system part of the yellow pages & went from there. THEN I told my Son's pediatrician what the school system dx my Son with, & she agreed. He was 3 & a half y/o when he was first dx. He's come SUCH a LONG way from then!! Good Luck! God Bless you & your Family & keep you all safe! LINDA...aka Tony'sMom...aka MWN64 I agree with Linda. My daughter was diagnosed with PDD-NOS a year ago by a school Psycologist. He did a very thourough evaluation over several days. I agreed with the diagnosis, as well did my daughter's pediatrician. It may be few and far between, but some school Psycologists are in it because they really care about kids, and not just the money. I just hate to see them all get a bad rep. Good luck
Honestly, I think much of it has to do w/ where you are as well. I know w/ anything you can have bad and good dr's, school administrators and teachers, etc. But even on here I've heard some say their state has great programs and dr's and school sys etc etc, and other's say their state sux and doesn't have diddley except headaches for parents. So I guess I would say just go w/ your gut. If you feel that your school sys is really helpful and good and they are referring you to where you need to be and listening to you then go with it. No matter who you go through, just make sure that it feels right. If you try a doc that says "no" and you think he/she is wrong, then try someone else. Same w/ school sys. But I wouldn't label all school systems bad everywhere. Just like if you have a bad experience w/ a mechanic for your car you try someone else but you don't say they all suck. :-) I think you just need to try what you feel will work for you in your area. Amber How about an entirely TERRIBLE school district? EVERY YEAR the school district has failed to follow the IEP! Kindergarten his aide was never hired because it was written "recommended by his current preschool teacher, neurologist, pediatrician, therapist, and me but it wasn't written MUST HAVE so he didn't get one. They hired a subsitute teacher to start kindergarten since the teacher was due the first week of school but coming back before Thanksgiving However the teacher they introduced him to at kindergarten orientation decided NOT to take the job so he met a different teacher the first day of school GREAT for a kid on the spectrum who RESISTS changes. ALso that year they started with a substitute ST Lucky for us the kindergarten teacher went over and beyond to help him through the rest of the year when she came back and decided to move to first grade and actually requested he be in her class again since she knew him and thought she could give him a good start. THAT was his best year! She helped me fight for him she worked together with me with his therapist. But ST and OT were a joke! The Special ed teacher taught my son's second grade class and didnt know what autism or autism spectrum disorders were. (His aspergers friend was in his class and she didnt know what aspergers was!) She would come to me complaining he was fidgeting and restless and wouldnt sit still, was running, hopping, skipping, jumping across the classroom floor, refused to do his work and even when she held him in from recess he refused to do the work, (real good idea there - NOT) he would write letters as big as the page or write VERY HARD and break the pencil and she didnt understand why. But she said (since his sensory box was to be used at her discression) she didnt feel he NEEDED a sensory box so he never got one! He also never got his vest that year. 3rd grade was even worse! This teacher had NO CLUE. It makes me so mad to even think about it. Some of you have read my posts from this past school year. He ended up with so much stress induced anxiety that he had significant regression and by doctor orders he was pulled out of school for the last 2 weeks. And then the school called the truant officer! When I went to the board office and met the BRAND NEW superintendent I introduced myself to him briefly mentioned the problem and that he schould have received my letter, he said Oh yes, I handed him the dr letter about the regression, he scanned through it and handed it back saying take it into the special ed office and walked away! So I certainly have NO TRUST in the school districts! And I do have a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED advocate working with us. The only thing I can say is if the school would get off their high horse and Start caring about the students to REALIZE they ARE having trouble and mention getting an eval to the parent. But the school needs to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY and hire trained ST, OT, PT, SPED, and even trained aides and reg ed teachers who will actually work with the kid to HELP them and not just collect their paychecks! YES I'm FURIOUS! Amen Michelle! It makes me sick when I read this stuff...absolutely sick. We have the same problems here, but it's administration that causes the problem. Our OT/ST have been godsends, and Riley's 2nd grade teacher has a son with Tourette's so she UNDERSTOOD the need for accomodations...without those 3 people, it would have been worse. Now, who knows what 3rd grade is going to be like?!?! (our ST left the district because she was sick of the administrator---and our ST was our biggest advocate). The sickening thing is that our ST told us we should move so that our son could benefit from better education....she loved Riley, enjoyed working with him, but knew that he'd never get what he needed. It's not feasible for us to just pick up and move our families just because the schools are lazy in the jobs they need to be doing. It really just makes me sick....we all know how important these school years are, no matter what age, and you'd think school officials would too. The fact that they screw around, and let the KIDS SUFFER is in my mind, a crime. Maybe our dear president should review that whole "no child left behind" LOAD OF CRAP. We can all hope have a better year ahead for our children....but history has dictated for so many of us that it just won't happen that way...sad as it is...it's a fact. Lesley in our case its everyone from the teacher to the therapists to the principal, special ed director, superintendent EVERYONE! I asked the beginning of the year after several incidents with his teacher that he be transfered to the other 3rd grade class. I was told by the principal and the special ed director that would be a mistake because the other teacher had no structure and her room was often like a zoo and that would be worse for him. I told them I wanted them to transfer him to a different school then since they couldnt provide what he needed they argued they ARE providing him with what he needs EDUCATIONALLY and if I wanted him transfered I would have to pay for it! It SHOULD BE a crime for the school to LIE and sneak around the IEP and to purposely word a legal document with a loop hole giving them a way out of their agreement that they never wanted to agree to in the first place. Problem is we're just parents who cant afford the time to fight them NOR the money to hire an attorney to help us do so!
I need to stop here,....... That
I know at one time Minneapolis Public Schools had a policy of letting regular ed teachers teach special ed summer school. Now how screwed up is that????????????? Gabe was transferred out of one summer school because the teacher didn't want to deal with him. He wasn't potty trained. Excuse me but................IT SAID THAT ON THE IEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I asked why and they said because he wasn't potty trained. I then asked didn't she have the iep? I was told she had it on her desk for two weeks but never got around to reading it. Like that is my son's fault????????? I then asked whose brilliant idea was it to have regular ed teachers teach special ed summer school. I was told it was the districts. I then said that is screwed up and how long has it been like this? I was told it was like this for years. Needless to say the next summer it wasn't like that. Now it is special ed teachers teach special ed summer school. And Amber that is very naive thinking on your part. If a district the size of MInneapolis has a policy of where they don't give a darn about the iep, alot of us don't have tons of money to move around to a district that does care. Forget about changing schools, if your kid is in special ed you can only change to a school that offers the type of programming that kid needs. Things are not as easy as you think. Tammy You know...I feel my blood pressure rise when I read this...it's disgusting. And Michelle, you're absolutely right, it SHOULD be a crime, and there SHOULD be something that can be done about it, so that someone pays for the damage they cause, which is what they do by letting even one day go by without doing what needs to be done. I remember reading all Tammy's crap too about the school, thinking, there has GOT to be a way to stop this. But do I have the time? No. The money? No. I do know that I feel the same way though, I'm not going to sit idly by while they screw up the chance for my son to fulfill a greater life than they're giving him a chance to. I plan on thinking of something...we can't have been given these children with special needs and then have to deal with this bull
I think I can be pretty resourceful at times...as all of you are...and I promise, I'll think of something. It's not fair that we have all this anxiety about sending our children to school a month or two from now because we know how horribly they are going to treat them...it's not right. I'm so frustrated right now...these posts about school just kill me....and I don't even have it as bad as some of you...it's sick...it truly is. As my kids social worker recently told me, parents that have kids in special ed have to fight and fight for services. That is just insane. It is the year 2005 and we are still fighting. All it takes is one person to change it in one area and if there is enough attention then the state and hopefully the nation will take notice. Where is 60 minutes? Tammy LOL Cheryl....my husband said those exact words to the SpEd Admin....he said "it's just cause he can walk right? He's no different than if he were in a wheelchair...he should get the services HE needs" (My son has a health disorder that knocks him out for days on end....we were trying to get him some add'l home school care --- you guessed it, we didn't get it) I just read through some of these school posts....I'm sickened right now. I can barely type...so many of you have the most horrific stories...I just can't believe this. Can we write a book or what? For our president: "All these kids left behind" You're right....where is 60 minutes???....I don't know that I could even speak...I'm livid just reading. Well I have no faith in the public school system at all. And I will tell you why too. Gabe does things for effect so at school he said he saw bats. The school insisted he was psychotic. So I did what the school wanted me to do. I took him to the psychriatric clinic and I told them I thought he was doing it for attention. The clinic agreed. Now if I had listened to the school, no telling what label they would had given Gabe. But go ahead, put all of your faith in the public school system. You just better hope and pray they don't do something to screw up your kid because chances are they will. Tammy Well...perhaps I AM naive. I don't have any children in school yet. And I have read all of the terrible things many of you have gone through and it makes me feel very sad. I guess I was just trying to say to go w/ what works for the diagnosis. I wasn't going into other things like IEP's and what not. I thought the topic was who to talk to for going through the evaluation. I'm sure it is very hard to fight for your children's rights in school. I have heard enough stories about it. But I've also heard good things about schools helping too from some. I wasn't being a school advocate, as I really don't have any personal experience w/ them except from when I was in school myself and it's been a couple yrs :-) I was only trying to make the point of going w/ your gut on the diagnosis itself. If school is helping you great. If a dr is telling you you're crazy get another dr. That was my only point really. I'm sorry to those of you having such problems. Amber
~Lesley
~Lesley
She responded (uptight witch) "well that's absurd...it's not the same thing!"
I am sorry you had such a bad experience with the public schools.
I think I can speak for most educators/therapists that all we want to
do is help your child in any way we can. Granted, there are a few
bad eggs out there, but I guess you find that in any profession.
As for referring to public schools for screenings/evals, I only
mentioned it because that way you can get the ball rolling on services
(if needed). Granted, school districts should not be diagnosing a
student with autism, pdd, asbergers etc. unless they have the specific
personnel on staff. However, they can be a wonderful starting
point. Chances are, if the screening and/or eval team notices
anything that would suggest signs similar to autism, they would refer
you to the appropriately qualified professionals. The schools
also offer ideas that can be put in place at home, which may help some.
Hope this was helpful!
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