Welcome to the forum. Here's a good series of articles about making observations and how to share them with your doctor to get RESULTS rather than a "wait and see" approach.
http://www.firstsigns.org/concerns/index.htm
It sounds like your daughter has both sensory-seeking and sensory-avoiding behaviors. Identifying and better managing my son's sensory issues made a great impact on our everyday quality of life, even though we don't have an Occupational Therapist to help us. Here's a checklist to help you identify sensory issues. The website has lots of good tips, too.
http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/sensory-processin g-disorder-checklist.html
Good luck with everything!
Hi welcome ,This is a great place for Info ,from folks who have been there.
Linda
Hi, and welcome!
You've already discovered this board can be very helpful! The two pieces of advice you've already received--take your daughter to a specialist and get an evaluation in the public schools--are both excellent. The schools are legally obligated to address any issues that will affect your daughter's education, and if you're fortunate enough to live in a good school district, this can make a HUGE difference. It has for our son, who's got PDD-NOS.
Please keep us posted how it goes. You'll find lots of support here!
Hi, Welcome! So glad to hear you are going to a doctor to get her officially evaluated. Now is a great time so she will be able to start preschool in September and get the help she needs from the school district. My son has made wonderful gains since starting school. And, the great news is they take them whether they are potty-trained or not, tantrums or not, etc, since they are considered special ed. They'll have a speech therapist and an occupational therapist work with her at school. Good luck with your doctor's appointment. I have found this forum invaluable and learned so much from it and continue to do so.Welcome Shanon !!Hi Shannon and welcome to the board. Your daughter is adorable! It sounds like she's very smart too.
One of the first calls people should make is to their school district to request an evaluation. You don't need to have a diagnosis to make this call. They can assess your daughter to see if she qualifies for special services, like occupational therapy (OT) or speech. My oldest son has Aspergers. He is extremely intelligent and has an advanced vocabulary. He has qualified for services since he was 2 years old.
It sounds like your daughter has some sensory issues. This is very common with kids on the spectrum. Regarding the hair washing, here are two threads that are filled with lots of tips and advise.
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=5692& ; ; ; ;KW=hair+washing
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=17995&am p;am p;am p;am p;KW=allegra
You can also go to the Search icon at the top of the page and do a search for hair washing. All the threads on the subject will be pulled. This board is filled with a wealth of information on lots of subjects.
Good luck and I'm glad you found us!
Welcome Shannon,
Your daughter has much in common with my dd at that age..sweet angel as a baby~knew how to read and spell sentences with abc blocks at 2 but never responded to her name well and poor eye contact.. she never did repetitive things or had high sensory issues but hated noise and loud crowds to the point we stopped going anywhere. We got her diagnosed by a developmental pediatrician that was private so that we wouldnt have to wait 8 mos. to know something(we got her in within 2 wks.)
She has had many labels from pdd/autism to aspergers to provisional autism with savant abilities..she has come a long way:)
This board is wonderful with many girls too:) Lots of advice and support:) Glad you found us and hope you stay!
Hi everyone. I barely know where to begin. My name is Shannon and I have a daughter who will be turning four soon. She does not have an official diagnosis, but I know she has a PDD. I've spent the past 3 years searching for answers, and one day I just typed her symptoms into Google (repetitive behavior, adverse to noises, eye contact avoidance, etc.) and PDDs kept coming up. I never considered autism, because she did not fit that criteria. I did not know of autism spectrum disorders and PDDs.
When I began learning and reading the stories, I cried, both because I knew this was what I have been going through...and of the relief of finally having an answer. You see, I've been trying to get her help since she was about 21 months old, and no one will do ANYTHING for us until she turns FOUR.
I knew something wasn't right when she was born. A VERY easy baby, she hardly fussed. When she did though, she didn't cry - she screamed this horrid high-pitched scream. The looks I would get in public! People would even come up and make remarks about it. I knew it wasn't right, but whenever I explained it I think people thought I was exaggerating.
Next came head-throwing and a need to always have her feet rubbing on something. She would even do this in her sleep (the foot thing). When she is near us, we have to help her hold her feet still or she will rub them against everything from people to furniture or walls she is standing near. People also thought I was nuts for noting this as unusual. It started around a few weeks old and continues. Her head-throwing fits, which have ceased, dislocated my jaw several times, as they'd happen out of nowhere.
Then the repitition. She will be playing with something that makes a noise and, as if compelled and unable to stop, she becomes fixated on repeating it over and over. We will finally say "RACHEL" and she will snap back into focus with the rest of us.
Lately she's not making eye contact as much. She comes absolute undone about having her hair washed or ANY kind of water on her face. She loves water, but it cannot touch (drip down) her face or she gasps and screams. We tried swim class, but she got out of the pool, curled up into a ball and cried after they made her jump in. She got her face wet.
Her other habit is crying at night. She wakes to go potty and just sobs uncontrollably. We've asked why, and she doesnt answer, just keeps sobbing. My husband and I were at wits end, but offering stars (used toward trips to the ice cream store or Build A Bear) have helped a little. She still cries, but quieter and less frequently.
She has trouble explaining things too. She's incredibly smart, could recite the entire alphabet at age 2 1/2 and count to ten in three languages, knew all her colors, shapes, left and right. In fact, she makes our normally-developing son seem quite slow by comparison! We never suspected that she may have a PDD, and my husband thought maybe she was just "eccentric" because she was bright. Then I learned that children with PDDs are often of normal or above average intelligence.
I'm rambling. I'm just so glad to have found this place. We're going to see the doctor this week, and I'm hoping he will have better news for getting some help. If anyone has suggestions, PLEASE let me know!!!
Thanks :)
Shannon