For those of you that have kids that are 5+ with an asd, what are the things that have gotten so much easier as time has gone on that you would not have anticipated when your child was around 3?
For instance, if you child was non-verbal at 3 and now you are having full-fledged conversations and your kid is asking questions...
Or your kid would run off the second you took you hand off him and now he stays next to you when requested...and is just calmer in general
Or your kid had some stims/sensory issues (ie shaking head back and forth fast, toe walking) and now the behavior has dissapated considerably?
My 3.5 yo son has significant speech, behavior and sensory issues but Im seeing improvements in all areas through therapy...just wanting to know what I MIGHT have to look forward to...
Thanks for the input!
That he would be potty trained.
That he would talk.
That he would stop banging his head into furniture and carrying sticks around.
That he would learn to read.
That I would hear his teacher say, "Wow, he's doing so well!"
That she would lose the label
That she would have such a sense of humor
That she was so smart academically
That she would tell me she missed me
That she could tolerate noise
That she could handle all day mainstream kindergarten without supports
That all the things that looked autistic would fade away:)
When C was 1st evaluated at age 2, on his vineland his communication skills were age equivalent of 3 months and social 7 months. At age 3, he could say a few words, melted down every day, was very difficult to engage, ignored his brother except to hit him during a rage, ignored other kids, intermittently responded to name, more interested in sticks than toys. He fought holding my hand everytime we went somewhere and would run off all the time.
Three years later, and much therapy later, life is very different for us. Here is a video I made 2 months ago (age 6 yrs, 4 months). I made it for the neuropsych that I brought him to for a private evaluation so she could see him in his home environment. I had posted it here a while ago in another thread.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=gzygJ7aXGfE
I think this video shows how far C has come more than anything that I could try and describe in words. In this video you'll see C: having a conversation, interacting with his brother, taking turns, having a timeout without melting down, using equipment appropriately. I wish I had taken more video when he was 3, because I don't think anyone would believe it's the same child. (When he was 3 and melting down daily and throwing things and hitting me, the last thing on my mind was "lets go get the video camera" LOL).
most of D's issues still haven't been resolved yet, in fact we had a huge meltdown and the mall the other day (first that my mum has seen) and that was horrid. However one thing he did have problems with was being non-verbal.
Up until abt 5 months ago he had the bare minimal of words then he had a babble that only his brother could understand. We had still not received a dx but then 5 months ago he suddenly "exploded" now we have difficulty getting him to stop talking
missnippy - Please don't feel bad. My son wasn't potty trained until he was 5.2 years old. My son could not speak in complete, understandable sentences when he was 4.5. He did have functional language at that age, but he did not start using sentences until he was 5 years old, and then it was very short and simple sentences. At age 6.2 years, he still has a severe language delay (about 2.3 years), but his language is developing.
We tried lots of things with some success, but for us the thing that has made the most impact on his language development is VB/ABA.
Cole will be 7 on September 2 and he shows zero signs of being ready for potty training. That's a downer for me. Everything else is improving.
He communicates and converses better, and when he has to wait for something...a trip to the zoo, a vacation at the beach, or just going to the movies that afternoon...he is MUCH less likely to cry and whine because he has to wait. He can reiterate and comprehend...FIRST we go to Walmart, THEN I get a haircut, NEXT we go to the pizza shop, and FINALLY we'll go to the movies. He will tell me the schedule of events just to reassure himself. He told me today, "we'll go back to Chuck E Cheeses in a couple, two weeks. August 26, we'll go back. In September, we'll go to the beach. But in couple weeks, we'll go to Chuck E Cheeses."
I love that he converses better and believe it will continue to build. But the fact that he understands language well enough to "get" the calendar or daily schedule is marvelous from just a self soothing aspect. He is not an anxious child because of this.
Wonderful things are just on the horizon! Its still a long haul, but there are wonders that await ya'll.
Benny really did'nt really talk when he was three just single words and now at 7 is really saying a whole lot that I never thought he would say. He was'nt really labeled til this last past yr and feel better that I can understand or get why all these yrs I felt I really could'nt do much and felt I was a bad parent. He was potty trained about 3.5 and ran all over the place and now he'll hold my hand and not run off. Thanks for making me realize all the great improvements he has made and know there are lot of challenges to come but back then I did'nt think it would get better and it did so I have faith that I can handle what awaits and will get through it all. so yeah, remember every improvement big or small :DAt 3 Zach was in his own world he spent hours flipping pages of books,Flipping cars over &over and had little or no social skills.
Now at 6 years(In Sept)
Now he has a friend in Daycare.
he still stims alot, witch i thought would disappear.
He has Alot more Sensory needs, than I thought he would.
His anxiety levels are very high,Most days.
He is reading ,and knows all his #to 100,he can print.
He will need a full time aid in Kindergarten
His dx was changed from AS to PDD.
He has Little Empathy for others.
Linda
Communication for us is the biggest. He didn't call me mommy until after he turned 3. HE could talk but it was mostly echolalia. He did have some 2 word phrases but at an early three his language was I think at 19 and 21 months. I would have never guessed that he would in such a short time communicate so well.
Karrie
Wow!! I'm like you, Challenger - Cammi (7 yrs. old - Autistic) - seems to be on the same page as everyone else too. Two or three years ago we had no idea how far she would come. She absolutely loves school. She can read on level, count, writes beautifully, etc. Her communication has been our biggest challenge but that comes along daily.
She's so independent. I anticipate melt-downs that most of the time don't happen anymore -- it's so great to see her in the mainstream classroom and no one even realizes she's autistic most of the time now
Please - hang in there -- know that things improve for most of our kids. We just have to be patient and give them all the attention and love we have. Hugs from me
Teresa Wow. My son seems on a similar page to everyone else. 2 1/2 3 1/2 - Terrible, no speech, temper tantrums, head banging, bolting, no toilet at all, poor social skills, poor eye contact, afraid of elevators, escalators, any buzzing, humming noises, automatic doors. He flipped light switches, took several doors off the hinges, slamming doors repeatedly. slamming kitchen cabinets and drawers, trashed his room daily, little functional play. 3 1/2 said "mommy" words started to appear, behaviour still difficult but improving, no longer afraid of elevators and escalators buzzing or automatic doors 4 started school (write off), escaping seat belt, did 1st bm in toilet 5 more words, small sentences, simple requests, simple observances, friends at school, following curiculum (although a bit behind), reading logos, making grocery store choices, 6 no bolting, will wander in stores but will return to my side, fastening seat belt on own, almost potty trained, stays dry at night or will wake to use toilet, verbal play with humorous utterances, wanting to help with meal prep, initiating play with mom, putting toys away, learning to play independantly, reading some simple words in flyers, off magazines, and in books, incredible sense of direction, askes (in form of statement) where we are going. ... okay, we only got our dx at age 6. So, mine is a bit different: That I would identify so strongly with dd's "symptoms." That my interaction with her would be so contingent on her diagnosis (ie, changes in discipline, etc. -- I became too lax for a time!). That symptoms (especially the directly sensory ones) would be so stress-related.
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