we got the diagnosis today | Autism PDD

Since you have nj in your name, I'm assuming you live there. In every state, there are EI programs and preschool programs. Getting intervention is FAR more important than getting a dx. If your child is nearing 3, you can get services through your local SD. If he is younger, you must contact EI. The school should be able to put you in touch with them. This will get better.

I know you're head must be spinning right now and I think it's important to give yourself some time to process the news. It's an adjustment period.

Last October I was at an Autism Symposium in Toronto and Dr. Tony Attwood (leading authority on autism/aspergers) was the guest speaker. Someone asked "What do you tell someone when you tell them they have autism?" He said "I tell them, congratuations because it's the neurotypicals who are the ones with the issues." That made laugh so hard! Autism is in the eye of the beholder. You bet it comes with its challenges, but it also comes with it's blessings. My son has forced me to look at life one step at a time. He counts on me to help the world make sense to him and that forces me to slow down. His perspective is unique and I wouldn't change it for the world.

In my sig line I have a link to my blog which talks about our journey with autism. If you start at March 2006 when we were on our way to his diagnosis (wasn't a shock at all) you can see you're not alone in the feelings that you have. But as time as gone by, my thoughts have changed and my son is so much more adjusted and doing so well.

Big tight hugs to you. You guys will be okay.

I agree with Canuck - Big hugs, and you will be OK.

I knew my son was ASD when he was 15 mos.old. Took him & twin brother to their 15 mo. Well-Baby, and told the nurse Robby had stopped talking.

She said not to worry, but bring it up with the Ped. at the 18 mo. Well-Baby. I was unhappy that she blew me off

Its a journey, but seeing my son play video games with his brother, hug all over us, and enjoy life is totally worth it.

(Editedd bekuz I kan't speeel gud)

mirthlesstroll39327.6938888889It took me a full 6 weeks to even come close to acceptance. My DS was Dx'ed June 4th this year. I cried for 2 weeks all the while setting up therapies. There was a strang urge to stick my head in the sand, but knew that was pointless. Hang in there!the dev pediatrician said its autistic spectrum disorder. We are thinking of going for a second opinion. I feel emotionally drained right now. Not that I was shocked but I guess still I am just not sure what to think.

It's hard to hear I know. I have 2 boys with ASD. My 6 yr old was diagnosed at 2-1/2 with PDD-NOS and my other son whose currently 2-1/2 had not been diagnosed b/c I don't want to hear it. Anyway, I know he's autistic and I'm getting him therapy and that's the important thing.

I think it can take longer than 6 weeks to get out of denial. You are certainly entitled to a second opinion. However, in my experience, doctors are usually more unwilling to give a diagnosis of ASD than not to (and just wait and see). It's not always the case, but most often - at least in my experience.

Welcome to the board and I hope you come back and post about what has happened!

Regardless of the diagnosis, your child has developmental delays. Now is
the time to get busy with what needs to be done in order to help your child.
While the word Autism is overwhelming, there are so many therapies which
can help your child.( Speech, OT, ABA to list a few) The best advice that I
was given when I got my childs DX is -now is the time to get busy. I have
not looked back and have consistantly moved forward. My child went from 2
words and not orienting to his name at 2.4 months to being fully engaged
5yr old child ready to start mainstream kindergarten with minimal
suppports. There are children who have lost the dx because of the early
interventions that they have received. Do not lose hope.:hugs: I'm glad you finally got a diagnosis. Let us know if you get a second opinion. I remember the shock and denial of hearing the autism the first time...I read everything I could to dispute it and in the end I learned so much about the spectrum of autism and not a black and white diagnoses..it was heartwrenching but I used that to get her help. Dont let anyone tell you that your child cant do this or that or be independent...go and get him what he needs and work with him and you will see miracles..I promise:) My dd wasnt talking, pointing, looking or engaged in our world at all and now she is 7 and doing mainstreamed first grade indistinguishable amoung her peers..she talks, engages and very smart...but it took tons of ABA therapy and speech and making her home as enriching as possible which means putting up posters of pics of all her favorite things and activites..investing in tons of toys to reinforce with (thrift store) and making her work towards 100's of skills that she wouldnt of learned without rewarding her all the way for every one of them. She learns like her peers now and verbal praise is all that is needed to make her motivated:) You have information to help your child and getting busy will help relieve the pain and anxiety you are feeling..this board is a life saver and you can come to us as often as you need and one day you will be helping a "newly diagnosed" mom or dad with wonderful advice:) Dont ever give up hope! I don't know if NJ is a "dual enrollment state" like NY is. If it IS, your local school district has to provide funding so that the same IEP can be implemented in the private school as in the public school. If NJ is NOT a dual enrollment state (as far as I know, only NY is, but I could be wrong on that), the school district in which the private school your child will be ATTENDING is located is the school district responsible for providing an IEP and "equitable services." That means your child will NOT get the same intervention as if he were in a public school, only whatever the school district decides it WANTS to give him. It CAN decide to give him nothing at all as long as the OVERALL $$$ it spends on ALL the sped kids in private school who come from the District is in proportion to the amount spent on public school sped kids. It's a complicated formula, but the bottom line is that, as far as I know, only in NY can a sped child who goes to a private school get his IEP fully implemented, at public expense, in that private school. And ONLY if the private school agrees. oh I forgot to answer that question. I am not in NJ, that part of my username stands for noah and jake, my two sons.

If you're not in NY, it's highly unlikely that your state has dual enrollment. That means your son will NOT get full IEP implementation in his private school. In fact, he may get little or no intervention. It will depend on the school district in which the private school is located, not your district of residence. To read more about this, go to http://www.wrightslaw.com/idea/osep/private.school.pdf

thanks everyone.

noah is five years old. I have been telling his pediatrican since he was two that I didnt think something was right, finally at four years of age I switched doctors and finally got someone to listen. I feel angry that its taken this long. I feel confused because the few people we have told so far can't understand the diagnosis, they say they dont' see it.

Noah starts kindergarten next week in a private school. this dev pediatrican said even though he is going to private school the public school system still has to help him. Our house is up for sale and I am praying it sells soon because I DO NOT like this school system. We had him evaluated before and it was a complete joke.

I have an OT evaluation set up next week and he already had speech. he talks pretty well but does a lot of stammering, so she said that can be fixed quickly. Its mostly the anger that is noah's biggest problem. he is so smart but he gets so angry and frustrated . He has put holes in his walls. He has meltdowns very easy and hits, bites and scratches. The doctor recommended meds if we wanted to give them but we said we wanted to think about it first.