Questions from a newbie | Autism PDD

Hi,

Do you have any other person in your extended family with autism?

These are sure cause for concern. Aspergers as other posters have mentioned seems like what they would fall under if on the spectrum. How is the 10 y.o's gross and fine motor skills? If those are not on par with peer, this might be another thing that raises eyebrow. You cannot rely on the public school to tell you if things are not quite as it should beyond the level of your kids passing enough to not bother thier statistics.

I would get independent evaluations just to know what is going on and get them help in their areas of weakness. There is a lot you can do at home while you wait for evaluation to start improving on your kids' weaknesses. Enroll them in Gymnastics and other group activities to encourage coordination and socialization. If your nephew is not coordinated enough to play basketball or other such popular sports, swimming is good. Start Private speech for your child while you wait on the evaluation.

They are not "obviously autistic" or they would have been thrown out of enough daycares by 5 that you would have known something was up waaay before now. Your kids do not seem like they would need intensive intervention. I am so happy for you about that. Trust me 3 years of home based ABA is not fun. I am also happy that you are aware and are not lying to yourselves so you can help them. Pat yourselves on the back and continue your research. Goodluck.

Concernedpa.

Welcome to the forum. Cognitive delays are not necessary for an autism diagnosis.

You and your nephew's parents might want to do these checklists for Asperger syndrome, so you know what kinds of things that an evaluator will be looking for.

Diagnostic checklists - Asperger

http://www.udel.edu/bkirby/asperger/aspergerscaleAttwood.htm l - Australian Scale for Asperger Syndrome, for primary school children

Diagnostic checklists from the book "Parenting Your Asperger Child":

http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/skill -builder/51750.html - Part 1, Difficulty with Reciprocal Social Interactions

http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/skill -builder/51751.html - Part 2, Impairments in Language Skills

http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/skill -builder/51755.html - Part 3, Sensory Sensitivities

http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/skill -builder/51752.html - Part 4, Narrow range of interests and insistence on set routines

http://printables.familyeducation.com/forms-and-charts/skill -builder/51754.html - Part 5 - Cognitive Issues (including mind-blindness)

Good luck with everything!

Welcome to the board! Lots of wise and warm people here to answer your
questions.
Both kids show some signs. You nephew might have asperger's
syndrome which is a form of autism with average to above average IQ,
and presents with no speech delay. If he is clumsy or not athletically
inclined as well, that is usually another sign

Your daughter also has some signs that are worth looking into, especially
with her language delay and lack of pretend play at age six.

They both sound like, if anything at all, they would be on the mild end of
things. An evaluation by an autism specialist in your area could help to
pinpoint their strengths and weaknesses, and help get them set up in
programs and activities that could really help them socially, and
academically as they get older, and school becomes a more complicated
enviornment to navigate.
You are both great mommies! Looking for answers to help your kiddos is
just great.

SMart of you and your sister to want to be on top of things - The spectrum is really really wide and at the very least it may be useful to have some sort of evaluation so atleast you know if they need any extra help

Hmm - interesting. Well, I think we'd all agree here that the spectrum is huge and every person with a diagnosis (dx) falls somewhere different on the spectrum. There is a saying "If you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism". So, when you ask "Is this typical of autism?", it's hard to answer.

Personally, if your insurance would cover it, I would get an evaluation from a developmental pediatrician that specializes in autism. You can also request that the school do it (if they go to public school).

mamajot39337.4398263889Lots of red flag behavior it seems. I would write a letter requesting a complete educational evaluation. Another option might be a developmental pediatrician, but the waiting lists for appointments are excruciatingly long. You do have the right to request an evaluation thorugh the school system. Good luck and welcome to the boards.

Hi, I am kind of writing for myself and my sister. We both have kids that we are worried about. My daughter is six and her son is ten. My daughter started first grade last month and my nephew is in fourth grade.

Ever since my daughter was very small, I was concerned. I described her as being too innocent. I had to watch her more carefully than my other two children. She has to be taught everything because she does not naturally pick up on things. Same with my nephew. My sister and I live in seperate states but we talk almost daily and all of our conversations end up about the two of them. They are so similar. They both seem quirky but my daughters concerns are more with language and my nephews concerns are more social.

We are learning about autism and we have a lot of questions. We wonder if they have some level of autism. However, we are puzzled that they have both been in the public school system and it has never been brought up to either of us. Do you need delays to have autism?

My sister has a harder time remembering how her son was at a young age but she does remember him talking early and he also used to wave toys in front of his face. He doesnt do that anymore but at his age he is still having meltdowns. It does not take much for him to cry. He is really sensitive and other boys at school are picking up on this and picking on him. He still carries a stuffed animal around that he calls Blue Jay. Its been with him a long time and we wonder when he will ever give it up.

My daughter has a lot more red flags but most are gone now. She did not attach me until she was in preschool. She did not use gestures to comminicate until after her third birthday. I rarely remember her pointing at before two. I had to teach her to shake her head yes and no. Her eye contact is shady. She will look at you but she does not hold it. Same with my nephew actually. She grinds her teeth when she is visually stimulated and when she is over excited. I remember the repeating. I thought she was very talkitive when she was younger but now I know it was just repeating us or herself over and over. She is repetitive and uses the same statements a lot to communicate. I think of her communication as not knowing what to say even though she has knowlage of what words mean. She has a lot of functional play but very little pretend play. She has an amazing memory. My video camera broke over a year ago. I pulled it out recently and tried to see if I could fix it. She asked me where the orange tape was. I had no idea what she was talking about until I saw an orange colored tape in the box. I asked her what it was and she told me it was a video of her in California at Sea World. She told me she was also filmed in the hotel room taking medicine. I played the tape and yes, it was her vaction video. She was three years old at the time and she could not have seen the tape since.

We have a lot of red flags going on but we also see things that confuse us. Both of our kids are doing so well in school. They are very smart and the love going. My nephew has problems making friends but does have one good friend. My daughter is still young and it seems like she has friends but I think the entire class is very friendly with her. They both have never needed special education and their teachers have all said wonderful things about them. Is this typical of autsim?