Messages posted by: DeterminedMom

I have an 9 year old son who has very HFA. Overall he does really well. Lately he has started rocking when he is in a setting where he needs to sit still i.e. church, school. He "hums" at times now especially when he is running. He has always "flapped" which is for the most part unchanged. He is an A honor roll student but we are now getting notes that he is having problems focusing in class, hasn't been able to complete his classwork and his grades have dropped slightly.

We've gone through many stages over the years but it just seems like some of this is a step backwards which we haven't experienced.

We've tried multiple "natural" vitamins/minerals to try to help with focus and attention span. Usually I can come up with a new game plan but right now I am just at a complete loss as to what to do next??

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

There are ongoing studies utilizing SSRI medications like Celexa to try to control self-stim behaviors. Unfortunately no results to report yet.

We're dealing with hand flapping and a hum during times of (happy) excitement. This is one of the major things that are causing children to "pull away" from my son. Currently he is on no medications, just natural supplements.

Has anyone used medications that helped with self stim behaviors such as hand flapping??

Thanks for the info SaraB. After speaking to the school to see if this could be done I also planned to talk to my son to see how he would feel about us explaining autism to his friends. I'm like you . . . we're not fooling anybody here, so if everyone is in agreement I was thinking in terms of identifying him as the one in hopes that others would reach out to him. Is this a bad idea?? I know a lot of the children his age and at this point I could see some that would really try to include him. They already know to watch out for him and "keep up with him".

It was just a few months ago that we talked about autism with him which he handled very well. He is so eager to learn anything and everything about social skills. He says he wants to "learn more so that he can make friends."

My 8-year-old son has HFA. He has always been in mainstream classes and is very intelligent. He is also beginning to notice lack of friends. Other children do like him but he does tend to be a loner at recess, etc. One of the things that make him stand out is the fact that he does stim (hand flapping) at times of excitment. He also will still cry over the "little" things at times.

Here's the question. Obviously other children know there is a difference and at this age some avoid him becuase they just don't understand his behaviors. Does anyone know of any type of program, DVD, etc. that could be used in a classroom setting to introduce HFA to his peers so that they have a better understanding and hopefully will reach out to him a little more.

Is this even a good idea?? I just feel like the younger he is the better off he will be if he can establish at least some type of friendships.

I really need some advice here and I welcome ANY and ALL input!!!

Thanks

Hi-

My son is 8 years old and has HFA. Up until this point we have not discussed autism with him. It has been a fairly recent diagnosis, he is so borderline and doing so well we just didn't want to "rock the boat". He has seen me read many, many books, etc. dealing with autism but surprisingly has never asked what autism is . . . . until recently. He has also just recently started to notice small differences in himself so it is time that we discuss autism with him. I've tried searching online to find some good children's books to have for him as we explain autism. Of course we want to do this in the most positive way possible. Certainly don't want him to view anything in a negative light or decide to use autism as a crutch. He also has an appointment next week at our local TEACCH center so I want him to understand what this is all about before we go.

So, I need any suggestions I can get on the best way to present this to him or any good books anyone has found?

Thank you!!!!

My son was also very delayed and never had a period of time that he regressed, just progressed only in his own time. He did not walk until a few days before his 2nd birthday and did not really speak until after two. Of course every case is different but he did receive occupational therapy (they also focused on motor sensory issues)and speech stimulation therapy during the time he was 2 - 3 years old. From an infant on, he was very "fussy" during family gatherings where the noise level was up. At that point we didn't understand why but learned later that he is very sensitive to sound. He received auditory intergration therapy around 6 years of age. This helped tremendously. We were able to do this therapy at home. I'm sure you have heard this by now, but therapy in my opinion is the key. The earlier you can start the better.

My son is 8 years old now. His diagnosis is high functioning autism and it is very mild. He attends elementary school and is in a regular classroom setting. He is very gifted/advanced in the areas of reading, math, etc. He has a photographic memory to die for and this became evident by 3 years old. Now, we do still have our struggles. . . toilet training was a big one, he still self stims (hand flapping)and does still cry over minor things at school which makes him stand out from the rest . . . but we are working on it.

I remember very well how it feels when the word autism is spoken for the first time. I have spent every year since then reading books, researching online, etc and it has helped. The more educated you can become the better you will feel about things.

I hope this has helped in some small way. I wish you the best.

Hi-

For some unknown reason my son became extremely constipated around 14 months (long before HFA diagnosis was even suspected). After becoming frustrated with the lack of help with the pediatrician we saw a Pediatric Gastroenrologist who prescribed MiraLax. Because of the pain associated with constipation our son was holding it in. I don't know if you are familiar with miralax. It is a stool softener (now over-the counter medication) rather than a laxative. It is very safe and even my son was not able to hold it in while taking this medication. He is now 8 years old and it has only been over the last 1 1/2 years that he has quit having "accidents" from trying to hold it. We do still have to remind him at times to go and he still takes the MiraLax at least every other day. But . . . it is a great improvement from where we were.

Hope this helps in some small way. I feel your pain.

nanc2758-

Thank you SO MUCH for your post. You have provided me with some very much needed advice. I really do appreciate any help I can get at this point. This is the part that I have dreaded for years because it is heartbreaking. I can live with accepting him for who he is . . . I just could live a lot easier if I knew how to get him from the present time to a time where peers aren't so focused on his differences. The thought of him being unhappy due to these reasons for X number of years is almost more than I can take. Any specific tips on teaching him how to focus on himself and his happiness would be appreciated.

Thanks again!

If anyone else has any suggestions at all, I am open to them!!

Hi Connie-

Thank you for your reply.

I have checked into social skills classes in our area in the past but unfortunately they do not seem to be that plentiful. So far the only one that I have found which is nearby is very expensive and they will not file any type of insurance. Of course I am willing to investigate further. I mentioned the possibility of a class being formed at his school and maybe I can press that issue a little further when the new school year begins.

I am in N.C. however and am currently getting paperwork into the TEACCH program. I am looking forward to the resources this program will provide!!

I was just wondering if there is any way to help him to control the episodes of crying. Apparently today he cried when he did not win a game on the playground. If anyone has anything to add on that end I would appreciate it sooooo much. I feel like I'm out of "tricks" at the moment.

Thanks again.

Hi-

I am new to this site so forgive me if I am posting this incorrectly.

I have an 8 year old son who has high functioning autism. He is in a regular classroom setting and does very well. His symptoms are very mild. One problem we are having is that he still cries (loudly) when he has a problem. He is getting to an age where his peers are not so accepting anymore and some are pulling away.

A couple of quick examples: He was at an assembly with a large portion of the school. He was afraid a character was going to appear during this presentation because of a comment the presenter made (terrified of any characters/costumes), even though I had checked in advance and assured him there wouldn't be any. So as it is quiet in the gym, the comment was made by the presenter and of course he completely loses it screaming, crying, and I'm sure trying to flee the scene. Now to everyone else in the place they don't have a clue what brought this on.

Another example was at a friends house where several kids were playing with nerf guns and he felt that they were all "targeting" him at one time so he proceeds to have an outburst, throw the other boy's gun on the ground, etc.

A child fell on him while waiting for me to pick him up at school. Of course he is crying loudly and the boy makes fun of him and calls him a wimp.

He is becoming more aware of how people are reacting to him. He has realized that the friend whose gun he threw down is pulling away but I am sure he has no clue why. This was the only person he considered to be his best friend so he is heart broken. He was upset because the boy (who fell on him) made fun of him.

One of the only other things that really makes him "stand out" to others is hand flapping. This only occurs when he is excited (in a happy sense). I foresee this being something that children will begin to imitate or make fun of.

All in all he does really well. Has a great sense of humor and compassion. How can I teach him how to control these reactions. I am confident he can learn?

Sorry to be so lengthy.

Thank you soooo much.