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My son recently got a level 1 diagnosis, on the lower end - the doctor said if Asperger’s was still a thing, she’d have diagnosed him with that. He has some trouble with reciprocal conversation and reading/expressing subtle facial expressions, a bunch of sensory reactions to taste/texture/sounds, a lot of PDA, and can have meltdowns that sometimes get aggressive when he’s frustrated. He’s also scary smart, sweet, exceedingly verbal, and loves Spider-Man and scary movies. My wife (who is now realizing she herself may be on the spectrum) and I (NT) are doing our best to learn as much as we can as fast as we can. I’ve read this entire thread and really appreciate the perspective y’all have shared. A question I’d like to ask is: what did your parents do (or you wish they did) to support you that was helpful when you were kids? We’re looking into therapies that can help him advocate for himself when he needs to, and to help him and us manage the situations that can cause him to get overwhelmed, and help him navigate social situations with his peers a bit more easily. The last one is a tough nut to crack - the kids he warms up to enough for him to engage with love him, but he’s very slow to attempt those connections. I’m not sure if that’s something he’s happy with because it’s tough to get that sort of emotional information from any five-year-old, but a big fear I have for him is I don’t want him to be lonely if he doesn’t want to be. Anyway, we think we want to stay away from ABA because we want whoever is helping him to focus more on helping him understand and ask for what he needs to feel comfortable and happy instead of teaching him how to conform to NT norms, especially at his age. Outside of that I just want to know what else I can do as a dad to make him feel safe and supported at home and in places where I can’t be, like school.
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Nov 25, 2023 07:32
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| # ¿ May 17, 2024 10:36 |
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Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. Sharing these with my wife.
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Nov 26, 2023 21:24
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Man these are horror stories. We’ve had a diagnosis for my 5-year-old for about six months and his preschool has been great in helping him when he runs into difficulties. He’s confident enough there that he’s a leader that makes up games for everyone else. But our next worry is the transition to public kindergarten and entering the Actual System. I feel like we should chat with a social worker to learn how to best navigate the system and then get a lawyer on retainer for when we can’t. I’d rather avoid private school if we can, but it sounds like public school is gonna be a high conflict path.
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Feb 17, 2024 08:11
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