what info do i need to take to doctors???

[worm761]

my son marches to the beat of a different drum. that is the way i have always looked at it. his drum beats are just different then mine. no big deal. well it is turning into a big deal. what ever is wrong is now starting to affect his grades at school. before it was mainly just social issues but they didn't seem to bother him. he went to the school counselor and learned some social skills last year. (but does not use them?) any way it was pointed out to me that he is probably somewhere on the autism spectrum. now i just have to find out where or if that is even right. i am changing doctors for him so this will be a brand new doctor for us. any advice you can give me would be extremely helpful. i have the babysitter and my sister writing out their observations. though i don't know how helpful that will be. i have started writing down mine and even have a statement from his teacher last year about classroom behavior. one of the biggest things that worries me is that he has been hitting himself at the babysitters.
what else should i take to the doctor? what are some questions i may want to ask? this is the very beginning of the process for me. i have always been very adamant that i did not want a diagnosis. as i am getting older and wiser i am seeing that it would be to his advantage to have that diagnosis. and that it would be ours to use or not use as we see fit. that it is just a label, and one that you don't have to wear. i guess i was trying to avoid the stigma that i THOUGHT came with the labels. i don't know. all i know is that i need to find out what is wrong and work towards either making it better or the situations better. sorry for rambling. thank you.

 

[rd0127]

I would ask my pediatrician for a referral to a pediatric neurologist. They will be very interested in his behaviors, but they will also want to know a lot about his developmental history from birth. Then they may do some tests. You did not say how old he is or where you live. But, a large metropolitan Children's Hospital would be your best bet.

Having a diagnosis is not a bad thing. It can be a very good thing especially when it comes to education and behaviors. If he has a certain type of disorder that has proven over the years that children with this disorder learn a certain way, then the school systems will teach him this way. I hope that made sense. Anyway, a good pediatric neuro, would be the best place to start. If he does have Asperger Syndrome (high functioning autism), the sooner you know, the better education he will get. They can also recommend behavior therapies.

Good luck!

 

[worm761]

he is 9 and will be 10 in may. he is also my only child so i have no other children to compare him too. i think he developed just fine. he is a very easy going child. he drives my sister nuts. he has quirks but i just figure we all have quirks. i do have neices and nephews but only two that live somewhat close by. and they are not a good comparison. i had thought that he may be autistic when he was an infant. he gets this glazed look in his eyes and disappears into his own little world. sometime it is difficult to get his attention. the pediatrician though told me that he didn't think autism because DS was too young for that kind of diagnosis. we had his hearing checked because neither of us could get him to respond to sound. his hearing is in the normal ranges. though he is very loud. last year at school they started running IQ tests and he has a really high IQ. (very scary when you find out your 8 yr old is almost as smart as you and will probably be smarter! LOL)

thank you for taking the time to read my long posts and for the advice.

 

[rhiannonwales]

Ive been through this before as well.One thing i would reccomend is having someone ( like a psychiatrist) observe your child while in school.I know my son would act like the personification of normal when ever we took him to a DR.(after all they only see you for like 10 minutes at most) but he was thrown out of preschool and and had difficulties in kindergarten as well.It wasnt until his Psych saw him in school for a long time that he realized there was more going on.
Id also ask his current teacher for a written statement of his behavior, and a written statement form the counselor about his problems and behavior.

I too avoided a diagnosis for a long time.But honestly since we have been able to get a diagnosis and an IEP for him he has really changed from the sullen agressive outcast to a happier although still challenged boy.
Sherrie

 

[rd0127]

I would go the pediatric neuro route first. If it is indeed some form of autism he is not too young to be diagnosed. And the sooner intervention is started the better off he will be, no matter what type of diagnosis he gets. If is only a behavior thing, then the dr. should refer you to a behavior therapist/dr. You should definitely rule out any type of medical cause before treating the behaviors only. Unfortunately, if he is not making friends now, it will only get worse in middle school. I encourage you to get him help now. Be sure to ask your pediatrician for a referral to the VERY BEST pediatric neuro in your area, if he doesn't really want to do that, ask him to just humor you and do it anyway!

Good luck!

 

[HopperFan]

Just looking at your address (miles from Disney) and wondering if by any chance you are close to Atlanta. You may want to consider getting an appointment for a complete evaluation at The Marcus Institute. People travel from all over to there for evaluations and treatments. http://www.marcus.org/ They are highly specialized ! Our school district even paid for an evaluation there once.

 

[worm761]

hopperfan- i am in pensacola, florida. but am not opposed to doing whatever is necessary for my son.

rhiannonwhales- the school psychiatrist observed him last year and wouldn't you know that is the ONE day of school that he behaves like a perfect angel! frustrated his teacher to no end. she could not believe he was so well behaved. lol....she was great. wrote out statements for me and started pointing me in the right direction. lots of conferences with the teachers.

 

[HopperFan]

Well.....I was in Pensacola last fall, drive isn't too bad I would read their site, do some googling of them. I know when I was taking my DS there last year the car tags were from all over the US. When I asked they said that people come from everywhere, they are part of the Kennedy Krieger Institute and have doctors at Emory as well. They also had many patients who were hitting themselves. Worth investigating. Sometimes not being near a very large city does not give you highly specialized doctors. But if a plan is put into place by the specialists, then your local doctors/teachers can implement. Middle school years are the toughest socially/emotionally so I would do all you can to get him ready for those years.

Best of Luck

 

[rhiannonwales]

I was actually suggesting a private psych - what we did was speak to one without DS and then he came to observe.DS did not know who he was... therin lies the key.

 

[HopperFan]

I agree with rhiannonwales
After 22 years of dealing with DS & school system (yes we are aging out soon ) I have found to insist on an independent pysch to always do the evaluation/observations. They are unbias and your child will not know them. I have found that the school pysch will only do as much as the school system permits (ie. limited testing, where as independent usually offers a wide variety with different approaches). Our district has even paid for the independent testing when I refused to let theirs do it.

 

[worm761]

thank you for all the advice. one of my sisters friends gave me the name of a doctor here in town that should be able to diagnose him. and best of all...he is covered by my insurance. i am going to make an appointment and go alone without DS knowing. that way i can talk to him and get his opinion and then go from there.