Should I tell my daughter she has AS

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I'm not a dr nor a parent, but I am a 37 yr old with Aspergers. I've never been on any meds "for AS". I take nutritional supplements that are suggested for autistic people is all. I never felt any need for anti depressants or anxiety meds. I managed fine in mainstream school and college and work full time so see no need for being drugged up just because I am different from others. I would suggest to worry more about food allergies that trigger irritability and researching nutritional supplements verses anti-depressants. I didn't know I had AS until was 35 though at age 5 was told I was dyslexic.

I feel strongly if I'd known I was autistic I would not have gone to college and would not be working. I know a number of parents with autistic kids all over the spectrum. Those kids use it as a handicap and refuse to work, refuse to learn to cope in the real world. I say don't tell kids. Do deaf kids get told they're deaf? No, they just know it. So AS kids know they are somehow different. I did, but still it wasn't a big deal because I didn't have a "label". Keep your child's label to yourself.

Could you please give me the names of the nutritional supplements that work for you or recommend a website with this information.

Looking forward to your response.

Thanks in advance.

Re. Meds: Trying medication doesn't hurt... it's staying on it when you know it isn't helping that does the real harm.

Re. Telling your daughter about her AS: I'm glad you did. I would much rather have grown up knowing there was a reason for my differences beyond being a nerd... It's important to stress that AS gives her strengths as well as weaknesses, though; we Aspies are capable of things that most NTs can never do, even though we may be about as good at social communication as the average three-year-old!

I think telling her was the right thing. We saw another doctor yesterday and they confirmed. So now I have 2 yeses. The school district better get on the ball. I will be calling them later today. I told her that her brain is wired differently and because of that she will be smarter in some things then reg. people. I also told her about some famous people who are thought to have aspergers. I tried not to say to much about the negative things. I just told her how it affects her like her handwriting, tying shoes and why she can't stand being too close to strangers on the bus, why it is hard for her to talk to some people. Like i said in a previous post it really did not seem to faze her at all.

As far as med are concerned her doc and i keep playing phone tag. We will see what she says about them. I was told they work really fast so we would know if they work right away. I am going to try to get in touch with her today again.

Thanks for all the replies,
Anna

Look for another post with Supplements in the title in this forum as I posted some info their already.

Here's the list for autistics: L-Glutathione (pill or transdermal cream) do not let a dr give L-Glut via IV Push or Drip as this will make an autistic kid unruly, grumpy, sick, possibly have seizures if you force feed the body that much L-Glut at once. My experience is the Reduced L-Glut pills do not work as well, take the regular L-Glut one pill a day with a little fruit or juice as it needs Vit C for the body to assimulate. L-Glut helps the brain plus it will even eliminate or reduce asthma attacks. The lungs, kidneys and liver all need L-Glut. I take Twin Labs brand.

Also suggested is Hydroxycobalamine (special form of B-12), B1, B3, B6, Alpa Lipoc Acid, Probiotics that include a strain called Saccharomyces Boulardii I suggest a brand called Primal Defense. It costs $90 in a health food store or you can get it here a LOT cheaper - http://www.doctorstrust.com/search.html ... al+Defense Notice their free shipping offer

My dr also put me on Metagenics UltraInflammaX since all autistics have systemic inflammation issues due to allergies. Her child has Aspergers also and he has been on this for years and doing well. (Its not spoken of much but most AS will find they have IgE autoimmune response type allergies to foods and would do better on special diets). UltraInflammaX is a powder best mixed in orange, white grape or cherry juice or made into a smoothie. I recommend Juicy Juice brand because it doesn't have added corn syrup. Use a handheld mixer such as the Vitaminder (check drugstore.com to buy one-very cheap but wonderful), mixing with a spoon in juice will not work-its is very thick. The original flavor is best IMO-the chocolate-orange is horrid and I normally love chocolate. They offer other flavors I haven't tried though. To get it $20 off store price go here: http://organicpharmacy.org/products/Ult ... .(Original)/SKU:UL063-metag I do reduce mixture to 1 scoop to stretch the jar out and also so it isn't like drinking plaster of paris.

Other suggestion is to take Fish Oil. One brand Carlson's I did read as the safest to take after a test was done on a dozen popular brands to see which contained mercury. Get Carlson's Fish Oil not Cod Oil. Lemon flavor tastes a lot like Lemon Butter and not too fishy. I take on empty stomach to avoid burping fish later in the day. It is available at a discount many places online so check the sites I've listed above for this.

Also check out this site about detoxing for autism. If you are interested in the PCA-Rx or other products they offer but are shocked by the price then PM me and I can tell you how to get cheaper. No I don't sell it. I just happen to get it cheaper. http://ssl.maxamlabs.com/MAXAM_ASP_Home.asp

If you are serious about helping your child through supplements I might could get some other moms of auties to write you who are expert in this. I will finish by saying Lauricidin is often helpful but the reasons why are too complicated to get into here. This is long enough as it is! Let's just say a lot of knowledgable moms are using it with success. I also tested positive for somethings that many other auties test positive for and Lauricidin is a way of treating the problem. People who are truly unknowlegable and have never had a test, doctors visit and/or diagnosis are going to argue this into the ground so I will stop here. You or any other serious moms are welcome to PM me.

Ticker, thank you so much!

My son is 8. The pediatric neuroligist confirmed in 12-05 that it was Asperger's. We haven't told him yet. I don't think it would phase him though. His mind doesn't work that way. He just sort of accepts things for what they are and never questions it. I guess in some ways it's a blessing in disguise.

My son, too, has trouble tying shoes and has poor handwriting. He toe walks really bad and walks down the stairs two feet on each step. He can't ride a bike or play on a team sport. We tried soccer but all he did was flap on the field the whole time. He has tics and OCD. The school says that it's not their responsibility to help him. He has no behavior problems and has superior intelligence according to their evaluations (IQ 122). He can barely button his pants or brush his teeth, but they still won't help. You've got a major battle ahead of you if your daughter is intelligent. Don't give up. Never take no for an answer. Do a LOT of research. Get an advocate or lawyer if you can.

Finally after a year of battling with the school they started getting him into a social skills group with the town social worker. Also, today we met with a psychologist who specializes in ASD and is contracted with the town. From what we all told him today he feels that the school should definitely do more to help him. We'll see.

Good Luck!!

Last edited by nina on 14 Sep 2006, 7:31 am, edited 1 time in total.

nina~ how terrible that your school system is so incompetent ! hope you get somewhere with the social worker...

I was 12 or so (6th grade) when I was diagnosed and my parents never told me until like a year or so after the diagnoses (can't remember if i was in 7th or 8th grade). Anyways, when i was like in 2nd grade or so they thought maybe that I had ADHD or something so they put me on a trial run for Ritalin, but the results were inconclusive at the time. Other than that trial run, i have never been on medication for my Asperger's.

This amazes me. I can't imagine how a public school system can say such a thing to a caring parent. I hate to say they owe you anything, but they DO owe it to the community they serve, not to let this gifted child slip through the cracks.

I don't have this kind of asinine attitude to deal with, fortunately, but it's still a trial to get some things acknowledged and sorted out. I will think of you every time I get frustrated with our local services. I hope it works out better for you in the near future.

May I suggest one other treatment that might be worth considering. Before I was diagnosed with AS I tried a number of therapies. I suffered from social anxiety, perfectionism, low self-esteem, sleep problems, but not ADHD. One of the things I tried was neurofeedback (or EEG biofeedback). The Internet is a good source of information on this therapy. I completed over 40 sessions. I was fortunate to have one of the leading experts in this treatment. She was very strongly against the use of Ritalin for ADHD and had had considerable success treating ADHD. I certainty found the treatment helped with my social anxiety. It is a demanding treatment for people with AS, but it might be worth considering.

http://www.eegspectrum.com/Applications/Autism/
http://www.dentalplans.com/Dental-Healt ... t-ADHD.asp

It always hurts me to read that children will get medicated.They are made to comply to rules which are not good for them.Medication is a mean to increase the way of "functioning",about like robots.But we are not supposed to be robots!We should be living people with our own characteristics.Please don't medicate your children but tell them it is good the way they are and that if their heart is right,then they can do nothing wrong,and even if their sky has some clouds,isn't that something we could and should accept?
The things adults are supposed to work for and which children are prepared for often are very good,but much more valuable is how much we love.

Just a bit of advice -
Read EVERYTHING you can about Asperger's and by Aspies. Some of it will seem to apply, some of it won't, and some of it will later. Also, then you can decide if you want to share any books, articles, or copies of pages with her.
She knows she is different, and over the next few years she will be more and more aware of it. You will be doing her a great favor if you can help her understand her differences and how to cope in an NT world. Please help her understand that even though she is different, the things that make her unique are really COOL! Aspies can be so brilliant, honest, devoted, funny, and all-around wonderful. Give her lots of love and acceptance, and surround her with other people who do. She'll be okay, and now's the time to arm her with the self-love she'll need as a teenager.
Best wishes!!