My son is getting tested for AS

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My son is 11 years old and we thought he had ADD, but now I think it might be AS. Im just wondering what I can expect. He has two appointments with specialists in two weeks. I would appreciate anything anyone can tell me.

My son was dx'ed right at 11.

It was an emotional rollercoaster ride. All I knew about autism was...well...wrong. I only knew about lower functioning children....I assumed all people with ASDs were low functioning and non-verbal. Certainly this couldn't be my child! It seemed like a death sentance. Even after I calmed a bit it still was like getting hit with a rock. And the worries set in....would he ever be able to hold a job, finish school, have a friend, have a relationship, live on his own. Then the guilt came...I'd thought it was cute when he'd acted like a little professor at age five. How could I have missed it! Why did I trust his pediatrian when he said D's cluminess meant nothing! What a bad parent I was! Other parents on a board similar to this finally gave me a well earned kick in the butt and I started learning about Aspergers, High Functioning Autism, other PDD's. Instead of concentrating on what I'd done wrong, I started parenting anew...with the new info I had. I visited forums like this and learned the wide range of ASDs. I figured out I had some Aspie like traits and that my father certainly had many of them. I got off my butt and worked with the school and other professionals to get a plan of action together.

That's my experience of having a child dx'ed at age 11.

Or did you mean what will the actual appointments be like?

BeeBee

My son was diagnosed at 10 1/2 by a "professional", although I had figured it out not long after his 10th birthday on my own.

Like Beebee, I'm not sure if you're asking what you can expect at the dr's, or after which is the real experience!

For us, the doctor's visit was a non-event. She had already sent out questionnaires to our son's teachers, and my husband and I had filled some out as well. She had two other doctors spend time with our son while she sat and talked to us for a short time, then she visited with our son. We went back to her office several weeks later for the official diagnosis, which was AS. Despite knowing this ahead of time I still cried. I'm just a crier I guess!

The hardest part was telling our son. He never gets sick, so he couldn't figure out why he was seeing these "doctors", who to him weren't drs b/c they didn't listen to his heart or look in his ears. We finally told him, and he is still not happy about it. He prefers that no one know.

Having that diagnosis has been so helpful for us in so many ways though. Now I can understand why he does what he does, and have been able to help him not meltdown so much. (he really hates when it happens outside the house). He also got help at school through an IEP and hasn't been in ISS since the dx. It has made a difference in our day to day lives - making them less stressful. For instance, I had to go to the ER the other day (nothing major) and so hubby drove me after the kids got home from school. Our son was so freaked out because this was a *change in schedule*. It completely ruined his day because at 3:45 he wasn't at his desk doing homework. By 7pm that night he was less stressed and calling to see if I was coming home that night (I did), but at the hospital other people surely thought how rude he was that he was having a fit that he needed to go home right away. I sent them packing, and understood that it wasn't him being rude or uncaring of my situation, which, without knowing he has AS, might have been a different feeling. (When I got home he had made me a get well soon card )

Financially, he is currently receiving SSI and that has been a lifesaver. It can only be used for his direct needs, but then that frees up the money I make to fix the holes he's made in the walls, etc. Right now I need my husband home at night to help with him, and he hasn't been able to find a job with hours that will work around our schedule.

I hope that helped (if you made it this far!!)

Yep, expect lots of questionaires, although you maybe already have them.

My experience at the doctors was the same...basically a non-event. Although I cried too.

Aspiesmom1's experience with telling her son is probably closer to the norm than my experience was. D is dyslexic too so he'd already been to, as he calls them, non-shot doctors. Answering his questionaire didn't throw him at all. He knew he was having a hard time fitting in and that he was really stressed. We just said we were going to a doctor to try to find better ways of doing things. Afterwards we said the doctors said his brain was wired differently and some things would be easier for him than for other kids and some things would be harder. He's only tried using the PDD as an exuse for not doing something once. I agreed that having a PDD made some stuff harder so he better get going on it. Think though what you might say if it comes up as an excuse.

I am mostly wondering about the actual appointment, however both of your comments have been very helpful. I have been trying to get my son help in school for two years... It really hasnt been a problem before then. He was diagnosed with ADD a year ago and none of the medication was helping, thats when I started looking elsewhere and found an AS test. I welcome any suggestions or comments. thanks

with my son, the actual appt lasted a series of 6 days over a period of a couple of weeks.....my son would get too agitated to complete the testing. LOTS of paperwork! Make certain you have a firm grasp on when he met his developmental milestones~if you don't, contact his pediatrician for those dates.
my son, BTW was diagnosed just this past summer at the age of 13.

I don't recall them asking for a lot of information about the "regular" stuff ie walking, talking, etc. They did ask about his speech, which he had apraxia so that through us off the mark.

I don't have the paperwork in front of me, but in one afternoon my son took five or six standardized style tests. We left there with him whooping like a monkey he was so stressed and tired.

I got less help than I hoped from that doctor. She did nothing to help me as far as giving any strategies for dealing with a child who was the size of an adult and prone to huge physical meltdowns. She then said "here's my card, call any time", but when I did later, she never returned the call. I wasn't too pleased with that. I think we left the appointments with more questions than answers.

I was pleased that her evaluation was very intense and complete, and she backed up all of her recommendations with solid evidence so the school followed everything she said my son needed.

On a side note I can't complain. The school district paid in full for the eval. And yes, I know how lucky I am. So we deal.

The psychological testing can take about 8 hr. How many days that takes depends on your child's tolerance. The teachers, you and if possible, the child get checklist type forms to complete. The psychologist runs a series of tests which are presented as games to the younger kids. The tests aren't hard and the child is reassurred that they aren't expected to do everything he/she is being asked. The psychologist then can give you the results.

Don't feel bad if you do get a diagnosis of AS. Knowing what to expect and how to help your child is a real plus. Also it helps to get the most out of the school system. Good luck! pink

Thank you for all your help. My son was diagnosed AS after about 3 hours on the first day. I guess I will be sticking around WRONGPLANET trying to learn all I can. Im relieved with the diagnoses. At least now I can get some help at school.

glad to hear you have the dx welcome aboard!