Been lurking and need help....13yr old boy
Does Justin need to be pulled out of this math? If he is passing on the Map test and the Pact tests I am not sure what I am supposed to do for regular classes. I am at my witts end when it comes to fighting with him. I have seriously started to look into schools for Asperger children since he seems to not be able to handle his school work this year. I am not having any problems in Social Studies or ELA. Science he has his moments in. I am asking as a parent for help from you to help my child succeed. He does not a behavioral problems, he is mostly polite to adults, he is not failing all of his classes either. He seems not to care about anything and between me taking off of work and taking him to the psyhchiatrist it is getting expensive trying to find the right medicine for him to be on to make it right for the teachers. This child is an emotional wreck at home. He has been just crying at the drop of a hat over little things. He lost his shoes at school on Monday, he forgot to look for them on Tuesday, and he didn't even try to participate in SEAGUL (gifted program) yesterday. He said he didn't go to his classes to get his work from yesterday. Do we need to look at the IEP again? Do we need to add Math to the IEP for help? I am short of sending myself away because I am trying my best for this to work for Justin and I feel that we(my family) have been a pain when it comes to Justin. What is my next step? Do I need to look for another school for him? I really do not know how else to help him. The child doesn't have any extracuricular activities except wrestling. He doesn't have friends outside of school. He doesn't go and hang out at the mall or go to the movies with other kids. We have a hard time getting him to sleep at night because he would rather read or watch a movie after we all go to bed, knowing he is not allowed to do it. He will still get up after we are asleep and sneak food and go in his brothers rooms to watch movies or read. What else does anyone recommend? I feel he is so bored in school he just doesn't care. He was diagnosed at 7yrs old. He has been on Ritalin, Concerta, Adderall and Lexapro.
Hi!
I'm still learning about aspergers as my 9 year old was only diagnosed a month ago.
I was told at the time that there is no pill for him to take, it was recommended to me that I put him in as many social skills groups as I could, and his team and myself will be looking at pushing his school for an aid when school goes back in a few weeks. (I'm in Australia)
Im not having a go at anyone that has their child on medication, all these kids are different. Perhaps no pill for aspergers, but maybe a pill for the co morbid symptoms.
I know with my son he is a perfect angel at school, but once I get him in the car to come home his moods are all over the place. I'm never quiet sure what I'm going to get. From all the reading I've been doing this is the nature of AS, so we just ride it out.
The tears at home are usually an indication that my son has had a particulary rough day at school, or his routine has been changed in some way.
If Justin were my child based on the information you have given, I would look again at what is happening at school ( keep in mind he is growing up and hormones would be all over the place, this may be the only thing that has changed) I would try to find him another social outlet, and I may consider taking him off medications for a while ( under a docs supervision of course) I only say trial him off meds because from what you've said they dont seem to be working anyway.
I know with my son he is going thru a thing at the moment where he cant sleep, or has problems falling asleep. This is hard for us right now because of school hols, routine isn't great right now. What helps my son is very strict wind down time, prior to bed. Yep not even his games can be played during this time ( only because even with pc games his mind is stimulated and he cant shut off his thoughts) I send my son to bed with books or a movie these help him to sleep ( yes my son has a tv in his room for this purpose, it can only play dvd's) Another thing that helps is my boy has a fan in his room all year round when he goes to bed the fan goes on ( I think its the noise it makes)
Anyway these are just sugestions based on what happens in my house, each child is different what works for one may not work for another. Good luck.
My husband was on Lexapro and it made him unable to care about anything. Nothing "shocked" him and it affected his memory too.
Wellbutrin made him weepy and hallucinate.
He quit his job (the main source of his stress-induced depression) and went off of the pills. He's been fine ever since.
It's hard to decipher what's going on with your son. The social isolation is kinda "normal" for Aspies. Does it bother him? Is he upset that he doesn't go to the mall?
What's his bed time? At 13, maybe you should relax the curfew. My parents were really strict about going to bed (and I couldn't wake up too early either). It drove me nuts.
If he is refusing to work, then he does seem to have a behavior problem. or a problem with drug interaction? Maybe offer tutor help and use the late-night activities as an incentive.
I'm still learning about aspergers as my 9 year old was only diagnosed a month ago.
I was told at the time that there is no pill for him to take, it was recommended to me that I put him in as many social skills groups as I could, and his team and myself will be looking at pushing his school for an aid when school goes back in a few weeks. (I'm in Australia)
Im not having a go at anyone that has their child on medication, all these kids are different. Perhaps no pill for aspergers, but maybe a pill for the co morbid symptoms.
I know with my son he is a perfect angel at school, but once I get him in the car to come home his moods are all over the place. I'm never quiet sure what I'm going to get. From all the reading I've been doing this is the nature of AS, so we just ride it out.
The tears at home are usually an indication that my son has had a particulary rough day at school, or his routine has been changed in some way.
If Justin were my child based on the information you have given, I would look again at what is happening at school ( keep in mind he is growing up and hormones would be all over the place, this may be the only thing that has changed) I would try to find him another social outlet, and I may consider taking him off medications for a while ( under a docs supervision of course) I only say trial him off meds because from what you've said they dont seem to be working anyway.
I know with my son he is going thru a thing at the moment where he cant sleep, or has problems falling asleep. This is hard for us right now because of school hols, routine isn't great right now. What helps my son is very strict wind down time, prior to bed. Yep not even his games can be played during this time ( only because even with pc games his mind is stimulated and he cant shut off his thoughts) I send my son to bed with books or a movie these help him to sleep ( yes my son has a tv in his room for this purpose, it can only play dvd's) Another thing that helps is my boy has a fan in his room all year round when he goes to bed the fan goes on ( I think its the noise it makes)
Anyway these are just sugestions based on what happens in my house, each child is different what works for one may not work for another. Good luck.
I am in Melbourne and it is great your son is going to get an aid that will really help him a lot at school.
I've had the same problems with school, and I've never figured out what would make it work for myself. The whole school system, from top to bottom, is totally broken. No part of it beyond a few good teachers knows or cares how to really educate or to help students in situations like these. It just isn't a proper fit for me, or I'm not a proper fit for it. I'm not sure which is more broken, just that it doesn't work for me.
I don't really know anything about these special schools. I wasn't aware they even existed. Have you considered home schooling?
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Wow, even as an adult I am not involved with so many activities. Perhaps you are pushing him too hard. I did very poorly at math except for Geometry. I was also bored at school. I could not concentrate on so many different subjects, so I zoned out. I also liked to stay up late at night reading.
OK, but sports are something kids usually enjoy, it's the school stuff that might be overwhelming his sensibilites. I was involved in the "gifted" programs at my school, but it was too much for me all at once. I ended up going back to less challenging math, but stayed in advanced literature. I think the gifted programs aren't designed for the autistic, it assumes that if you are smart, you will be smart at everything. It's the same with college. I wanted to go to art school, but my parents insisted on a more "well-rounded" liberal arts education. I did like college, but I felt having so many different kinds of courses was not suited to me. In later years, when I could concentrate on the art, I liked it much better.
I don't really know anything about these special schools. I wasn't aware they even existed. Have you considered home schooling?
I agree with you completely.
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