Alicia, I'm so sorry. I know what it feels like to have your kids have a tough time in school. Frankie just went through something like that this year. Maybe you coauld email the teacher & let her know your concerns?? If nothing else, at least she can keep an eye on things...as for the death talk, don't know what to say there. It minght just be a normal thing at that age. Frankie will be nine in May, so I'm right there with you.
And your daughter is getting phone calls from a boy?? Man, it stinks how they grow up, doesn't it?? Good luck on that front!! Glad she's adjusting well. |
Hope y'all don't mind if I join in now that I've been here a few days. I'll be reading this thread a bit at a time to try to familiarize myself with everyone! :)
My name is Megan... I have two boys. Creed is 6 and Kegan is 2. I also have two angel babies who were lost in pregnancy. I always feel like I should mention them too! We named them both - Moriah and Marrick. Both of my living children are special needs with pervasive developmental disorders but we're doing great because of programs that allow us to get the help we need through therapy, early intervention, etc... also I can't neglect to mention the staff at our Children's Hospital - they ROCK! :D Pam ~ So I have to throw my two cents in here. Head Start is a Federally funded program for children from low-income families. Creed went to Head Start after transitioning from our State's early intervention program (known as First Steps). Kegan will do the same this fall. The kids here usually go from First Steps into Head Start, but not all Head Start kids come from First Steps, if that makes sense. The entire point of Head start is to successfully prep low income kids for entrance into Kindergarten at a level comparable to their peers. The government makes the assumption (which in some cases is certainly accurate - but not always!!!) that low income = deprived of educational opportunities. There are a LOT of people who tweak paperwork and figures to get their kids into the Head Start program in order to avoid paying outrageous tuition for pre-schools in our area. It happens more often than people realize. State laws for these types of things have to be equal to or greater than Fed laws... so my guess is that the SIL we're speaking of is fudging. ;) When Creed was in First Steps, I was co-chair of a committee that was a liason between the families and the care providers... I can't tell you how many times we had people flying off the handle because they 'just knew' that so-and-so could afford to pay for their child's education. Same thing with any type of assistance that's Federally or State funded... lotsa people willing to take the handouts if they can find a way to get them. There are just as many honest people in the program, so it's kind of a two-way street. :) Just like life... you take the good, you take the bad... you know... the Facts of Life. ;) So anyway... now that I've had my ramble for the day (I tend to do that!) I'd like to say I'm glad to be here and look forward to getting know all of you! :D |
eks ~ just wanted to say that I love the names of your boys. Such unusual beautiful names!
Alicia ~ I agree with Pam. E-mail DS's teacher asap. E-mail is the greatest form of communication with teachers. You're able to express concern w/o being a pain in the patootie! The more info that the teacher has about your child the better. That way, she'll be on the look out for certain things and will be able to report back. Like you, we moved to a new school recently and Liam's teacher has been incredible. I e-mail her if I notice anything new; negative or positive. I'm glad to hear that all is going well with DD! Just realized that a bunch of us have 9 year old boys... |
To everyone with kids who have ADD/ADHD, Autism, or Asperger's - can you tell me how old your child was when they received their diagnosis?
The doctor's at Children's suspect both of my boys have Autism Spectrum disorders but are questioning Kegan's issues at this point because he is so young. He has serious problems with understanding abstract concepts but is amazingly smart when it comes to concrete stuff. From what his specialist says, she has never seen a child so 'smart' and being 'alert and aware' have such a problem with abstract thinking. Basically, he has some red flags for Autism, but none of them are diagnostic. So for now his diagnosis is 'encephalopathy - NOS' and hypotonia... She's sure it's neurological but other than that we're just lost. She thinks he might be exhibiting early signs of ADHD and Obsessive Compulsive disorder. There is a strong family history of both. In March, Kegan will be re-evaluated and Creed will be screened for Asperger's by the same team of behavioral and developmental specialists. He is just now exhibiting problems in the classroom (other issues have been evident at home for quite some time) and fortunately, his teacher is very cooperative. :) She's been willing to help with everything. We communicate through email because it's a way we can keep things open and deal with it on our own time... also it helps us keep the issue at hand the focus of the conversations. She is just wonderful! And IrishJoan - Thank you! That's what we were going for! ;) |
Peter was diagnosed with ODD in 8/06 when he was 3.7 y/o. He was diagnosed with ADHD (just the hyperactive part) in 7/07 when he was 4.6 y/o.
Robby was diagnosed with a Developmental Language Delay at around 2 1/2 y/o. I told the N that the early intervention teachers said he had many Autism flags, but it only took him a few minutes to say no way, his eye contact is too good to be on the spectrum. I gotta run right now, but I'll try to elaborate more later. |
Liam was diagnosed with Aspergers/ADHD at age 6. He's 9 1/2 now and doing really well. We just switched meds in November and just recently got him at the right dosage. We were *really* opposed to medication but it's amazing how much easier his life (and ours) got when he started taking medicine.
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I did email the teacher and I think we are going to meet tomorrow. I am really not sure what I am going to say to her. If I told her what he said about her, it will not be good. She did say he was crying for me in class and said he missed me. Go figure.
ecks, my ds was diagnosed around age 6. However, I had a very bad experiece w/the DR. Believe it or not there are some real QUACKS out there. I wonder if he was miss diagnosed. I have choosen (for now) not to use medications. Basically, because of a very bad experience. |
Megan, regarding abstract concepts. The DI that works with Robby told me that she showed him a picture of an icecream cone and asked him what it was. He told her it was a triangle & a circle. Well, yeah, that's exactly what it is! :lol: Robby knows perfectly well what an icecream cone is, but when she showed him that and asked him that way, that's how he answered. One time she showed him a picture of a square and asked him what it was. He told her it was purple. It was, but she was looking for "square". The speech therapist told me she can ask him things and he'll answer them correctly, in context, etc. But then she can ask him the same thing worded differently and he won't be able to answer her. Basically he's "book smart", but socially lacking. He talks a blue streak and interacts some with the other kids, but has problems expressing himself. Working with the ST & DI has made a huge difference, but that all ends this week, because he turns 3 on Sunday. He was not accepted by the school system, because he did not have a 33% deficit in one area or 25% in 2 areas. :tantrum: The ST left a couple messages for them but they have not returned her call.
Anyway, does Kegan go to daycare or preschool? If his teacher is educated enough, she will be able to help you monitor him for flags...not just "autism flags", but she can monitor how he acts with the other kids and stuff. When they told me Robby didn't qualify, I was OK, he's too smart. Then the ST pointed those things out to me and confirmed that yeah, he's doing great and he's extremely smart, but he still has these social issues. Incidentally, I used to call Robby "Monk", because he was obsessed with closing doors, gates, etc. :lol: Not so much anymore, but it was pretty funny for awhile there. What do they do for the hypotonia? PT? I had to Google it to see what it was and found "loss of muscle tone". I'd say it sounds like you've got a good Neurologist, just because he's doubting the Autism thing. :) Keep us posted! |
Liam saw an Occupational Therapist for 2 years and she mostly worked with his muscles (or lack thereof). He has very little upper body strength.
Lauren ~ Liam will talk a blue streak but really doesn't require anything from the other party. He will rattle off something to me regarding animal facts for 15 minutes straight and not seem to notice that I've not said one single word. The new school is really working with his speech (pragmatics) and social skills. |
New here...
I have two girls. Wynter is 11, 12 next month; and Little Miss Sarah just turned 2 last month. Wynter has asthma, but it is mild and we keep it controlled with meds. Sarah is your normal wild two y/o. She just got her 2nd set of tubes (ears) last month(the day before her birthday). :( I know. Wynter is a dancer, cheerleader and student council rep for her class. She is our social butterfly. That's my GIRLS.
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April, my son had tubes put in this summer and it made such a big difference for him. I'm sorry that you've had to go through that twice with little Sarah.
To the others who responded to my last question, thanks! I am just asking because I have been told so many things by so many different people about when/how their child was diagnosed. I'm trying to get at least a feel of where we are in the process. I have not slept more than 2 or 3 hours at a time since 2005, when I was pregnant with Kegan... I'm ready to get some definitive answers so I can work on getting him regulated! lol We have an OT, a DI , and an SLP. I love them all, and will be so sad when we have to let them go in June! :( When these people become a part of your daily life and see you at your most vulnerable, sometimes it's hard to remember that they are professionals and not FAMILY! :p |
Megan, I know what you mean. Liam saw the same OT twice a week for two years. She was wonderful. He needed something/someone new and that was why we stopped seeing her and started seeing a new therapist. I missed her far more than DS! His new therapist is extremely professional and that is what he needs. I look for the nurturing qualities in a teacher but he responds much better to someone that is very direct. Skip the warm fuzzy feeling and just tell him exactly what to do LOL.
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Hi April W ~ sorry for not welcoming you earlier. A little person was calling me and I needed to finish my note asap.
Just a FYI here... my kids got a case filled with old "Little Rascals" dvds for xmas. They can't get enough of it. Cracks me up that my three children are hooked watching "the gang." We traveled to Oklahoma the day after xmas so we took a few to watch in the van and I enjoyed watching them as much as the kids did! DH was up front driving and said that we giggled the entire time. They sure do beat all of the crap on Cartoon Network. Check it out and see how your kids react. |
I have a friend from church whose oldest son went thru years of testing before they diagnosed him, he had symptoms of random outbursts, the incessant talking, strange habits/ticks, staring off into space/ disconnecting and they kept telling her that it was ADD or it was Autism and finally they decided he has Turets with some OCD issues. Since then, they have been able to manage life better with him, she says its still a struggle and he's 21. She's recently been able to help one of our pastors at church because they just started noticing some things in their 9 yr old, that was really confusing them. They just took him last week for a full neuro workup and hopefully that will give them some answers but from the sound of it he has many of the same issues as my friends son. The good thing is that she's been there before and can offer them some emotional support.
My kids are 17,16,15,7, and 4 1/2. The 17 yr old is getting ready to graduate and all this college stuff is making me nuts. First, he wants to go to one school, then a different one, then another. One school has offered him a scholarship to come run but it will still cost me 3500.00 a year for books and boarding. Another school has offered him some as well but its even more than the first. Or he could go to the state-supported school, walk on the team, and still pay less and get just as good an education. His father (the ex, or as I like to affectionately refer to him as Satan) will not help pay for anything he hasn't done anything for him in the last 8 yrs he ain't gonna start now. I'm almost looking forward to him being gone, so this will be over but its just gonna start again in 2 years and then again 2 years after that with the other two. I spaced them out a bit in school, couldn't afford to send them back to back at the time (Satan was still here then). I gotta go, I could talk kids all day and never get anything else done. I'll be praying for all of your concerns. See Ya! Trish |
Joan - funny thing is, I'm blessed! All three of his therapists know exactly how to switch gears from fun mode to down-to-business mode. I think that's one of the reasons he has responded so well to therapy. They are all very firm and direct with his tasks. I think he likes it. :) lol
Well, I was going to respond to everyone else but need to get going, as Kegan is naked, running circles around the island here in the kitchen, dragging the tape measure behind him and bursting with laughter at the kitten, who is chasing the tape. Pardon me, but I am going to go have some F-U-N! ;) Look closely and you'll see Kegan, his clothes in the floor, and the cat. HA! What a fun day! http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q...2/Image001.jpg |
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