| Penny Smith |
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| #1 |
I don't see much help or support at all for high functioning autism. I see a lot for aspergers, and a lot for more profound autism. But high functioning autism: those with impaired expressive speech, lonely, alone, and looking quite normal, just a loner, the nonverbal ones-- any support groups for them? any suggestions?? |
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| Tara |
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| #2 |
Penny,
My seven year old son has high functioning autism. I don't know any support groups but the best things we've done for him are private speech therapy and social therapy. With social therapy he learned to interact with others in a small group. He learned lots of important social skills.
Social stories have helped a lot also.
Tara |
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| Penny Smith |
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| #3 |
I should have clarified the question. It took a very long time to get a diagnosis for my son. He was diagnosed as ADHD,Tourettes, rightsided brain disorder,but he is really autistic. He is 24. I see help for younger kids that are not verbal enough, loners, looking normal but not quite. How to help at this point? There is not a whole lot available for his age. |
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| Teach2004 |
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| #4 |
Penny,
A lot of times you will find materials and information and strategies for individuals with high functioning autism along with the information for those with aspergers syndrome. I know that Future Horizons has a great deal on information/ books/ vidoes and conferences on the topic. Their website may be a good one to search if you want to find support groups for young adults with autism. Also, there are several books on their site which deal with social skills, self-awareness, relationships and other important topics for the person with high functioning autism.
-Teach2004 |
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| Christine |
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| #5 |
I also would like information on high functioning autism.
My grand son is 3 now. He has shown some autistic signs for the last year. He does not talk. I am getting no where. I can't find any place that will see him for medical testing. All I was able to find for him was a school for special children. They are trying to get him in a program. I need some help.
He had a difficult birth. He was suctioned out and broke suction and went back in then they cut my daughter more and increased the suction to 60 psi I heard the doctor order. Jonathan was then born. It was hours before he was out. I watched and saw the reaction of the doctors. Could that have anything to do with his autism?
He has real hard constipation bouts. I asked his doctor to give us some stool softener and it has helped somewhat. I read that that is a common condition, is that true. He was a milk bottle baby and eats a lot of candy and breads. No vegetables. Then I read that diet of sugar and dairy products were not good. Again on self trial.
Now I am reading that the MMR vaccine might have played a roll. Do you understand it.
What testing can I get. What kind of doctor do I go to and what tests do I ask. The IEP they did said he was a high functioning Autistic child. Then another said he was mentally retarded. He can be given a command "go get the truck" and he gets it. We can say "where is your nose" he touches it. His motor responses are good. He watches people and makes eye contact. I don't know where to turn.
I have no idea how I stumbled on this web page. I no nothing of the AIA. What do I do to get more information? Is there a fee.
He makes eye contact, loves to cuddle, loves to go to the park and watch everyone will go up and take someones ball. Seems to make friends pretty easy without talking, loves to play with other children, has a 2 year old brother who is real outgoing but is not talking yet either. Loves to go to the store with me. I say lets go bye bye and he is at the front door with or without clothes and runs to my car, he has no routine at all at home.
Sticks make him roll his eyes and make repeaded noises. He has a fication to flash lights and balls.
Do you have any advice?
Thank you,
Christine Taylor |
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| Teach2004.com |
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| #6 |
Christine,
There is so much information out there about autism. It can be overwhelming at first. You mentioned that you wanted to know what type of doctor may help out. Well, a Developmetal Pediatrician is probably who you want to see. They will be able to help and understand typical and atypical developmental milestones.
It will also be important for you to know and be an "educated consumer" when it comes to his education. There are many types of programs which are good for some and not good for others. So is difficult to say one is better than another. The best bet would be to know about all of them and individualize his school program to meet his needs. With all that said, here are some of the the top subjects you may want to find out about: ABA-Applied Behavior Ana lysis, VB-Verbal Behavior, TEACCH, Social Stories, The Out of Sync Child (Sensory Differences), Picture Exchange Communcation (PECS), Natural Aided Language, Kathleen Quill's Teaching Children with Autism: Communication Skills.
Please understand that any one of these topics could have days and days of information, but knowing a little about each of these will help you to better understand him and better plan for his education.
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| tina mcgahan |
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| #7 |
hi my name is tina and the think my 10 year old has functioning autism. and i am i singal mom of two ther chrildern5,8,and one of them is adhd. |
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| Andrew |
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| #8 |
hello, im Andrew, i have high functioning autism spectrum disorder
ive looked through this site and have yet to see this vantage point from anyone posting so i thought it might be interesting to view.
before giving my comments, id like to give feedback on others
for Penny Smith s idea of support groups -- id rather eat dirt
since i was different, i was picked on going through the elementary system. i live in a small town, approximately 18,000 people, rumors spread very fast, if someone found out about my autism, it could have been spread through the community so fast.
reasons why this is bad, getting a job, employers tend to not like people who declare themselves as having autism/the community knows that such an individual has autism, i wouldnt want to risk it
i see a lot of people curious whether a member of their family has autism
i got diagnosed from a person who had a PhD in psychology and specialization in autism
tina mcgahan -- high/middle/low functioning?
i tend to see typos -- this is a small typo but the meaning really differs depending on the severity of the autism
on another thread someone mentions ABA -- Applied Behavior Analysis -- i dont understand why this is needed
as for a little bit about myself
i do not consider myself to be a loner, i do consider myself to be an introvert. i am rather literal, not blunt, but if your tone doesnt change when you are joking i will not be able to tell the difference. i do spend a lot of time with myself. i am happy doing this, i do not feel the need for social interaction. i HATE talking on the phone. i talk to myself, i do daydream about sci-fi stuff, i am a gamer mmorpgs mainly, as i type this i debate not posting it and am unable to think of any specific reason why not to, i tend to do things spontaneously, i do not like to plan my day out, in my opinion anxiety is caused by planning out ones day; if one(referring to a person) plans x y and z and is only able to complete x and y, he/she will feel bad and will feel anxiety for not completing z. if we let others plan our day for us, it makes our life a lot less stressful and a lot easier, so the boss wants us to get to work at x time and leave at y time, maybe our friend wants to go hang out at z time, well, then maybe we want to eat three meals during the day, we have plenty of time to schedule our meals around those, maybe our SO wants us to clean out the gutters, simply ask by what time does this need to be done by, and they will help us schedule that too, no need for us to do any work. during our free time we can play/have fun/watch tv/etc.
ummm i guess that went on a bit much, ill put this site on my favorites and check back every so often, i hope my email goes through, just send a message if ya want something specific, ill try to help, i dont check my email daily 8/ preview post has the time 4 hours slow cya 8) |
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| Fred Lowe |
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| #9 |
My son has turned 19 and has high functioning autism, which is the most presenting issue, along with a little bit of Tourette's Syndrome, OCD, and a tremendous amount of anxiety - and depression. We are trying to figure out the relationship between anxiety and depression and obsessive thoughts. It seems the only thing that can pull him out of his depression is to "want something" that he just has to have. Once he talks us into getting this for him the novelty wears off fast and he is depressed once again. He is now getting anxious for large parts of each day, and when he gets anxious he gets a stare of obsession in his eyes, and demands to play on the computer, which seems to feed even more into his OCD. Any articles on anxiety and where it fits in all this? Any suggestions? thanks Fred Lowe |
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| Katie |
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| #10 |
Hi, I was told I had High Functioning Autism when I was in 10th grade, the next year I was told it was Aspergers Syndrome. They then leaned towards HFA again the year after that. I graduated two years ago and joined the millitary. I need to find any info on help coping with eather. It is causing me a hard time in the millitary. I need some info before they end up kicking me out. |
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| patty |
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| #11 |
Katie, Hang in there. I know you must be scared as well as tired of dealing with everything you've had to deal with all of your life, but there are millions of people out here just like you. My son is one of them. We got tons of info and behavioral modification help from our Regional Center. They referred us to Judevine, an Autism research group in Missouri. If you cannot locate a Regional Center near you for a referral, I would suggest that you call the largest & closest Children's Hospital near you. They notmally do research in these fields and could refer you to someone in your area. Hang in there ! |
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| Kenneth |
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| #12 |
Interesting reading, My son is 12 and just getting ready to become a teenager An interesting quote on autism is that an autistic child has all the qualities that are attributed to men just to the extreme. I find that of all the text written and medical opinions given no two kids have the same disorder and that is most of the problem. What works on Kid A does not work on Kid B As a family all we are trying is to keep him happy, have a good comfort area (our Home) and keep challenging him to stay social Will tag this web page as seems look a good place to look at from time to time. |
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| David Shamash |
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| #13 |
I am 48 and have being diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. My question: Is High functioning Autism the same as Asperger Syndrome or is it different? David Shamash. |
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| AC.com |
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| #14 |
Autism and Aspergers do have some similar characteristics. However, they differ in the language aspect. People with Asperger's tend to have no clinical delay in language, whereas people with autism, at some point in their lives tend to have delays in the onset of language and problems using language. Also with individuals with Aspergers tend to have typical cognitive skills or above averages , but with individuals with autism -you may see a wide range of cognitive skills ranging from individuals who may have low cognitive skills to individuals with high cognitive skills -all with the same diagnosis of autism. |
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| Annette |
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| #15 |
I have twin boys who are 7. David is normal. Jacob has "characteristics of PDD with sensory issues". Basically he barely touches on several scales of Autism/PDD/Asperger and SID(Sensory Integration Disorder). Anyways the treatment is all the same. He is extremely smart but has problems filtering his senses/reactions and with socialization. Currently he is going through a depression stage because he is realizing he is different; especially from the other kids. It is hard on him that his brother has friends and is a social butterfly but he is not. Can any one else relate to any of the above? |
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