Special Needs
ali0608
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Update: Not Autism
ali0608
member
We met with the team on Tuesday and they all agreed that DS had no indication of Autism. They said he was a "classic late talker" with some motor coordination issues and low tone. They also said his issues are commonly misunderstood for Autism since those kids have trouble communicating. They said his current therapy is exactly what they would recommend. He does still have a lot of work to do in communication and eating!!!
It made us feel good that we are doing everything we're supposed to be doing and we can move past some of the "what if" questions!
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Re: Update: Not Autism
Good to hear that. I'm hoping for a similar report when I finally take DS to his eval this Fall. And I hope that your son's communication issues (and eating) continue to improve.
Bronx Zoo: Summer 2013
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What a relief. I can relate-- I think most people with kiddos who have motor and or speech issues can.
That is the hardest part of all for me, personally. The "what ifs".
This is EXACTLY what happened to us. We had a 3 and 1/2 hour evaluation and were told that there was no indication of autism. Instead, he was diagnosed with possible speech apraxia (he was a little shy of 2 and 1/2, so they wanted to wait until 3 for a firm diagnosis) and motor planning issues. He has low tone in his core and his face, and that was also causing him some speech problems. Basically, he was somewhere between a "late-talker" or mildly apraxic, with some tone issues likely due to his prematurity. They recommended that we add OT (we were already getting speech) and increase speech. Fast forward a year, and he has graduated from EI speech, and is starting preschool in the fall witth 1/2 week of OT and 1 and 1/2 hours of speech for articulation through the school district.
There were still some dark days after the evaluation, where I worried that somehow they were wrong, had missed something, etc, since being told he wasn't autistic of course didn't bring about change. His speech was still missing, and he was still very shy.
In our case, and it sounds possibly like yours, he was a late talker with motor issues and low tone. He also is naturally (and likely excerbated by his speech delay) shy, and slow to warm-up among peers. I still have to remind myself sometimes that shyness does not equal autism, but as his speech improves, so does his interaction among peers. He is more confident to aproach peers and unfamiliar adults. A second evaluation by the school psychologist (mandatory in our district for ANY special education services) yielded the exact same finds. Bright, late-talking, shy but socially appropriate 3 year old. As he reminded me, some kids are a little introverted, "not every kid is going to jump in the middle of the rugby pile." Still makes me smile.
Sorry for the novel. Thought I'd share since I'm about a year farther down the road... If I can answer any questions about OT, ST, low-tone, oral-motor exercises, motor-planning, apraxia, etc. Let me know!!
GL on your journey!
This sounds just like DS and thanks for sharing! It definitelly gives me hope that he will talk eventually.