Published on 12, July, 2020
Hey everyone
I have a bit of a daunting task that I would be very grateful if anyone had some input on please. My son has his assessment in just over a week and wondering if anyone knew of a short video that would explain about neurodivergence without overwhelming him and causing panic? We did give him a book which explains various aspects but as yet he is not aware that it is autism he is being assessed for let alone that he is being assessed at all. This has been on my mind for a very long time and that time has arrived now and I’m at a loss. His therapist has said he needs to be told in some way now so he can prepare for the assessment. I plan not to call it an assessment or a test but to just say that some people want to chat with him about the way in which he thinks in order to offer some advice on managing his challenges.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated
Hi Take5, We have some information and advice on the advice hub here on the NAS site that might be useful for you when it comes to talking to your child about the assessment. This is a link to the page on speaking to someone about their diagnosis, or potential diagnosis in your case, which has a section on speaking to a child specifically - https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/diagnosis/before-diagnosis/how-to-bring-up-that-you-think-someone-may-be-auti - and there is a whole section on diagnosis, before, during and after the assessment which may be helpful - https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/diagnosis. You can also view the short video on the 'What is Autism' page - https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/what-is-autism - which sounds like it might be helpful too.Hope this will be of some help in preparing for the assessment, Best wishes, Ross
Ty Ross