Advice - does this sounds like Aspergers?

Hello

I have a nearly five year old son.  He is bright and lively and we would never have even considered he had aspergers until his nursery teacher mentioned something and I have been concerned ever since and am almost waiting for the school he has just started to call me in for a 'chat'.

My son is very outgoing and has no problem with social interaction - but I sometimes wonder if this is appropriate.  He is very excitable with people and gives them huge hugs, invading their space.  He also loves washing machines - asking about them when we go to peoples houses.  This is something the nursery teacher was concerned about.  He tends to have other attachments to other subjects as well, although these tend to be 'phases' that he has grown out of - except the washing machine one.  He told his school teacher that his daddy had two new washing machines put in in his work, he tells everyone this, and often mentions it several times to the same person.  This appears to have faded at the moment.  But he is now interested in who has school lunches and who has dinners at school.  He does have other interests however.

He has very good speech and appears to have no trouble reading, but poorly developed fine motor skills - he doesnt hold a pencil correctly and does not draw.  He is beginning to write numbers though and can write his name.  He appears to be good at maths. He was also quite late in processing information.  Up to the age of about four if someone asked him a question I knew he didnt understand them.  He likes rules but doesnt get upset at change, although can be bossy when others break the rules.  Generally he does not have meltdowns or get anxious in stressful situations.

I think it is the washing machine issue I am particularly worried about.  He does make friends easily although sometimes he is the one willing to do something 'silly' for a laugh while everyone else shrinks back- at the end of nursery term he started weeing near a tree to make all the boys laugh for example and they all knew that this wasnt appropriate.

The nursery knew I was upset about what the manager had said and said there was no need for an assessment and got a glowing report at the end of term but I cant help but wonder.

Im sorry if these issue seem mild, I just dont ever want to be unprepared for a conversation like that again and am just worried the school will say something.  I spoke to my health visitor but she was pretty useless, just said they could do an assessment - but this may mean labelling and be an unneccessary process when it seems he may have some traits but not enough to have intervention?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Many thanks.

 

Parents
  • Does it sound like Asperger's? Not particularly. Lots of children behave in the way you describe, and it could be that he will grow out of it, or move on to another phase.

    It used to be that professionals were reluctant to diagnose children as young as your son unless their symptoms were very obvious, but now there seems to be a trend towards more and more early diagnosis.

    Having said this I am not qualified to make a judgement and haven't met your little boy. If you are worried you can request an assessment, but you might find it inconclusive at this stage. (My son was diagnosed at 12, but had had IEPs since Nursery because of concerns about his behaviour).

    Both my sons had obsessions with things. I think it is the intensity and focus which sets apart the interests of children with AS. No 1 son is neurotypical, but moved from one interest to another throughout childhood. No 2 son has AS and his interests were all- consuming.

    Why don't you read more about AS? Tony Attwood's Complete Guide to Asperger Syndrome is good. You can probably order it from the library, and it is available from NAS books. There are lots of books on the NAS booklist.

    If you are really worried you could ask to see the teacher instead of waiting for her/him to call you in.

     

     

     

Reply
  • Does it sound like Asperger's? Not particularly. Lots of children behave in the way you describe, and it could be that he will grow out of it, or move on to another phase.

    It used to be that professionals were reluctant to diagnose children as young as your son unless their symptoms were very obvious, but now there seems to be a trend towards more and more early diagnosis.

    Having said this I am not qualified to make a judgement and haven't met your little boy. If you are worried you can request an assessment, but you might find it inconclusive at this stage. (My son was diagnosed at 12, but had had IEPs since Nursery because of concerns about his behaviour).

    Both my sons had obsessions with things. I think it is the intensity and focus which sets apart the interests of children with AS. No 1 son is neurotypical, but moved from one interest to another throughout childhood. No 2 son has AS and his interests were all- consuming.

    Why don't you read more about AS? Tony Attwood's Complete Guide to Asperger Syndrome is good. You can probably order it from the library, and it is available from NAS books. There are lots of books on the NAS booklist.

    If you are really worried you could ask to see the teacher instead of waiting for her/him to call you in.

     

     

     

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