• Replies 4 replies
  • Subscribers 25 subscribers
  • Views 15275 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

Dizziness

Busy Mum of 3

My 12 year old son has recently been diagnosed with Aspergers after battling with GP's for 2 years.

For the past year he has been suffering on occassions with dizziness. Each episode is getting worse. The last time he ended up in hospital as he started vomitting and they couldn't find the problem. He has had an MRI, electrodes etc but everything comes back clear. I hate seeing him so distressed and it's starting to play on his mind the whole time when it could happen next.

He is currently on holiday with my parents so we could have a break. He phoned this morning to say his dizziness has returned and is so distressed and several hundred miles from home !!

Is this a problem linked with his Aspergers? The doctors seem confused which is honestly not helping anyone let alone filling us with confindence - NOT......

Parents

  • You get dizzy when your eyes give different information from sensors in your ear that regulate balance. With  autism these differences may be more markedly affected. It is referred to as vestibular sensitivity. Vestibular issues are common with autistic spectrum.

    It can be manifested by feeling disorientated or sick, and may make it harder to play sports, or go on a car journey.

    It might help to better understand when and why it might occur, and for him to understand the reasons so he can inform his spur of the moment reading of sensations. Being able to tell yourself not to worry can counter the effect. That way he may be able to cope better.

    A lot off aspects don't seem to be grasped by the medical profession. It is my opinion that this arises because of an obsession with the Triad of Impairments, which is a diagnostic tool, and excludes things which could be confused with other conditions. One of the most obvious of these is sensory sensitivity which overlaps with schizophrenia. Hence definitions of autism talk about the Triad of Impairments, and oh, by the way, they may have "sensory issues".

    Most people on the spectrum suffer daily from sensory issues - unusual pain, sound, smell, visual distortions, but to the medical profession it is just an "also ran" - they don't see it as an issue because it isn't part of the triad.

    Which is a gloomy situation for most people on the spectrum. Most of the medical profession (and NAS) overlooks sensory issues, although there is a section on the NAS website, if you search long enough, that includes vestibular sensitivity (under hypo and hyper-sensitivity). But the fact it takes longer to find it reflects why NAS has so little understanding of its importance

Reply

  • You get dizzy when your eyes give different information from sensors in your ear that regulate balance. With  autism these differences may be more markedly affected. It is referred to as vestibular sensitivity. Vestibular issues are common with autistic spectrum.

    It can be manifested by feeling disorientated or sick, and may make it harder to play sports, or go on a car journey.

    It might help to better understand when and why it might occur, and for him to understand the reasons so he can inform his spur of the moment reading of sensations. Being able to tell yourself not to worry can counter the effect. That way he may be able to cope better.

    A lot off aspects don't seem to be grasped by the medical profession. It is my opinion that this arises because of an obsession with the Triad of Impairments, which is a diagnostic tool, and excludes things which could be confused with other conditions. One of the most obvious of these is sensory sensitivity which overlaps with schizophrenia. Hence definitions of autism talk about the Triad of Impairments, and oh, by the way, they may have "sensory issues".

    Most people on the spectrum suffer daily from sensory issues - unusual pain, sound, smell, visual distortions, but to the medical profession it is just an "also ran" - they don't see it as an issue because it isn't part of the triad.

    Which is a gloomy situation for most people on the spectrum. Most of the medical profession (and NAS) overlooks sensory issues, although there is a section on the NAS website, if you search long enough, that includes vestibular sensitivity (under hypo and hyper-sensitivity). But the fact it takes longer to find it reflects why NAS has so little understanding of its importance

Children
No Data