Newbie - Mum to 17 year old high functioning autistic son

Hi 

My name is Denise.  I am mum to a 17 year old son who was diagnosed at 16 as being high functioning on the autistic spectrum.  

It would be lovely to make some on line friends to share the highs, joys and not so highs of ASD.

Denise

Parents
  • Hi, my daughter is 16 and was diagnosed in August 2017.  I would be interested to know how, like my daughter, your child got to 16 without us noticing it.  It's easy retrospectively to see the traits but how did I miss it!  Also I interested how you cope with the apparent stubbornness.  How the neck do you get someone with high functioning autism to change their mind or realise that there could possibly be another point of view.  I'm getting nowhere with this!

Reply
  • Hi, my daughter is 16 and was diagnosed in August 2017.  I would be interested to know how, like my daughter, your child got to 16 without us noticing it.  It's easy retrospectively to see the traits but how did I miss it!  Also I interested how you cope with the apparent stubbornness.  How the neck do you get someone with high functioning autism to change their mind or realise that there could possibly be another point of view.  I'm getting nowhere with this!

Children
  • Hi Eleanor.  My son's struggles with intereaction was picked up many years ago.  The first referral we had was at age 5 when his Primary 1 teacher thought that he may have a hearing problem.  We went through a few referrals and appointments from speech and language therapy to CAMHS.  He had a full assessment for ASD at about 7 or 8 but the determination at that time was that although he showed ASD traits, they were insufficiently pronounced for a diagnosis.  We didn't pursue it at the time as he was attending an amazingly supportive primary and went on to an equally supportive high school, that he getting all of the support that he would have had if he was diagnosed.

    It was just when he was approaching what we felt was his last year of school that there seemed to be a reason to go back for a reassessment.

    On the stubbornness issue, I have learned to pick my battles, be patient (which I admit I find difficult), and if practical, don't expect to be successful the first time or even the second but if something is important, I persist. I also give him time to go away (often out for a run) to think over what I have said and come back with a reason why he thinks he is right or to agree to my way of thinking. It is not easy though, is it!

    Do you ever wonder what is ASD and what is just being a teenager ?!