Starting the journey

Getting a diagnosis can be an absolute battle and it sounds as though TPP has had to fight hard to make this happen. There is a common theme on this forum about the sheer difficulty that sufferers and their familes have in getting a diagnosis out of the nhs.

However, be careful what you wish for. There is also a common theme on this website about the problems that can be prompted by just having the label. There are obvious benefits in having a diagnosis since you can do things slightly differently when you know that you are dealing with a child with ASD. There are also issues around knowing whether a particular behaviour is due to their condition or whether it is because they are a normal boy or girl. Children will always push to see what the limits are.

A child may also be badly affected by thinking that they are different or even disabled. This can cause its own issues. A child may believe that it just can't do certain things because it will use the diagnosis as an excuse for not trying.

I got diagnosed at 56 and am glad in one sense that I did not have a label before now as I just kept doing things as best I could and things haven't turned out too badly. Now that I have the diagnosis I can look back and explain 1,000 things that didn't make sense until I had the diagnosis. The diagnosis is a two edged sword. It provides explanations but it can also provide excuses for avoiding things that are best not avoided.

Be positive in the your parenting. Always encourage him to do his best. Positive parenting is the only way to deal with a child with autism - please try not to get into a cycle of disappointment and criticism because this can break an autistic child (or any normal child). My parents never knew that I had Asperger's but they always encouraged and enabled and allowed me to achieve. I wouldn't be where I am now without that encouragement. There are lots of ASD sufferers who have gone on to do great things and lots of us have degrees and careers and families so don't fall into thinking that a diagnosis is a terrible thing. I would much rather have my ASD then lots of other much more serious disabilities.

Getting a diagnosis can be an absolute battle and it sounds as though TPP has had to fight hard to make this happen. There is a common theme on this forum about the sheer difficulty that sufferers and their familes have in getting a diagnosis out of the nhs.

However, be careful what you wish for. There is also a common theme on this website about the problems that can be prompted by just having the label. There are obvious benefits in having a diagnosis since you can do things slightly differently when you know that you are dealing with a child with ASD. There are also issues around knowing whether a particular behaviour is due to their condition or whether it is because they are a normal boy or girl. Children will always push to see what the limits are.

A child may also be badly affected by thinking that they are different or even disabled. This can cause its own issues. A child may believe that it just can't do certain things because it will use the diagnosis as an excuse for not trying.

I got diagnosed at 56 and am glad in one sense that I did not have a label before now as I just kept doing things as best I could and things haven't turned out too badly. Now that I have the diagnosis I can look back and explain 1,000 things that didn't make sense until I had the diagnosis. The diagnosis is a two edged sword. It provides explanations but it can also provide excuses for avoiding things that are best not avoided.

Be positive in the your parenting. Always encourage him to do his best. Positive parenting is the only way to deal with a child with autism - please try not to get into a cycle of disappointment and criticism because this can break an autistic child (or any normal child). My parents never knew that I had Asperger's but they always encouraged and enabled and allowed me to achieve. I wouldn't be where I am now without that encouragement. There are lots of ASD sufferers who have gone on to do great things and lots of us have degrees and careers and families so don't fall into thinking that a diagnosis is a terrible thing. I would much rather have my ASD then lots of other much more serious disabilities.