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Worsening of symptoms onset of teens

NAS86776

My son seems to have deteriorated over the last three years since turning 10 ( he is now 13). We recently had him reassessed privately and discovered his IQ was only 70, I don't think they assessed his IQ when he was diagnosed with autism at 8.

He has some major memory problems, he seems to have forgotten his own surname after not writing it for a year. He's not retaining any learning information for example how to do written sums. He seems not to have progressed since year 4. He can't remember characters in a book he has read. He gets mixed up between cows and horses, if the cow is brown he insists that it's a horse because he thinks cows are black and white. He seems to have facial blindness which might explain this, although all this has become much worse in the last three years, (he used to remember characters for longer and be able to distinguish between different animals more easily.) He used to remember to wash his hands after going to the bathroom, but recently he keeps forgetting to do this. 

He's also started having melt downs and toddler-like tantrums if he is asked to do something he doesn't want to do despite not having regular melt downs since he was around 6. His maturity level is around an 8 year old and he doesn't seem to be changing in this area. He has recently started peeing on his carpet at night after not wetting the bed since he was 10. 

The doctor said that memory loss without other symptoms is not a concern and it could just be his hormones affecting his concentration. Has anyone else experienced this sort of deterioration in their child's teens and did they improve afterwards? He doesn't have physical symptoms apart from a bit of clumsiness, but he has grown a lot recently. 

His home life is settled and there's been no big changes to upset him. He seems happy enough day to day. The dynamics with his younger brother have changed and he has started treating him like an older brother because he is more mature and independent despite being only 11. I think this has upset and challenged his brother the most. 

We are worried in case there is something else affecting our son's health and development. We don't know what to expect as he grows and what we should be concerned about. 

Any insights would be welcome. 

  • I wouldn't trust IQ tests. They're not made to communicate with Autistics.

    We perceive, reason and communicate completely different and this is really a fundamental difference. It's to the extreme of speaking a foreign language, so assume tests are in a language ill-suited for him. If you're expected to take an IQ test in Mandarin (supposing you don't speak mandarin), you too will appear to have a low IQ. There's potentially sound anthropological reasons for this, such as the inability to be hypnotised or the ability to report scientific findings without fear of being marginalised and it's only in a more recent historical context that society has been making it harder for us to assimilate due to just how homogenised social collectives have become. Hannah Critchlow, a neurologist, talks about how the interconnectivity globally is actually narrowing perspective for the majority rather than expanding thought. 

    From my own research, I've discovered there is a potential behind every autistic difference, including Prosopagnosia. For instance, I'd discovered most colour blind individuals seem to have a better ability to see in the dark. They rely on their Rods more than their Cones and the rods are these receptors which use infrared light (from the galaxy!) to see with better clarity. LEDs don't produce IR Light, and can even block it out. Thus, the change in lighting has greatly affected colour blind individuals in ways which aren't largely talked about. But this would've served humanity as a collective in the amazon long before the Industrial Revolution. So, I would simply follow what he seems inspired by, what he is pulled toward - you may find a potential here.

    In the best scenario, what appears as a 'regression' can be the slack or the shift in a hyper-focus mentally. Autistics are known to be far better with a task when it's one thing at a time to the final resolve. In fact, unresolved matters: a project, an unfinished thought, a mishap in connexion, a lack of closure in a relationship, not finishing a task can actually create a GREAT deal of stress. It is the other side of the coin, and you cannot have a capacity to hyper-focus without it. The stress it can cause can result in physical accidents, memory loss, difficulty thinking about anything else. It's not OCD, it's a potential and a capacity that, like everything needs to be grown into and learned how to reckon with. 

    My imagination is so powerful, that it seems as if  it can block my ability to identify what my mind can envision. I work in sound and after a long day of mixing, I won't be able to access words very well. My son laughs and we might have dinner and just watch a thing. But on Library days, where I catch up with historical reading, I'm a much better conversation. 

    My parents were always confused by why I would break down in to a puddle of tears when young. I had so much to express and communicate, internally I could sense-perceive "see" systems of exchange and these seemingly invisible nuances, but I couldn't communicate I could see them, I couldn't identify them, I couldn't communicate I needed help. So I would cry out of incredible frustration. My step mother accused me of 'wanting attention'. What I needed was the right education, a focus on what I was inclined toward and a wealth of what was assumed beyond my capacity. 

  • Is he at a mainstream school? Because this can be a very challenging time, moving from junior to high school. Couple this with puberty, and things do spread to get worse before they get better. 
    More meltdowns (they aren’t tantrums) mean he is overwhelmed or overstimulated by something or many things. Does he stim? Might help him get rid of some of the built up emotions,,,

  • I'm sorry to see your post has been missed in the ever rolling main page so hopefully I can help, and if not at least bump it up for the attention of someone who can.

    When you mention memory loss has ADHD been suspected? Because sometimes if people have both (what is affectionately called AuDHD) it can be less that they lost a memory and rather the thing was simply never commited to memory in the first place for lack of focus.

    I am afraid I don't have advice for your specific situation. I hope by bumping this thread up the list though someone else may have more answers or rather suggestions for you.