Does anyone have a child with Asperger's syndrome?

Question

I am looking to hear from parents of kids with Asperger's syndrome.....I get frustrated sometimes with the issues I am facing with my son, and would really like to hear from other parents....frustrations?? Success stories??? Embarrassing moments? It would be nice to hear anything you might want to share about your child with Asperger's......

Answer 1

I have a 7yo son with mild aspergers plus an adult friend with a more pronounced version of this condition too.

I think we had most of my sons problems when he was 2-4 years old (he was diagnosed at age 4 but i had my suspicions before that)

his agressive behaviour towards other children after he started nursery was a major cause of concern for me - my frustration was that the nursery were entirely unconcerned other than to 'blame' me for the whole thing dispite the fact we had had no problems with him before he went there. Needless to say i took him elsewhere but the damage had been done then.

He is now 7 and although considered one of the quieter children in his school is also one of the brighter ones in his class and is good at art and maths in particular. Last term he was even awarded 'headmasters award' for being a model pupil and a good hard working example to others. He has always had good concentration skills for things he is motivated in and one of the other pluses of the aspergers condition is the encyclopedic memory they retain for topics of past and current interests.

I ahve however had to work on helping him communicate with me and others.

I didnt just accept that is how he was - I would push against the conditions of aspergers at opportunities when they presented themselves (like if he was doing something i didnt like then i could ask him to look into my eyes which is somthing he didnt like to do - so that was punishment enough - when he was ok with that then we could move onto something else - but that got him over not liking eye contact)

Generally it is thought that the earlier you can get support and help for your child with this condition then the more likely it is that it will make a real difference to how well adjusted your child will be at the end of the day. Some aspergers children dont get diagnosed till late on (even adulthood) because it is seen that if they can read and add up then they dont need any other help - which is short sighted to say the least.

With my adult friend with the condition - socially appropriate behviour is something he struggles with - one role of a good friend to him is that a reminder is needed many times (much like a child) without appearing to treat him like a child. My friend has learnt to cross reference himself with those he trusts to be sure that he is behaving within acceptable limits. Aspergers people can learn how to relate to others - but this learning is often more of a deliberate process than for others which tends to be instinctive (like maintaining enough personal space for example - one arms length away from a woman - any closer and she will find the aspergers chap to be 'intruding')

Answer 2

You are sighting a work of fiction written by a man with no degree in area of autism. The book was written only from his experience while he worked with autism patience. Your 'phd' might as well be a sham. At some point when you study evolution you come to a point that cannot be explained. A point where it all starts is completely hypothetical and not provable. Therefore, the whole thing could be a teaching moment to redirect. Secondly, most people with Asperger's focus on a much more narrow topic then the broad scope of evolution. However, even with that a person with Asperger's will generally focus on the topic be not care about the Peripherals. Hence, they could easily believe in God while trying to understand evolution. Lastly, I think it is sick you are trying to prove a case for studying evolution by basing your argument on the mentally ill. You should find a way to prove evolution using you own God Given faculties and see where you end up. EDIT: dirtysheets - Thank you greatly for you perspective. I agree completely that this person is sick for using the mentally as basis for his question.

Answer 3

I have a 10 year old child with Asperger's. She makes life interesting for sure but I try to focus on the good parts of our relationship and avoid the bad ones. I read a Dear Abby column the other day about how kids with special needs are delivered to parents who have the patience and dedication to help them. That idea keeps me going through the worst times. She is currently having a setback now and is struggling in school. Three months ago, things were generally fine. The ups and downs are hard to cope with but I love my daughter very much and even completely normal children are going to drive you crazy now and then.

Answer 4

I do not have a child with Asperger's Syndrome, but I myself grew up with it not knowing I had it. It was not until in my early 30's that I found out about it and it made a lot of my life suddenly make sense. Once a person is aware of their difficulty in learning social function, they can make an effort to learn these functions through different means.

I myself was not an extreme autistic kid, but I did have the typical Asperger symptoms of not knowing how to behave around others because I did not learn behaviors from observation as most kids do. I was teased a lot, and I thought the world was against me because of how different everyone else was.

If it is only Asperger and not a more advanced form of Autism, then your child should do fine with therapy. Treatment should focus mainly around teaching your child how to learn social functions. Drugs only treat the symptoms and do not lead to a cure. As the person learns how to co-exist with everyone else in social environments, then their behavior will change accordingly and they will be easier to handle.

Drugs do not modify behavior, they mollify.

Answer 5

I raised a child with aspergers. He is now 22, still living at home and still drives me nuts. LOL. What frustrates me the most is his obsession with topics. It has been cars now for about 5 years. Before that airplanes and before that space. He inhales everything he can find on the subject and with his high IQ, he retains it. Then, no matter what you are talking about, he brings the subject to cars. You can tell him "enough already" but it doesn't last long. Being a nurse, I know he can't help it and I do constantly redirect him to teach him it isn't always appropriate but it still drives me crazy. This is the symptom that bothers me the absolute most because it is HIS most noticeable symptom.

If you ever want to talk about it, feel free to click on my avatar and email me.

Answer 6

My sister is currently working on a diagnosis for her son (7 years old). Her biggest problem with him is that he will put up a violent fight when he can't get something at the store. He's very impulsive and very violent. They already tried Clonidine to treat ADHD/ODD but it stopped working after a week so that is why they are working on th Asperger's dx. He doesn't like change either. They have to tell him everything that is planned for each day and stick to it or he will go off. I wish I could tell you more but my sister doesn't talk too much about it.

Answer 7

Dont have a child with Aspergers, but I have worked with many asperger's kids. I have a master's in clinical psychology, and am 3 credits shy of my doctorate. I know it can be frustrating and sadenning. If you need to talk, shoot me an email. Good luck and hang in there.

Answer 8

Hello, I have a 20 yr. old son with Aspergers. Diagnosed late in early adolescence. Have wonderful website for you. EFD