My stepson has been diagnosed with ADHD but know we think he has autisam.?

Question

Does anyone know anything about autisam. Please help if you can.

he has thing's that he constantly does. He is terified of thing's. And we have been treating the ADHD for 3 years now and there has been no change in his action's. There are other thing's that he does that fit's the diagnose's also.

He is on medication but it is not working and it was recently rasied but still has no effect. And has tried others in the past.

Answer 1

ADHD and autism can look a lot alike.

Autism is a more severe form where the brain has actual biological mechanism and signal problems. There are studies helping kids learn to trigger the responses, but they are just beginning.

ADHD is more common. It is when a person has a hard time concentrating and/or keeping control over there motor skills. It does not have to be both, it can be one or the other or both. There are 3 versions.

I have the concentrating kind, but not the motor skills kind. I change channels in my mind often and can block out about anything going on around me without doing it on purpose. I have learned to deal with it though and that is probably the best. I am glad I wasn't on all sorts of drugs when I was a kid. I am glad I was let learn to control my problems. I believe I am a better adult because of it. I also believe that I understand a lot of stuff from a really rare prespective.

I babysit a little boy who has the motor skills version. He just can't control his wanting to move. He is always going going going. It is over 100 degrees outside and he wants to ride his bike. He just need to keep going. It becomes annoying to be so active. I don't think he will over be an overweight person, so that is the good news. He can't stay still long enough to read a book or well just about anything. He will grow up though and maybe be the best physical trainer there ever was.

I think that all kids have potential. You just have to be patient and calm and loving. Don't think of the negative in situations, think of the positive. Don't always believe what you are told. People turn out to have great lives even with these types of problems. Just follow your heart...........

Answer 2

He could have been mis-diagnosed. First of all, you need to get a second opinion. However, another thing to keep in mind...is ADHD is more commonly mis-diagnosed - but what they really have it tourettes syndrom. Which is basically a syndrom in which they do wierd random things repetively, it may be a head motion or a loud vocal habbit - like suddenly yelling something. This is often mis-diagnosed, because they're not doing whatever it is they do as a result of the syndrom, when they're taken to the doctor. So you may want to bring that up when you get a second or even third opinion. However it could be autism, and it may be ADHD, but get a different doctor and a second opinion. I hope this helps. Take care!

Answer 3

My nephew, who lives with us has ADHD and autism. He is in special classes in school and he is on medication. We have tried everything that we could possibly find to avoid medication but in the end it was inevitable. If something comes along that would work besides the medication I'm all for it.

His autism is a real pain but he is very intelligent in that he can concentrate on certain things like trains, bugs, a couple of computer games. He is mean to animals. He gets out of control if he watches T.V. too long. (More than an hour) We take him on backpacking trips a couple of times a month. He does well but still requires his medication. He is excellent with directions. Once he has been driven anywhere he has memorized the route and can give directions forward and back without a mistake. He is 7 years old.
He doesn't like to eat anything except dry cereal, chips and popcorn. We have to insist on his eating a balanced meal.

Answer 4

There are different types of Pervasive Developmental Disorder( the broad term for autism spectrum disorders). Some of the things to look for would be loss of language skills at at early age, your child developes normally and then seems to slip at age two or three. Seems out of touch with the world, doesn't make eye contact, repetitive motions such as rocking or head banging. Inability to sense feelings in others. There is also Asperger's syndrome which is a lesser form of autism. These kids tend to be bright in a certain area like memorizing things (Rainman) but are out of touch with many other things. Hope this helps you.

Answer 5

autism is usually diagnosed in early childhood. most autistic children develop normally at first but the problem starts showing up when speech starts developing and some motor skills. most autistic children have extraordinary abilities in specific fields but not a lot in others. most excel in music and mathmatics. i cant imagine if hes older that anyone could misdiagnose one for the other. most autistic are very mellow and adhd are completely opposite but if your really concerned ask for a second opinion. its always a good idea anyway because in some children there are serious side effects you need to beaware of and watch for with adhd meds. talk to your doctor. good luck and hope this helps.

Answer 6

Autism is a complex developmental disability that affects an individual in the areas of social interaction and communication. Autism is a spectrum disorder that affects each individual differently and to varying degrees of severity. As many as 1.5 million Americans - children and adults - are thought to have autism today.

Check out this site for more info. It is very helpful!

Answer 7

autism is a nurological disorder that causes someone to live inside themselves. They very seldom like to have contact with other people and will hug themselves instead. The do things reptivly like rocking or spinning in circles and have behavoir issues. Most autistics are actually very intellegent and with the proper guidance and support can live on their own and function at a relatively normal pace. Why do you think your stepson is autistic rather than adhd?

Answer 8

Try the Autism Society of America at www.autism-society.org

Answer 9

Autism is more profound than Attention Deficit /Hyper activity Disorder. Just have the child re-screened by the doctor.

Answer 10

Here is a good link about autism:

http://www.autistics.org/library/whatis.html

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/autism/DS00348

now here is about adhd:

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/adhd.cfm

http://www.adhdnews.com/what-is-adhd.htm

http://www.add-adhd.org/ADHD_attention-deficit.html


If you don't agree with whoever made this diagnosis, or you want confirmation, you can ask for a second opinion. A second opinion comes from consulting with another professional who is expert in this field - child psychiatry. There is no problem in asking for second opinions.