My son slams his hands on his ears when he hears certain sounds and background noises. I was told by a doctor that he has spectrums of autism without having autism. Can anyone explain what this would mean? I'm having some disagreements with my husband. The doctor said that Bill Gates has this. He also said that my son is somewhere between Rainman and Einstein.
2006-12-06 15:47:31 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
Sensory integration dysfunction can occur with autism spectrum or alone. Your son slams his hands over his ears to filter out the noises that are adversely effecting his ability to focus and be a part of the world around him. This doesn't mean he is definitely autistic but he could just have a hard time focusing with loud noises and it frustrates him. These kids are usually very bright and just have a little getting in the way of them understanding or dealing with the world around them. My son has a sensory integration dysfunction and was thought to be mildly autistic in the beginning but isn't autistic at all. Do as much research as you can to have a better understanding of your son. Good luck, take care and I will paste a few links I found helpful.
2006-12-08 21:57:36 · answer #1 · answered by chrissy757 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your son may fall on the autism spectrum because he has some behaviors that are autistic-like, but he may not have full blown autism, or he may have a very mild case.
Apparently, your son is overly sensitive to sounds, and loud or harsh sounds may set him off. It may not even be loud or grating to you or me, but to him it's the worst thing in the world and may even cause him physcial pain.
If your son has autism he may also have difficulty communicating with others and he may have problems interacting socially with his peers and adults.
If your son is young these issues can be helped greatly by a good early intervention program. Your local school district may be able to steer you in the right direction. They may even do more evaluations and place him in a district run program.
If not, you might want to try your local college. If they have an education department they may be able to help.
It sounds as though your son is very bright if your doctor is comparing him to Gates and Einstein. Even if he has autism, there are so many things he can do. You will just need to work with him at home and make sure he is ina good educational program.
Ear plugs or headphones may help in the short term, until you can get a treatment plan together and to give him some relief, but be careful, because in some kids they make the noise worse. There are going to be some sounds that you would think would bother him that don't, and others that you wouldn't think would bother him that do.
Now is the time that your son needs you, so you and your husband really need to pull together on this, along with any family or support system you have available.
You can find more information about autism at www.cureautismnow.org
www.centerforautism.com
www.autismspeaks.org
www.cec.sped.org
Good luck!
2006-12-07 01:03:19 · answer #2 · answered by TeacherLady 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Did you mean hyperacusis? If so that is an abnormal acuteness of hearing due to increased irritability of the sensory neural mechanism; characterized by intolerance for ordinary sound levels. My son had this when he was younger and couldn't tolerate loud sounds or sudden sounds. He has since outgrown this, so I'm not sure if it was that severe or not. When you say your doctor says that your son is somewhere between Rainman and Einstein, is this a neuro specialist or an ENT (ear nose throat) specialist? I would look into further testing before I let them label your child with a disorder. Good luck to you.
2006-12-06 23:55:10 · answer #3 · answered by Marcie S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Maybe this site will help.
http://www.hyperacusis.net/hyperacusis/4+types+of+sound+sensitivity/default.asp
2006-12-06 23:52:09 · answer #4 · answered by Lily18 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋