Children's in Rockville for Autism Diagnosis

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Boy they have really moved the autism goalposts.

?

The minimum level of being able to qualify for an autism diagnosis is that the behaviors interfere with everyday functioning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the update. Are his repetitiveness and obsessive traits still an issue?

He still has stims and obsessive traits but they don't interfere with his functioning at all. For instance, he has no problems with transitions but even when he was first diagnosed they didn't cause issues.

Currently, he jumps up and down when he's super happy and excited. Occasionally finger postures.

Is obsessed with Minecraft and Star Wars.

DS had a neuropsych eval at 6 yrs old at Stixrud which confirmed the ASD/Asperger's.

We're having another neuropsych done at Stixrud in Dec this yr and are going to redo ADOS/ADI-R as an add-on b/c we plan to submit the results to the mainstream private schools we're applying to.

I'll update how it goes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the update. Are his repetitiveness and obsessive traits still an issue?

He still has stims and obsessive traits but they don't interfere with his functioning at all. For instance, he has no problems with transitions but even when he was first diagnosed they didn't cause issues.

Currently, he jumps up and down when he's super happy and excited. Occasionally finger postures.

Is obsessed with Minecraft and Star Wars.

so the obsessive and repetitiveness alone wouldn't have gotten him an ASD dx? I'm curious because these are the main issues we're dealing with

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for the update. Are his repetitiveness and obsessive traits still an issue?

He still has stims and obsessive traits but they don't interfere with his functioning at all. For instance, he has no problems with transitions but even when he was first diagnosed they didn't cause issues.

Currently, he jumps up and down when he's super happy and excited. Occasionally finger postures.

Is obsessed with Minecraft and Star Wars.

so the obsessive and repetitiveness alone wouldn't have gotten him an ASD dx? I'm curious because these are the main issues we're dealing with

No. You have to remember that the reason my DS was evaluated was due to the fact that he would not engage with other children. But he had no problems with joint attention, normal eye contact and he is fine with adults.

My DS definitely has problems reading non verbal social cues and social nuances that come easily by inference to most people and has to be taught very specifically - like you would explain a math problem. Today for instance, we were commenting how he has no filter but will say whatever that comes to his mind like, "Uncle John sucks at bowling".

So DS definitely has social communication issues, repetitive behaviors and obsessive interests and meets the criteria for ASD/Asperger's.

[Anonymous]

We went bowling and his uncle John does suck at bowling but still....

[Anonymous]

PPS, I recognize you and your descriptions of your DS. I have commented before that my DD seems more severely impacted than your DS (has similar issues and more) yet we have not received an ASD diagnosis. Sometimes it seems to depend on who does the evaluating. If you had gone to KKI like we did perhaps you would have received a different diagnosis. It doesn't really matter for us at this point because we are treating the symptoms and a diagnosis wouldn't necessarily change things. But whenever I read your posts I wonder why your kid has an ASD dx and not mine. I don't think we could get an Asberger's diagnosis, however, because her speech is delayed and still a bit babyish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PPS, I recognize you and your descriptions of your DS. I have commented before that my DD seems more severely impacted than your DS (has similar issues and more) yet we have not received an ASD diagnosis. Sometimes it seems to depend on who does the evaluating. If you had gone to KKI like we did perhaps you would have received a different diagnosis. It doesn't really matter for us at this point because we are treating the symptoms and a diagnosis wouldn't necessarily change things. But whenever I read your posts I wonder why your kid has an ASD dx and not mine. I don't think we could get an Asberger's diagnosis, however, because her speech is delayed and still a bit babyish.

So far, we've been evaluated by a psych from George Washington, Children's, Stixrud and Dr. Shapiro who all diagnosed ASD/Asperger's. The one place we haven't been evaluated is at KKI, true, but we don't feel that there is any question about DS's diagnosis at this point.

[Anonymous]

I think Minecraft is great. Some parents sniff and think, computer games, but it is really creative, can be social and interactive if online, and allows for some customization using a unique language, teaching some programming skills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PPS, I recognize you and your descriptions of your DS. I have commented before that my DD seems more severely impacted than your DS (has similar issues and more) yet we have not received an ASD diagnosis. Sometimes it seems to depend on who does the evaluating. If you had gone to KKI like we did perhaps you would have received a different diagnosis. It doesn't really matter for us at this point because we are treating the symptoms and a diagnosis wouldn't necessarily change things. But whenever I read your posts I wonder why your kid has an ASD dx and not mine. I don't think we could get an Asberger's diagnosis, however, because her speech is delayed and still a bit babyish.

So far, we've been evaluated by a psych from George Washington, Children's, Stixrud and Dr. Shapiro who all diagnosed ASD/Asperger's. The one place we haven't been evaluated is at KKI, true, but we don't feel that there is any question about DS's diagnosis at this point.

I'm the poster who brought the thread back.
How old are your kids? (PP & OP) I wonder if that's a big factor in the diagnosis. My son is only 4 so when you mention things like not picking up on social cues, I can't tell if that's even an issue yet. Most 4 year olds are brutally honest and sometimes inappropriate. I don't know if its too soon to get him evaluated, but I know the OCD things and constant scripting isn't "normal." I just desperately need to know why he does these things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PPS, I recognize you and your descriptions of your DS. I have commented before that my DD seems more severely impacted than your DS (has similar issues and more) yet we have not received an ASD diagnosis. Sometimes it seems to depend on who does the evaluating. If you had gone to KKI like we did perhaps you would have received a different diagnosis. It doesn't really matter for us at this point because we are treating the symptoms and a diagnosis wouldn't necessarily change things. But whenever I read your posts I wonder why your kid has an ASD dx and not mine. I don't think we could get an Asberger's diagnosis, however, because her speech is delayed and still a bit babyish.

So far, we've been evaluated by a psych from George Washington, Children's, Stixrud and Dr. Shapiro who all diagnosed ASD/Asperger's. The one place we haven't been evaluated is at KKI, true, but we don't feel that there is any question about DS's diagnosis at this point.

I'm the poster who brought the thread back.
How old are your kids? (PP & OP) I wonder if that's a big factor in the diagnosis. My son is only 4 so when you mention things like not picking up on social cues, I can't tell if that's even an issue yet. Most 4 year olds are brutally honest and sometimes inappropriate. I don't know if its too soon to get him evaluated, but I know the OCD things and constant scripting isn't "normal." I just desperately need to know why he does these things.

I'm the pp and the OP of the thread, my kid is 7 yrs old. He was diagnosed when he was 4. DS never scripted nor he display OCD behaviors unless you mean having obsessive interests in things like fans and doors at that age.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PPS, I recognize you and your descriptions of your DS. I have commented before that my DD seems more severely impacted than your DS (has similar issues and more) yet we have not received an ASD diagnosis. Sometimes it seems to depend on who does the evaluating. If you had gone to KKI like we did perhaps you would have received a different diagnosis. It doesn't really matter for us at this point because we are treating the symptoms and a diagnosis wouldn't necessarily change things. But whenever I read your posts I wonder why your kid has an ASD dx and not mine. I don't think we could get an Asberger's diagnosis, however, because her speech is delayed and still a bit babyish.

So far, we've been evaluated by a psych from George Washington, Children's, Stixrud and Dr. Shapiro who all diagnosed ASD/Asperger's. The one place we haven't been evaluated is at KKI, true, but we don't feel that there is any question about DS's diagnosis at this point.

I'm the poster who brought the thread back.
How old are your kids? (PP & OP) I wonder if that's a big factor in the diagnosis. My son is only 4 so when you mention things like not picking up on social cues, I can't tell if that's even an issue yet. Most 4 year olds are brutally honest and sometimes inappropriate. I don't know if its too soon to get him evaluated, but I know the OCD things and constant scripting isn't "normal." I just desperately need to know why he does these things.

I'm the pp and the OP of the thread, my kid is 7 yrs old. He was diagnosed when he was 4. DS never scripted nor he display OCD behaviors unless you mean having obsessive interests in things like fans and doors at that age.

Also, if you suspect your child has issues you should take him to be evaluated. I did not know anything was amiss until DS started school and his prek teacher brought certain things to my attention and I'm very grateful to her for getting the wheels turning since it got my DS the help he needed.

For a 4 yr old, I would try to get in with Dr Shapiro who is a developmental pediatrician. He was very helpful to us when DS got his diagnosis. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I'm very anxious to get him evaluated, we're currently on a (long) waitlist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm very anxious to get him evaluated, we're currently on a (long) waitlist.

You should try to get on every waitlist you can. You can always cancel or get multiple evaluations like we got.

Stixrud does ADOS/ADI-R testing for ASD and their wait time may not be as long as some of the others but they don't take insurance so you will have to submit to insurance yourself.

[Anonymous]

Hi, just curious, OP, does your son have (or ever had) crying meltdowns at school (or home)? Does he get very stuck on certain ideas or insist on doing something a certain way? The other things you mentioned sound a lot like my son, also Asperger diagnosis from Children's, but your child seems more flexible... for us, that's what's keeping us from being able to attend private mainstream. What schools were you considering? Our local school has been really, really unhelpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi, just curious, OP, does your son have (or ever had) crying meltdowns at school (or home)? Does he get very stuck on certain ideas or insist on doing something a certain way? The other things you mentioned sound a lot like my son, also Asperger diagnosis from Children's, but your child seems more flexible... for us, that's what's keeping us from being able to attend private mainstream. What schools were you considering? Our local school has been really, really unhelpful.

Never had meltdowns or tantrums at home or at school. He's a pretty easy going kid, rarely cries even when he was a baby, well behaved for his age, although he is very opinionated and likes things his way. But he can be reasoned with and is open to bribes.

We like his school but are moving to MA so I have to get him into a school there. We're looking at another Chinese immersion public charter school which is very similar to the school he currently attends but it's difficult to get into so we are applying to other (private) mainstream schools just in case. We will switch to an all boys' private school for middle school, however.

DS is very much like his dad and grandfather and they both attended private prep schools (without IEPs/supports/diagnosis) and did well so I expect DS will too.