ADHD Combined with ASD?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perspective as a boy mom - we also got an asd dx in addition to the adhd and ds has no issues with perseveration/ understanding sarcasm/ pretend play/ reciprocal conversation/ extroversion etc. i think the asd profile is now honestly just so wide that you will tend to get that dx with any social emotional deficit. Adhd specifically has a lot of crossover with asd (emotional regulation and inflexibility) so hard to parse the difference. Honestly we really just don’t understand either at this stage so neuropsychs are almost becoming outdated and opinions from more consistent providers are likely more valuable

What do you mean opinions “from more consistent providers” are more valuable? Does this include a teacher or tutor or parent? All of whom are constantly seeing the patterns or behaviors, whereas a neuropsych tester is not.

I’m not the poster you’re replying to, but I agree with her. The neuropsychologist definitely misread some observations of my dd. Our developmental pediatrician who had known and treated dd for years strongly disagreed with the neuropsych report. DD was not herself during the neuropsych testing because she was extremely anxious. People who had observed her in her everyday environment reported very different findings.

[Anonymous]

Op your post gave me chills. It's like you're writing about my mountain biking thrill seeking DD, but she's just in middle school and hasn't started meds yet. The steeper the trail the better! Her specific routines are different, but almost everything else you wrote matches up. She recently did a neuropsych exam and her diagnosis is ADHD and anxiety and possibly "we can't rule out" ASD.

The poster who wrote that girl ASD brains can be most similar to neurotypical boys just gave me a huge "ah ha" moment. DD is sometimes confused about the stereotypical middle school girl pack behavior and finds hanging out with brothers or guy friends "simpler."

I'm sorry I don't have college advice. It sounds like she's doing pretty well, so I would be careful to avoid letting this new label dramatically alter her/your plans. When we got the "maybe ASD" part of the diagnosis, I figured it was incorrect, but gradually learning more about ASD in girls I see how it's possible. I asked the tester what would we do different if ASD were definitive and she said that possibly insurance coverage for some services could increase and possibly some accommodations at school could become easier to get, but that generally if DD was happy enough socially we might not need those services and there was no need to adjust anything proactively. It was just an additional piece of information to be aware of that could lead to better self understanding. We haven't mentioned it to DD yet since it was so tentative and she's still adjusting to the idea of ADHD, unfortunately reactively.

Did your DD take her ADHD/anxiety diagnosis well?

Good luck to you in the process!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op your post gave me chills. It's like you're writing about my mountain biking thrill seeking DD, but she's just in middle school and hasn't started meds yet. The steeper the trail the better! Her specific routines are different, but almost everything else you wrote matches up. She recently did a neuropsych exam and her diagnosis is ADHD and anxiety and possibly "we can't rule out" ASD.

The poster who wrote that girl ASD brains can be most similar to neurotypical boys just gave me a huge "ah ha" moment. DD is sometimes confused about the stereotypical middle school girl pack behavior and finds hanging out with brothers or guy friends "simpler."

I'm sorry I don't have college advice. It sounds like she's doing pretty well, so I would be careful to avoid letting this new label dramatically alter her/your plans. When we got the "maybe ASD" part of the diagnosis, I figured it was incorrect, but gradually learning more about ASD in girls I see how it's possible. I asked the tester what would we do different if ASD were definitive and she said that possibly insurance coverage for some services could increase and possibly some accommodations at school could become easier to get, but that generally if DD was happy enough socially we might not need those services and there was no need to adjust anything proactively. It was just an additional piece of information to be aware of that could lead to better self understanding. We haven't mentioned it to DD yet since it was so tentative and she's still adjusting to the idea of ADHD, unfortunately reactively.

Did your DD take her ADHD/anxiety diagnosis well?

Good luck to you in the process!

I’m not the OP, but I dreaded breaking the news of the ASD diagnosis to my dd after she had struggled with the ADHD diagnosis. To my surprise, dd embraced it right away and felt like it explained some of her quirks. In a way, I think it was a relief for her to be able to name the reason she felt different. She’s very open with people about her diagnosis. If she needs a break from socializing or feels overwhelmed by something sensory-related, she can tell people why and they’re more understanding. Since she had read some books about girls with ASD, in a weird way, I think the diagnosis made her feel special. It hasn’t been negative for her at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perspective as a boy mom - we also got an asd dx in addition to the adhd and ds has no issues with perseveration/ understanding sarcasm/ pretend play/ reciprocal conversation/ extroversion etc. i think the asd profile is now honestly just so wide that you will tend to get that dx with any social emotional deficit. Adhd specifically has a lot of crossover with asd (emotional regulation and inflexibility) so hard to parse the difference. Honestly we really just don’t understand either at this stage so neuropsychs are almost becoming outdated and opinions from more consistent providers are likely more valuable

What do you mean opinions “from more consistent providers” are more valuable? Does this include a teacher or tutor or parent? All of whom are constantly seeing the patterns or behaviors, whereas a neuropsych tester is not.

I’m not the poster you’re replying to, but I agree with her. The neuropsychologist definitely misread some observations of my dd. Our developmental pediatrician who had known and treated dd for years strongly disagreed with the neuropsych report. DD was not herself during the neuropsych testing because she was extremely anxious. People who had observed her in her everyday environment reported very different findings.

I’m the pp who said that. I just think neuropsychs are overrated for borderline cases of asd. Of course you can’t give a kid adhd meds without some indication that they have adhd - but for asd that’s borderline, providers who see your kid every day are going to be better judges. Is it perseveration or just a hobby? Is it fundamental deficit in theory of mind or is the kid just not the most socially gifted kid? Consistent providers are going to be better judges and also the only reason to get an asd dx at that level is if you’re going to do something about it, or if you think the info would help your child

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Perspective as a boy mom - we also got an asd dx in addition to the adhd and ds has no issues with perseveration/ understanding sarcasm/ pretend play/ reciprocal conversation/ extroversion etc. i think the asd profile is now honestly just so wide that you will tend to get that dx with any social emotional deficit. Adhd specifically has a lot of crossover with asd (emotional regulation and inflexibility) so hard to parse the difference. Honestly we really just don’t understand either at this stage so neuropsychs are almost becoming outdated and opinions from more consistent providers are likely more valuable

What do you mean opinions “from more consistent providers” are more valuable? Does this include a teacher or tutor or parent? All of whom are constantly seeing the patterns or behaviors, whereas a neuropsych tester is not.

I’m not the poster you’re replying to, but I agree with her. The neuropsychologist definitely misread some observations of my dd. Our developmental pediatrician who had known and treated dd for years strongly disagreed with the neuropsych report. DD was not herself during the neuropsych testing because she was extremely anxious. People who had observed her in her everyday environment reported very different findings.

I’m the pp who said that. I just think neuropsychs are overrated for borderline cases of asd. Of course you can’t give a kid adhd meds without some indication that they have adhd - but for asd that’s borderline, providers who see your kid every day are going to be better judges. Is it perseveration or just a hobby? Is it fundamental deficit in theory of mind or is the kid just not the most socially gifted kid? Consistent providers are going to be better judges and also the only reason to get an asd dx at that level is if you’re going to do something about it, or if you think the info would help your child

Pls provide some examples of "consistent providers".

We are only at the pediatricians office about 4-5 times a year depending on colds or injuries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op your post gave me chills. It's like you're writing about my mountain biking thrill seeking DD, but she's just in middle school and hasn't started meds yet. The steeper the trail the better! Her specific routines are different, but almost everything else you wrote matches up. She recently did a neuropsych exam and her diagnosis is ADHD and anxiety and possibly "we can't rule out" ASD.

The poster who wrote that girl ASD brains can be most similar to neurotypical boys just gave me a huge "ah ha" moment. DD is sometimes confused about the stereotypical middle school girl pack behavior and finds hanging out with brothers or guy friends "simpler."

I'm sorry I don't have college advice. It sounds like she's doing pretty well, so I would be careful to avoid letting this new label dramatically alter her/your plans. When we got the "maybe ASD" part of the diagnosis, I figured it was incorrect, but gradually learning more about ASD in girls I see how it's possible. I asked the tester what would we do different if ASD were definitive and she said that possibly insurance coverage for some services could increase and possibly some accommodations at school could become easier to get, but that generally if DD was happy enough socially we might not need those services and there was no need to adjust anything proactively. It was just an additional piece of information to be aware of that could lead to better self understanding. We haven't mentioned it to DD yet since it was so tentative and she's still adjusting to the idea of ADHD, unfortunately reactively.

Did your DD take her ADHD/anxiety diagnosis well?

Good luck to you in the process!

I’m not the OP, but I dreaded breaking the news of the ASD diagnosis to my dd after she had struggled with the ADHD diagnosis. To my surprise, dd embraced it right away and felt like it explained some of her quirks. In a way, I think it was a relief for her to be able to name the reason she felt different. She’s very open with people about her diagnosis. If she needs a break from socializing or feels overwhelmed by something sensory-related, she can tell people why and they’re more understanding. Since she had read some books about girls with ASD, in a weird way, I think the diagnosis made her feel special. It hasn’t been negative for her at all.

Interesting. When I told my 13 yo DD about her And DX, she said she "knew" it -- had suspected for two years. I think it felt validating.