Flat Affect

[Anonymous]

Well go back to that thread then... because I didn't say anything about ADOS or neuropsych. Why is consulting a doctor so controversial to you? OP has a question about her child's development. Should she ask the internet or should she ask a doctor???

Further, when is "limited range of emotions or flat affect" not a problem in your opinion? Do you have a child with these issues? What steps did you take when you had concerns about these issues? That is the heart of OP's question. If you can't contribute to that discussion... then, as I sad, troll elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many kids with ASD have MERLD and/or a flat affect. Doing well in school/getting good grades and having a few friends does not rule out ASD, OP. Get the neuropsych. Yes, a neuropsych looks at expressive and receptive speech, comprehension, and other learning issues....

Has your DS always had a flat affect? Do you think your DS is depressed? What do his teachers say? Does your DS like school? Many kids on the spectrum get depressed and devrlope anxiety. It’s tough being on the spectrum especially without help.

Get your kid help, OP.

Why do you assume the only diagnosis is ASD? What is your need to have kids diagnosed with ASD?

Because flat affect and ASD usually go hand in hand. My adult child with ASD has always had flat affect. https://www.healthline.com/health/flat-affect

[Anonymous]

Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

[Anonymous]

Some people are annoyingly over-animated in their facial expressions and emotional displays. Shouldn’t we consider those people as having a clinical problem? It really bothers me that the scope of what is considered “normal” is becoming more narrow. Is it because the medical community wants to pathologize human behaviors so that people will seek “treatment” and spend $$$?

[Anonymous]

I am reserved, but I've also had flat affect due to depression. There is a big difference. If it's enough to concern Mom it's worth at least a visit to a therapist to check out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many kids with ASD have MERLD and/or a flat affect. Doing well in school/getting good grades and having a few friends does not rule out ASD, OP. Get the neuropsych. Yes, a neuropsych looks at expressive and receptive speech, comprehension, and other learning issues....

Has your DS always had a flat affect? Do you think your DS is depressed? What do his teachers say? Does your DS like school? Many kids on the spectrum get depressed and devrlope anxiety. It’s tough being on the spectrum especially without help.

Get your kid help, OP.

Why do you assume the only diagnosis is ASD? What is your need to have kids diagnosed with ASD?

Because flat affect and ASD usually go hand in hand. My adult child with ASD has always had flat affect. https://www.healthline.com/health/flat-affect

Ok, but that is your child and everyone here seems to relate needs based on their child not on the poster or facts. Your child may be overmedicated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

No one said "everyone needs to be outgoing" but OP thinks her child may have an issue. Otherwise, why is s/he on here? If you don't have an issue, that is awesome. But it seems that OP thinks their child has an issue. Speaking with a flat affect -- or not having any differentiation in intonation -- is a speech problem. It is called prosody. It is INDICATIVE of a problem -- not DEFINITIVE.

OP was not super clear about the nature of the "flat affect" but if it is prosody, it is a real speech issue. It is a real issue that causes problems for my child. That is why I would suggest having it investigated. I don't know how "flat affect" effects the quality of your relationships or ability to communicate, but if it is prosody, like I suspect, it needs to be remediated by a professional. Introversion does not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

No one said "everyone needs to be outgoing" but OP thinks her child may have an issue. Otherwise, why is s/he on here? If you don't have an issue, that is awesome. But it seems that OP thinks their child has an issue. Speaking with a flat affect -- or not having any differentiation in intonation -- is a speech problem. It is called prosody. It is INDICATIVE of a problem -- not DEFINITIVE.

OP was not super clear about the nature of the "flat affect" but if it is prosody, it is a real speech issue. It is a real issue that causes problems for my child. That is why I would suggest having it investigated. I don't know how "flat affect" effects the quality of your relationships or ability to communicate, but if it is prosody, like I suspect, it needs to be remediated by a professional. Introversion does not.

Flat affect and speech issues are two different issues/needs. A flat affect would be seen by a mental health professional and speech would be by an SLP. An SLP does not treat flat affect. Child needs to be screened for depression.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many kids with ASD have MERLD and/or a flat affect. Doing well in school/getting good grades and having a few friends does not rule out ASD, OP. Get the neuropsych. Yes, a neuropsych looks at expressive and receptive speech, comprehension, and other learning issues....

Has your DS always had a flat affect? Do you think your DS is depressed? What do his teachers say? Does your DS like school? Many kids on the spectrum get depressed and devrlope anxiety. It’s tough being on the spectrum especially without help.

Get your kid help, OP.

Why do you assume the only diagnosis is ASD? What is your need to have kids diagnosed with ASD?

Because flat affect and ASD usually go hand in hand. My adult child with ASD has always had flat affect. https://www.healthline.com/health/flat-affect

Ok, but that is your child and everyone here seems to relate needs based on their child not on the poster or facts. Your child may be overmedicated.

Why do you challenge PP's assumptions, then assume her child may be overmedicated?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

Flat affect is not the same thing as being shy and reserved and has nothing to do with whether you want to share details of your life with strangers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

Flat affect is not the same thing as being shy and reserved and has nothing to do with whether you want to share details of your life with strangers.

Not if the kid also has flat affect in interactions with friends and family. (OP said he's like that at home as well.) My son has a flat affect, and also has HFA and some anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is flat affect considered problematic? I’m in my 40’s, happy and successful. I’ve always been somewhat shy and reserved, maybe some would consider me “flat”. Why does society think everyone needs to be outgoing and gregarious, be the life of the party, put on a happy face all the time, or else they’re depressed and spectrummy? Some of us are natural introverts and not inclined to share every detail of our lives with strangers. Why is that a problem? Read the book “Quiet”.

Flat affect is not the same thing as being shy and reserved and has nothing to do with whether you want to share details of your life with strangers.

Not if the kid also has flat affect in interactions with friends and family. (OP said he's like that at home as well.) My son has a flat affect, and also has HFA and some anxiety.

So, your advice is based off your child and their issues, and not OP's. That's not really helpful.

[Anonymous]

Do, your flat affect hasn't effected your life (yeah, right) so you are using your personal experience to tell OP they should ignore it.
In reality, flat affect is a symptom of schizophrenia, autism, traumatic brain injury or depression.
All of those things are best treated with early intervention. If it turns out to be nothing, op at least has piece of mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. First let me say thank you for everyone who replied. I know posting to DCUM would bring about some people with strong opinions! LOL

My child has had some pretty bad anxiety but we largely worked through them. I worked for a child psychology practice long ago and used some of their techniques with his teachers. I will likely go see Dr. Black. With him starting MS, I am concerned that the flat affect will prevent teachers and other kids from getting to know him. He is moving from a small private to a larger school. I do not have faith in school evals because of the nightmare we had with Early Intervention with him. So I will take him to Dr. Black and see what he suggests.

Very happy to hear! I am the pp with the 11 yo w/ASD/ADHD/.... who sees Dr Black since 2nd grade. My son is also starting middle school this fall and Dr Black has been very helpful and truly “gets” DS - and he is very complicated but his issues are subtle. Best money we have ever spent on any provider.

One major reason, Dr Black “gets” DS better than me is because DS’s teachers are more forthcoming with Dr Black than to me: I am always surprised by what DS’s teachers reported reading the neuropsych report. While your DS’s teachers may only be reporting a “flat affect” to you as concerning, there are probably other more subtle but important issues they do not mention especially because your son has good grades and behavior that does not rise to the level of being disruptive.