Trying to get a diagnosis...

Hi. I'm new here. I've been trying to get a correct diagnosis for my son for about 5 years now. He's been diagnosed ADHD, ODD and OCD. He's been on literally every ADHD med available and none has worked. He's been to more drs than I can count.. They all say ADHD :/ Me and my husband know there's something else going on. He's almost 12 but acts like he's about 5.. I've done some reading about Asperger's and it really sounds so much like him... He's obsessed with toys, namely Transformers and toy cars. He talks to his Transformers like they are real.. He has horrible hygeine. He refuses to brush his teeth, take a shower/bath or any general cleaning. It's lke a war zone at our house. If he doesn't get his way he starts stomping, slamming and breaking things We also have a 2 yr old daughter. We have to keep them separated because when he gets mad (which is all the time) he gets mean with her.. His last dr and therapist refused to test further than ADHD.. He's just started seeing a new therapist and I think she might help us get him tested further.. How do other parents with Asperger's children deal with the day-to-day? I'm at the end of my rope.. I just don't know what to do anymore He will not listen to me and seems to think that he doesn't have to listen to anyone.. It's really frustrating when you feel like you're talking to a wall

Hi,

How many doctors have you gone to about this?; and did you ever actualy mention Asperger's to the doctor? You are in your entitlement to go against what the doctor says. After all, by providing critique he/she will actually learn more clinical info about your son indirectly; and this might help him/her to refine the diagnosis.

I regard myself as having Asperger's. When I was 12, I was quite a messy young boy too. In my late teens, however, my OCD really took hold of me and I became a 'clean' older boy. I would have 3 showers somedays and I would not go outside the house unless I felt that I looked neat and tidy.

Helping your son to learn about his condition is advisable too. I onlybegan to control and utilise my Asperger's symptoms when I learned about Asperger's SYndrome itself. Go to your bookshop and have a look in the psychology section for books about it. Some are tailored for young people to read.


Kevin

I actually printed out a whole bunch of info once and she basically just waved it away :/ She said "That's just bad behavior. He's making bad choices and he needs to adjust his attitude himself" The thing is, he doesn't seem to be able to control his impulses. You have to basically hold his hand to get him to do anything and have it done right... For example, you can't tell him to take the trash bag out of the can and put a new bag in. You have to tell him to take the full bag out and when he's done doing that then tell him to put another bag in. He doesn't take directions well at all. I'm going to bring up the possibility of Asperger's to his new therapist at his appt tomorrow. He's currently on Abilify (10mg 2x's a day) and it's not doing anything for him.. I'm hoping to get a firm diagnosis so I know what I'm dealing with and how to proceed..

Hmm, he was brought to a general doctor or a psychiatrist? If it was just a general doctor, then you should ask for a referral to a psychiatrist who deals with Autism Spectrum Disorders. The abilify will take a long time to get working, by the way, so don't expect any major changes any-time soon - my spologies.

Good luck with the therapist.

Kevin

He's been seeing psychiatrists for about 4 years now and counselors, too. He's been on the Abilify for close to a year now. He's been on several different meds in different combos since he was about 6 or 7... He's just gotten worse and worse in the past 5-6 years It's like he knows what's right and wrong, but doesn't care. And he has no remorse when he destroys something or hurts someone.. I've been reading through the forums and I'm finding myself saying "Yes! I've been there" or "Hey, that sounds just like my son"... People who don't have kids with these issues just don't understand how hellish day-to-day life can be

There is a potential problem here, where the doctor is right. Your kid may have AS with strong elements of ADHD. Of course knowing this doesn't help you, but it might explain why the doctors refuse to go beyond ADHD when the ADHD is showing so strongly.

TNSe wrote:There is a potential problem here, where the doctor is right. Your kid may have AS with strong elements of ADHD. Of course knowing this doesn't help you, but it might explain why the doctors refuse to go beyond ADHD when the ADHD is showing so strongly.

Would this maybe explain why the ADHD meds aren't working? About the only thing that helped at all was a combo of Ritalin and Risperdal, but he was still having a lot of issues.. Which is why the dr switched him. He's taken almost every ADHD med available.. Vyvanse (sent him over the edge and he was running off), adderall (regular and XR), Ritalin, Depakote, Clonidine, Straterra, Concerta, Risperdal, sertraline, Abilify... I know I'm leaving some out but there's been sooo many... His appt is today and I'll be requesting to have him tested for things other than adhd..

you may not want to hear this but what you describe sounds to me more like autism than AS. IMO those with AS tend to come across as old for their years not immature. a big factor with ADHD is addatives in the diet. try to avoid them. also, try to avoid processed food in general because not all addatives are actually declared on labelling.

Truth is that medicines sometimes do not work as expected on people. I've heard everything from sleeping pills making people more awake to tranquilizers making people hyperactive. I'm not in any position to advice you on medicinal questions.

I hope that the next appointment with the new therapist can help you with more answers.

Right now I can only say what other people have told you, that your situation sounds familiar. Do have in mind however, that if he IS AS, judging by these forums and the people I know, you should have less problems once he gets out of his teens. (Then problems are most likely loaded onto him instead of you)...

What shock_the_money says might be worth a try, but please do realize that you should try to control each such change one at a time. (Try to search google for Diet + Autism/AS.)

whilst i remember, i once saw a program called 'i believe in miracles' presented by jodie kidd on the BBC. there was a boy with autism, i think, that was taken horse riding. prior to this he appeared to be simply not responding to his external environment, which is typical of autism. the transformation was nothing short of amazing. i don't know how this works but i think it might be the soothing rythmic motion of the horse. nevertheless, it certainly did work.