Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional OE's or ASD? questioning longstanding diagnosis

NanRos,
Some things to consider:

independence and self-direction and thinking outside the box - A child with Aspeger's will disengage, which is not quite the same as independence. They will phase out of conversation, classroom, etc as if it didn't relate to them, but usually it is in a sort of aimless manner. It's not that they disengage to do x, y, or z, they just disengage and then find something to entertain themselves. They also tend to be rules sticklers, very literal children. A child with this diagnosis will cling to rules, hold them up for others to see, and get very upset at someone bending them. I think this is part and parcel of their dislike of change.

As I've said before, the absolute clearest thing for me with the Aspeger's is his inability to handle changes in schedule, even when they should be positive. For instance, his school has a field day, so they all get to run around and be outside and enjoy a gorgeous day with no school work. On this day, despite being extremely excited about field day, my son will have a horrible day. He will be tense, and nervous...unsure of things around him. He will be likely to have a tantrum at some point, it might not be long-lasting but it will probably happen. He will be really upset at himself also, because he is gifted and understands that he is sabotaging his day without any idea of how to stop it.

He is also fixated on animals. Originally, I thought he was too broad to be AS, because it is any animal, any disease related to animals, and any prehistoric animals. But, it is always animals. So he asks tons of questions, but almost all of them have to do with animals...even if that is not the current topic of conversation or if it is otherwise an odd place to ask about them.

This doesn't mean your son would act exactly this way if he had AS, but hopefully this is enough of a mental image that it can help you consider whether the diagnosis is right.