KSY wrote:
This is an area where giftedness can mask disability. Not true in all cases, but true in ours.
Hi Erin:
Wow, can I relate to your posts!
I echo what DeeDee has written in full, especially the point above. Our salty old developmental pediatrican summed it up best: "No child has been harmed from having an assessment or receiving early intervention, but plenty of children have suffered for not having received timely support."
My daughter, who is 4.5, was diagnosed at age three with PDD-NOS. That means she has characteristics/behaviors associated with autism, but not in the right combination and/or level to meet the formal criteria for a diagnosis of autism or Asperger's. However, kids with PDD-NOS face many of the same challenges as kids with autism or AS, and that is certainly the case with our daughter. She is also highly gifted.
To the lay person, and even to some professionals who don't have a background in dealing with ASD (our initial pediatrician, for instance) she might just come across as yet another quirky smart kid. Because she was reading at such an early age, engaging in witty exchanges with adults, and was an all around happy kid (as if happiness and ASD are mutually exclusive ;-), my husband thought I was totally overreacting in wanting to have her assessed. It was the most difficult period in our otherwise solid marriage (only after DD's diagnosis did I learn that it is *very* common for one parent to struggle more than the other with the possibility of an ASD diagnosis).
Still, in my heart of hearts, I knew that there was something "different" about DD -- particularly when I watched her around other kids her age. She wasn't interacting in the same manner as her peers, nor was she engaging in the same type of imaginative play. Add to it the precocious reading and sensory issues, and I just felt that there was something more in play than simply giftedness.
For us, getting DD's diagnosis turned out to be a blessing of sorts because it gave us a much clearer picture of what we needed to do to address her needs. She began an intense early intervention program (mainly social skills) at age three and is now thriving. I shudder to think where we'd be right now had we taken a wait and see approach with her.
My advice on this one would be to trust your "mamma bear instinct." If you have concerns about your son's development -- and certainly I can appreciate why -- your best bet is to probe these with a qualified professional.
Best wishes...I really can relate to how scary it is to even contemplate something on the spectrum. For me, however, the "what if" stage was far worse than actually living with the diagnosis.
Cheers from Sydney,
Kristen
