Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Telling family about a diagnosis

KnittingMama I find that so interesting.

Our school is (still) convinced that DS8 is on the spectrum, and the school psychologist intern did a screening on him when he was 6 that came back as being at risk. I bypassed the long wait to have a school district assessment by the main psychologist and went private, and our private psychologist said no way. The school kept insisting, so I went to the highest ranking psychiatrist in the province for Autism related disorders, who also said no way is DS on the spectrum.

I've often wondered (but will never know at this point) what the school district psychologist would have come back with if he had done DS's assessment.

What's really ironic (and makes me furious) is that the school is claiming that our private psychologist's report is not valid documentation. They want me to go back to the psychiatrist (to see if he'll change his mind?), but our pediatrician has flat out said no, she won't refer us again because the request would be denied because nothing has changed.

You can imagine what this has done for my faith in the whole system (sigh). At this point I'm finding it really hard to take anything the school says seriously.

Pictographs work so well with DS that we often have to avoid them... The classic example is the bathroom ones, which always leave out wiping your bottom. Cue the tantrum: "It doesn't say to do that!!!!!!" He started tantrumming when I didn't use the seat-belt on change tables when he was about 13mos... but only on change tables with the pictographs. Oh, and did I ever mention I did complex text -> pictograph translations* for years before I left to have kids? Wez be picture people here. DH will tell you he's not a good drawer, but it's because he tries to draft everything, and hasn't had enough drafting classes to keep up with himself.

DH surprised me, and one person has now been told. It went well from his perspective, and poorly from mine... the person basically ignored the information and focused on the cognitive stuff. Meh. Next on the list is the couple who will have custody in case of yadda-yadda. She works tangentially with kids with ASD, and her SO is a total sweety as well, so I doubt problems there, though they may have more questions than DH is comfortable with.

Thanks guys, as per usual! I'll keep checking in here


*think: pictographs to explain changing the wording of a corporate by-law -- it was truly amusing at times

In our district, there is money available to make accommodations for an ASD diagnosis (they can call in specialists, hire an aide, provide social skills classes, etc), but not necessarily for more minor or different diagnoses (e.g. SPD or giftedness).

If the school believes a student needs X, Y, and Z accommodations, but the only way to get funding for them is to claim ASD, then that's what they're likely to do, whether or not that's the true cause of difficulties.