Hi Kim,
He doesn't sound any more intense than the gifted kids here. That is probably because the gifted kids here tend toward the higher LOG (levels of giftedness) and it seems like there is a general tendency that as they get 'more unusually gifted' they get more 'unusually intense' as well.
I would reccomend a second opinion from someone who can do a psychoeducational evaluation - IQ and Achievement tests. It would be good to find a someone who is very familiar with the more unusual LOGs and also AS.
Two testers who come to mind are:
Amend Psychological Services, 'Dr. Ed' - who is one of the cowriters of
Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults: ADHD, Bipolar, OCD, Asperger's, Depression, and Other Disorders and a totally awesome guy.
Author(s): James T. Webb, Ph.D., ABPP-Cl, Edward R. Amend, Psy.D., Nadia E. Webb, Psy.D., Jean Goerss, M.D., Paul Beljan, Psy.D., ABPdN, F. Richard Olenchak, Ph.D.
http://www.giftedbooks.com/productdetails.asp?id=34www.amendpsych.com/The other tester is:
Gifted Resource Center of New England
Directed by Deirdre V. Lovecky, Ph.D. "I have been a clinical psychologist for more than 25 years, and specialize currently in working with gifted children. ...
www.grcne.com/ who wrote
Different Minds: Gifted Children with AD/HD, Asperger Syndrome, and Other Learning Deficits
At least look through both books, but it's really hard to shake a misdiagnosis from someone of authority wearing a white coat- so I would just advise you to choose one of these experts and plan a vacation around testing by someone who knows LOG and AS.
The root of the problem is that these high LOG kids are rare enough that most teachers and doctors and psychologists think that they know all about them - and they don't.
It is true that some highly gifted kids who have AS don't looks like the more typical presentation of AS. If this is true, then you want to know from someone that you can trust, who can guide you. The 'a says aaa' likely hasn't gone away, right?
Post more, longer posts are usually better, and read up on the challenges facing the parents here. I think you'll start to see that the tags in clothing and hyper-reactions to smells is quite common.
((We couldn't bring DS into a Chinese restaurant for 3 years for every a minute without a tantrum - ages 3-6.))
Love and More Love,
Grinity
