Parents face all manner of difficult decisions regarding their children, and those whose children have special needs have a load more on top.. One of the things I have come across quiet a lot with parents of children who have (or may have) Aspergers is whether to tell the child about it.
Some feel that the labelling will make the condition worse.
Some just want to want their children to be as normal as possible and not be bullied
And of course, one of the things about Aspergers is that each and every individual with the condition is unique and so will be effected differently.
Our son was 10 years old before he finally got a diagnosis. He was having trouble relating to others and finding it difficult at school. He felt hated, the World was against him. He obviously saw a lot of people to get his diagnosis too (and he’s extremely bright and inquisitive so wanted to know why). So we decided that it was the right thing for OUR son to tell him. We told him before he was diagnosed that this maybe the reason he had trouble making the sense of the World around him and the people in it. That sometimes he needed to learn what came naturally to others in order to get people to behave in a way he’d prefer.
I still feel this is what was best for him. Now possibly faced with the same question again for my youngest I couldn’t say it would be the same. He’s only 3 and so really doesn’t need to be told anything – he’s just who he is. If later it turns out he definitely does and we feel it would benefit him to know then of course we would.
I know a lady who when she attends an Aspergers Support Group her son thinks she goes to make the tea as he doesn’t want to believe he has it and doesn’t want to talk about it. Another lady felt her son was so borderline she’d rather he just live life as “normally” as possible.
So if you’re asking yourself whether to tell your child or not then you really have to just think about your child and what will be best for your situation. Good luck.