{"id":28910,"date":"2021-09-13T10:19:24","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T09:19:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pinkoddy.co.uk\/?p=28910"},"modified":"2021-09-13T10:19:28","modified_gmt":"2021-09-13T09:19:28","slug":"identification-diagnosis-and-support-strategies-for-those-who-are-autistic-ad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pinkoddy.co.uk\/blog\/2021\/09\/13\/identification-diagnosis-and-support-strategies-for-those-who-are-autistic-ad\/","title":{"rendered":"Identification, Diagnosis and Support Strategies for those who are Autistic #AD"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This is a sponsored post<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early identification and diagnosis that someone is Autistic is important in order to discover the right strategies for them. Without the right tools then this can lead to problems with mental health. This post is about my own personal experience on what it has been like as a mother whose child was diagnosed as having Asperger\u2019s Syndrome. Also I have included some signs and strategies based on my experiences and knowledge through my Psychology degree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How Our Son was Diagnosed as Autistic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our eldest son was diagnosed that he is Autistic (Asperger\u2019s Syndrome) when he was ten years old. Previous to that I had repeatedly been told that his struggles were just down to my poor parenting<\/a>. It is because of this that I feel it particularly important that people are able to identify signs of being autistic in order to seek an early diagnosis. This can help early on to find strategies that work, helping mental health as opposed to trying to \u201cfix\u201d them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Signs of being Autistic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First of all let me begin with saying that when my son was 2 years old I had identified a number of things that he struggled with. My half-brother had been diagnosed with Asperger\u2019s Syndrome and I believed that my son had it too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He wasn\u2019t sleeping, struggled with communication and was very violent. Routines were very rigid, he hated change. His diet was also very limited, he was particular about how his food was arranged and if it was touching. Hygiene was a funny issue as he wasn\u2019t very good at his own personal hygiene, but yet wouldn\u2019t share the same spoon as his brother to eat a mouthful of ice-cream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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These are just some early indicators off the top of my head. In fact I had to keep making lists and really focusing on what they were. After a number of failed assessments it was determined that it was in fact he was not autistic, but instead my parenting was at fault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poor Parenting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately this is something that a large number of parents of children who are neurodivergent face all the time. Then, and especially now, I wish that this was the case. If only all those parenting courses that I was sent on could help. Instead it was just wasted time teaching me the wrong things.  If only he had had an early diagnosis then all that time could have taught me strategies to help him, and less damage to his mental health would have been done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diagnosis Process to determine he was Autistic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It took until he was 10 years old to be diagnosed as autistic, despite the fact I had been saying I thought he was since he was two! I wish I had utilised private psychiatry<\/a> services. This would have meant he could have had important early intervention to help him. His mental health is suffering now<\/a> and I feel that this would have helped a lot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

School Identification<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A number of parents are like myself that they only really receive help when the school also identifies what they believe to be the cause of the difficulties as being due to the child being autistic. Our son had moved around a few schools. One in Wales was amazing with the Head teacher helping him with things such as being more comfortable with eye contact for example. Although in hindsight if we had known it may have been better to know that actually it was better to let him avoid eye contact but that\u2019s a whole other post\/issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It was when he started at a new junior school when he was seven that he finally received some support. My son had many issues there – such as fitting in socially, he rules of games for example. It was here that I was asked if I had ever heard of Asperger\u2019s Syndrome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autistic Assessment<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As I say he did not received a diagnosis until he was 10. It was a long process of being assessed by many people. This journey would have been cut short early on if I didn\u2019t have a degree in Psychology. Someone came out to observe him and it was only when they spoke to me (and I used my knowledge) that they agreed that he should be referred!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Areas of difficulty for those who are Autistic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There are some basic areas of difficulty which may indicate that someone might be autistic, they are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n