AboutMichelle Fattig Expertise I can answer questions about educational testing, autism, Asperger's Syndrome, ADD/ADHD, Special Education, IEP, Learning Disabilities, Sensory Processing, Parent Advocacy, Response to Intervention, living and parenting with disabilities, parent rights in special education, school psychology, and more. I cannot provide a medical diagnosis.
Experience I am a school psychologist, medical technologist, author of the Annie Books series: Experience Aspeger's Syndrome and Attention Deficits Through the Eyes of a Child, RTI facilitator, ILCD facilitator, parent advocate, presenter, and researcher. My children and I have Asperger's, ADD/ADHD, and learning disabilities.
Organizations National Association of School Pyschologists, American Medical Technologists, Learning Disabilities Association of Nebraska
Education/Credentials Ed.S. in School Psychology, doctoral studies in SPED Law, SPED Systems Enhancement Leadership, and doctoral candidate Education Leadership. MT(AMT) and MLT(ASCP)
Expert: Michelle Fattig Date: 3/19/2008 Subject: my childs behavior
Question hi, i have a 3 year old boy and hes always been withdrawn when socialising, but normally quite a good little boy. lately his behavourior has got alot worse. he dont seem to listen and is very demanding. if he wants something and i say no he goes mad and gets really angry and starts hitting, spitting at me etc. he also finds it hard to share things and play with his little sister aged 2. if she tries to play with him whilst hes doing something he gets angry and normally head butts her. he has tamtrums over the smallest things and sometimes for no reason at all. he seems very forward for his age and takes everything in and has a very good memory.he also wont give up his juice bottle and is very obbsesive over it. after thinking he could have autism or as or adhd i have read somethings about autism and some things on there relate to me too. for example i get obsessived with certain clothes etc and get really upset when they wear out etc. and i have always found it hard to socialise and make friends. i get easyly upset and just break down in tears. i avoid eye contact when i can as i always feel awkward and that there laughting at me. im fussy with the way i do things and get upset with my partner if he dont do it right or how i do it. i have low self esteam and confidence and never feel like i am or look good enough. i also find it very hard to make discions and hate change. if something changes i find it hard to cope with. with my sons behaviour lately i feel like i have failed and get depressed. i want to talk and tell people how i really feel but feel ashamed and that i cant so i tend to bottle things up. do you think its possible we could both have it? or do you think my son could have as or adhd? please help as i dont know what to do.
marie.
Answer It is very possible that you are both demonstrating some characteristics associated with Asperger's, high functioning autism, and/or ADHD. The following is an article excerpt from a paper I wrote entitled,"Women and Girls on the Spectrum: Autism, High Functioning Autism, and Asperger’s Syndrome The Underserved and Unrecognized Population," which you may find helpful:
One reason why the prevalence in girls and women is so low in comparison to boys and men may be the fundamental lack of awareness of what Asperger’s Syndrome “looks like” in females. Traditional frameworks may indicate that the female with Asperger’s Syndrome is just shy, quiet, perfect at school so her parents must be exaggerating, tomboyish, moody, overly competitive, aloof, gothic, depressed, anxious, or a perfectionist. The Viennese pediatrician, Asperger, described a group of children with similar characteristics, observing that “the children’s social maturity and social reasoning were delayed and some aspects of their social abilities were quite unusual at any stage of development,” (Attwood, 2006, p. 2). More specifically, the pediatrician included aspects of difficulty to include social skills, friendship skills, conversational skills, pedantic speech patterns, tendency towards egocentrism and perseverative preoccupation in a particular area of interest, lack of emotional control, and an immaturity of empathetic skills. These children were noted to have difficulty attending in class and demonstrated learning deficits, along with organizational, motoric, and sensory concern. The difficulty in understanding and acknowledging autism, primarily high functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome, by the medical, psychological, and psychiatric community, can lead to misdiagnosis and even failure to provide the services needed for students (Autism Today, 2007). A very simplistic view of the disorder could be to consider women or girls with Asperger’s as perceiving or thinking about the world very differently than other people might (Attwood, 2006, p. 2). Autism is not a disease, or a reaction; it is a developmental neurobiological difference in brain functions. Women or girls with autism may evidence difficulty in social interactions, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and odd or restricted activities and interests. Symptoms of autism are usually recognized during the first three years of childhood (Introduction, Autism, 2007); however, higher functioning autism or Asperger’s Syndrome is often not recognized until children are of school age. The core characteristics of Asperger’s Syndrome include limited or restricted social awareness and understanding; difficulty or inability to maintain reciprocity or give and take conversationally; and intense or restricted interest in a subject (Attwood, 2006, p. 2).
Autism impacts normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. The disorder makes it hard to communicate with others and relate to the social world. In some cases, aggressive and/or self-injurious behavior may be present (Autism Society of Delaware, 2005); however, internal behaviors such as withdrawal, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and social isolation may be just as prevalent (Fattig, 2007). Distinguishing between Asperger’s Syndrome, Bipolar disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and other mood disorders can be difficult because symptoms such as obsessive compulsive behavior, odd habits, bouts of rage or sadness can be present in all of the diagnostic criteria to some degree, and young children with Asperger’s, bipolar, or other mood disorders have similar symptoms that lead to poor social development skills, educational delay or concern, behavioral issues, and anger control difficulties (Bipolar Disorder, 2007).
In the female brain, the prefrontal cortex is the “queen that rules the emotions and keeps them from going wild. It puts the brakes on the amygdala,” and the hippocampus is “the elephant that never forgets a fight, a romantic encounter, or tender moment – and won’t let you forget it,” (Brizendine, 2006, p. xiii). Whereas a boy with Asperger’s may be more inclined to act out, a female with Asperger’s may be more inclined to act inward, leading to anxiety, depression, self-abuse, or risk of abusive relationships. Having Asperger's Syndrome, we tend to demonstrate deficits in social interaction and unusual responses to the environment, similar to those in autism, (Yale Developmental Disability Clinic, 2007, p. 1). Typical adult symptoms can also include an inability to think in abstract ways, difficulty empathizing with others, difficulty understanding another person’s point of view, difficulty with conversational skills, difficulty controlling emotions and difficulty or inability to manage appropriate social interaction (Better Health Channel, 2007). According to the diagnostic definition, symptoms of Asperger’s include: “impaired ability to utilize social cues such as body language, irony, or other ‘subtext’ of communication; restricted eye contact and socialization; limited range of encyclopedic interests; perseverative, odd behaviors; didactic, verbose, monotone, droning voice; ‘concrete’ thinking; over-sensitivity to certain stimuli; and unusual movements,” (Kutscher, 2006, p. 1)
You may request an free multidisciplinary evaluation through your local school district for your son, in order to determine if he would benefit from early development services (also free). I hope this is helpful, and I wish you the best of luck.
