Back in May we announced that our little Jeffrey had a diagnosis of either Asperger's Syndrome or High Functioning Autism and that the Doctor wanted to wait another year to see how his language came along before distinguishing between the two. Well, this morning I took Jeffrey to see a specialist down at the Dayton Children's Medical Center for a follow up/second opinion. I immediately liked the doctor, she was so nice and Jeffrey didn't even need time to warm up to her or the 4th year resident she had with her. The resident was able to play with Jeffrey while she and I talked and she was watching his behavior all at the same time. We discussed his history and whatever concerns I had. The first thing that came up was his speech delay. She told me that a speech delay automatically ruled out an Asperger's diagnosis. She also told me that when you walk in a room, you immediately know if a kid is "Autistic." Jeffrey was just too social and responsive for that diagnosis, however, she still believed him to be on the "autism spectrum," just listed as Pervasive Development Disorder (PDD) not otherwise specified. Pretty much meaning our little Jeffrey is just too original to be put into a more specific category. :) I am very happy with the diagnosis and feel that it is the right one. We were in there for 2 1/2 hours and I believe she had all of the tools and time she needed to make an accurate diagnosis. A main concern that I, as well as other parents have had about this diagnosis process is they feel the doctor doesn't spend enough time with the child for the full diagnosis and I felt a little like that with our doc in Tennessee, but I'm so happy to say that that isn't the case this time and we feel very fortunate. I recommend anyone get second opinions if they aren't entirely certain about the first one, especially in this ever growing field of study. Thanks to everyone who is so patient and loving with our little Jeffrey, he is one in a million. :)
p.s. the tooth-fairy visited our house for the first time ever last night!
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4 comments:
Well I agree, Jeffrey is toooooo special and unique to put into a set category. So glad you found a good, "time-full" doctor there. Hope you've found a good speech path, too. :-) And tell Ben I hope the TF was extra good to him! Can't believe he's old enough to lose a tooth!
Love you guys!
Donna
Well I agree, Jeffrey is toooooo special and unique to put into a set category. So glad you found a good, "time-full" doctor there. Hope you've found a good speech path, too. :-) And tell Ben I hope the TF was extra good to him! Can't believe he's old enough to lose a tooth!
Love you guys!
Donna
Congrats. I'm glad you felt better about this diagnosis. That's a struggle.
I'm not sure if my mom told you, but that is the EXACT same diagnosis that my sister was given at age 6. It's nice to have a diagnosis, but at times, it's difficult to feel like your kid doesn't just have some easy label that others understand. They are each very different and you have to get to know them well to really understand what difficulties they have may have in various areas. Just wanted you to know that you're not alone and others have been in the same boat! :)
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