Just before Thanksgiving Matthew's doctor changed his diagnosis. A couple of weeks before Thanksgiving we met with the principal's at his school. He had been getting into trouble for retaliating against bullies and we wanted to share his side and see what needed to be done. After speaking with them for about an hour they had us talk to the school counselor. She picked up on a few things that made her think he had more than just ADD/OCD. I have thought so for a long time but hadn't pushed the issue. She thought that he was showing signs of Asperger's Syndrome. I knew exactly what she was talking about because I had studied up on it years ago when Matthew was younger. We already had a regularly scheduled doctor appointment a few days later so I talked with the doctor about it and he changed his diagnosis. We haven't had all of the testing done but the doctor said that he fit the criteria. I have done a lot of research on my own and I believe he fits the criteria. It's hard to get a diagnosis for Asperger's because it is so hard to understand.
Asperger's falls under the spectrum of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Which yes, that means that Matthew is a little bit autistic. This would come as a surprise to those that know him unless they have spent a lot of time with him and understand Asperger's. Now that I am talking about this more and talking to some other parents that are familiar with Asperger's they are telling me that they can see it in Matthew. I have a dear friend who I trust. She has an 8 year old son with Asperger's. She also has an older son, who is Matthew's age. Matthew has spent the night with them a couple of times. When I talked to her about this, she told me that she had seen it but hadn't wanted to say anything to me because she didn't want to upset me. I assured her that I wasn't offended, I trust her opinion since she has been dealing with this for several years. She gave me some books to read on it and they have been very helpful. I am learning all I can so that I can help Matthew as much as I can. One thing that we have decided is that we will home school him after the first of the year. I have already started working on getting him enrolled into the GA Cyber Academy. If he can get into that, it will be great because it's free and it's considered public school. Just taught at home.
Now some of you may be wondering, what is Asperger's Syndrome? As I mentioned it is a form of Autism. Autism is a whole spectrum of disorders from very moderate to very severe. Matthew is what I like to call slightly autistic. There are some with Asperger's that cannot function as well as Matthew. Asperger's is on the high-functioning end of Autism (which means he functions at a higher level than those with low-functioning Autism). Symptoms of Asperger's include:
- Engaging in one-sided, long-winded conversations, without noticing if the listener is listening or trying to change the subject
- Displaying unusual nonverbal communication, such as lack of eye contact, few facial expressions, or awkward body postures and gestures
- Showing an intense obsession with one or two specific, narrow subjects, such as baseball statistics, train schedules, weather or snakes
- Appearing not to understand, empathize with or be sensitive to others' feelings
- Having a hard time "reading" other people or understanding humor
- Speaking in a voice that is monotonous, rigid or unusually fast
- Moving clumsily, with poor coordination
Pretty much all of these apply to Matthew to some extent. Some just more than others. Some trait's of Asperger's were more present when he was younger. He has learned to conform to more "normal" standards as he has grown. That is the thing about Asperger's, they can learn to cope but will always feel different than everyone else. They feel that they don't fit in. They often feel that they are very much alone. This is alot of what Matthew has been going through lately. We've been having some issues at home and alot of issues at school. It doesn't help when some of his teachers are not the least bit understanding! I am very disappointed in the school and am definitely feeling that home school is the best option for Matthew. We are still working out the details for that to happen.
Sorry this was such a long post. I'll try not to make it so long next time! Keep us in your prayers and especially Matthew with all that he is dealing with.
"But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19
