If your child has recently been diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome, then you likely have more questions than answers about this little-known diagnosis.
This article presents answers to some of parents’ most common questions about Aspergers Syndrome.
What IS Aspergers Syndrome?
Aspergers Syndrome, named for Hans Asperger, an Austrian physician, is a milder form of autistic disorder. Both conditions are part of a larger group of neurological disorders known in the US as Pervasive Developmental Disorders, or PDD for short. The 2 most common symptoms are eccentric behavior and self-imposed social isolation. Sometimes speech is affected as well as gait and motor skills. Your child may also be exclusively focused on a particular area of interest, such as cars or astronomy. The social isolation comes from the child wanting to know everything about his or her area of interest and little else. Conversations are usually focused only on that area as well.
What causes Aspergers Syndrome?
Experts believe that Aspergers and autism have underlying biological causes, but are not clear yet on what those causes are. They do know that there are certain brain structure abnormalities, but do not know why they occur.
How are Aspergers Syndrome and autism different?
Aspergers usually begins later in childhood and has a more hopeful outlook. The child tends to function at a higher level with Aspergers too. Aspergers children tend to be clumsy, but overall have less neurological deficits than autistic children.
How does the doctor know for sure that my child has Aspergers Syndrome?
Diagnosis of most any mental/emotional disorder tends to be one of ruling out other conditions and noting certain patterns of behavior. There is no definitive test for Aspergers, but there are certain patterns, including:
- Significant impairment in social interaction, as demonstrated by: – impaired nonverbal communication – failure to develop age-appropriate peer relationships – lack of shared enjoyment of activities/surroundings with others – unable to reciprocate socially and/or emotionally
- Repeated patterns of behavior or interest, such as: – abnormal intensity of interest in one or two specific areas – rigid rituals that serve no functional purpose – repetitive mannerisms, such as hand or finger flapping – persistently preoccupied with parts of objects
- Significant impairment in developmental areas of functioning (social, occupational and other areas)
- No significant delay in language
- No significant delay in cognitive development or learning of age-appropriate self-care skills
If your child meets one or more of the above criteria, then your doctor may suspect Aspergers.
Is my child crazy or mentally ill?
Aspergers Syndrome in and of itself is not a mental illness; it is a developmental disorder. However, it is fairly commonly associated with the following conditions:
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)
- Depression
- Bipolar Disorder
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
How is Aspergers Syndrome treated?
There aren’t any treatments for Aspergers that will make it “go away.” However, by using a combination of approaches that address the three core symptoms of the disorder (poor communication skills, obsessive or repetitive routines and physical clumsiness); you can help your child live a fairly normal life. It’s also important to start treatment as early as possible. The treatment approaches your doctor recommends may include:
- Psychotherapy
- Parent education & training
- Behavior modification
- Social skills training
- Educational interventions
- Medications, such as stimulants, mood stabilizers, antidepressants, and SSRIs
Is there any cure for Aspergers Syndrome?
Unfortunately, there is no cure for this condition, and children do not “grow out” of it either. It is likely that your child will always find social situations and personal relationships to be challenging. But many adults with Aspergers are able to live healthy, productive lives, although they may always need support to do so.
What do I need to do as a parent of a child with Aspergers Syndrome?
The most important thing you can do is to get your child into a treatment regime early and then stick with it, even during the tough times. It will be worth it in the long run if you take steps to support your child’s progress and help him or her adjust and adapt. You can serve as case manager or coordinator, and try to involve all of your child’s caregivers in treatment as much as you can. You should teach your child self-help skills as he/she grows and develops. Look for treatment and educational programs that address your child’s problem areas. Get support for yourself too. You won’t be at your best with your child if you’re exhausted and frustrated.
Hopefully, these answers have addressed some of your most pressing questions. To learn more, search for information on the Web at reputable sites or look for a book at your local bookstore. Also, talk with your pediatrician and never be afraid to keep asking questions until you get answers you can understand.
Ian Williamson
http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/all-about-aspergers-syndrome-50865.html
How many know about Aspergers Syndrome?
I am wondering how many people out her know about aspergers syndrome. If you do then please elaborate on how you came to know and if you don’t then please explain why it has never come up. Thankyou for your time.
My cousin has it.
References :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspurger
I have heard of it, by the TV show Law and Order Criminal Intent. The disease makes you lose your memory and by the time you die you are in a vegetative state. But that is all based on the show I watched.
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famous actresses daughter has it. i knew her in LA, she was diagnosed yrs ago. she also is ocd, borderline schitzophrenic(sp) she is very focused on her and if it doesnt concern her forget it, example, you are with her, you leave the room, therefore you are dead.
she complusivly talks about 5 subjects over and over and over. she cant drive, ut she has enough sense to live alone, lock the door, turn off the stove feed the cats, shower etc.
she refuses to shop so someone does it for her.
but if someone whispers in a theater she screams at them to shut up, if someone is smking a cig across the street she screams obscenities at them not much inthe way of social skills
she enjoys lieing in a field staring at the sky and sunsets for HOURS at a time. or staring from sun up to sundown at the beach in tahitti
if it doesnt focus around her, as she says, you can go f yourself.
she is 40 now and has no friends because it is very draining being around this and the same conversations over and over
its very sad becasue it seems to get worse every year
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Just about everyone I know knows about Asperger’s Syndrome.
One reason that there may be people who don’t know about it, though, is that it was only fairly recently identified. Apparently, before that people were either left undiagnosed or, perhaps, seen as having "regular" autism.
I looked it up because I heard about it a few years ago on television, and I wanted to know more about it. I was actually contacted through my e.mail/this site by a person who was looking to communicate with someone about thinking in words versus thinking in images because he believes he may have Asperger’s Syndrome. I’ve been writing back and forth with him for a couple of weeks now.
The guy who recently stopped being head of Harvard University because he made some remarks that caused a whole big hub-bub across the country was said to be believed to have Asperger’s.
The show, Boston Legal, is another television show that has been dealing with Asperger’s last year and on a weekly basis this season.
I don’t know why it hasn’t seemed to have come up on this site. Maybe people who have Asperger’s aren’t usually people who would have questions about it (because they have probably been told by professionals what their situation is), and maybe people who don’t have it don’t really have questions about it either. This site has only been running since last December, I think.
People are, as far as I’ve ever seen, pretty knowledgeable about Asperger’s for the most part.
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I have family friends whose child has been diagnosed with it, and I work with several people who have been diagnosed with it.
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i had a friend who’s son has aspergers syndrome and as i always do, (i’m very inquisitive) i looked it up on the web.
READ:
Asperger’s Disorder is a milder variant of Autistic Disorder. Both Asperger’s Disorder and Autistic Disorder are in fact subgroups of a larger diagnostic category. This larger category is called either Autistic Spectrum Disorders, mostly in European countries, or Pervasive Developmental Disorders ("PDD"), in the United States. In Asperger’s Disorder, affected individuals are characterized by social isolation and eccentric behavior in childhood. There are impairments in two-sided social interaction and non-verbal communication. Though grammatical, their speech is peculiar due to abnormalities of inflection and a repetitive pattern. Clumsiness is prominent both in their articulation and gross motor behavior. They usually have a circumscribed area of interest which usually leaves no space for more age appropriate, common interests. Some examples are cars, trains, French Literature, door knobs, hinges, cappucino, meteorology, astronomy or history. The name "Asperger" comes from Hans Asperger, an Austrian physician who first described the syndrome in 1944. An excellent translation of Dr. Asperger’s original paper is provided by Dr. Uta Frith in her Autism and Asperger Syndrome.
DSM-IV DIAGNOSTIC CRITERIA FOR ASPERGER’S DISORDER
A.Qualitative impairment in social interaction, as manifested by at least two of the following:
(1) marked impairment in the use of multiple nonverbal behaviors such as eye-to-eye gaze, facial expression, body postures, and gestures to regulate social interaction
(2) failure to develop peer relationships appropriate to developmental level
(3) a lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people (e.g., by a lack of showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest to other people)
(4) lack of social or emotional reciprocity
B.Restricted repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities, as manifested by at least one of the following:
(1) encompassing preoccupation with one or more stereotyped and restricted patterns of interest that is abnormal either in intensity or focus
(2) apparently inflexible adherence to specific, nonfunctional routines or rituals
(3) stereotyped and repetitive motor mannerisms (e.g., hand or finger flapping or twisting, or complex whole-body movements)
(4) persistent preoccupation with parts of objects
C.The disturbance causes clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
D.There is no clinically significant general delay in language (e.g., single words used by age 2 years, communicative phrases used by age 3 years).
E.There is no clinically significant delay in cognitive development or in the development of age-appropriate self-help skills, adaptive behavior (other than in social interaction), and curiosity about the environment in childhood.
F.Criteria are not met for another specific Pervasive Developmental Disorder or Schizophrenia.
at least two of the following)
(a) inability to interact with peers
(b) lack of desire to interact with peers
(c) lack of appreciation of social cues
(d) socially and emotionally inappropriate behavior
2.All-absorbing narrow interest
(at least one of the following)
(a) exclusion of other activities
(b) repetitive adherence
(c) more rote than meaning
3.Imposition of routines and interests
(at least one of the following)
(a) on self, in aspects of life
(b) on others
4.Speech and language problems
(at least three of the following)
(a) delayed development
(b) superficially perfect expressive language
(c) formal, pedantic language
(d) odd prosody, peculiar voice characteristics
(e) impairment of comprehension including misinterpretations of literal/implied meanings
5.Non-verbal communication problems
(at least one of the following)
(a) limited use of gestures
(b) clumsy/gauche body language
(c) limited facial expression
(d) inappropriate expression
(e) peculiar, stiff gaze
6.Motor clumsiness: poor performance on neurodevelopmental examination
(All six criteria must be met for confirmation of diagnosis.)
References :
My husbands boss step-daughter has it. We went over there last January for a Super Bowl party. I didn’t understand at first what was wrong with her. I thought she was a little old to be playing with dolls and she got so upset with our 2 and 3 year old for going in her room and touching any of her stuff. That is when I found out she has Aspergers and the biggest shock was that she was 16 and looked and acted 12.
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yes i have heard of it.One of my brothers has Asperger.My brother wasn’t diagnosed with it until he was in his early 20’s.we always knew there was some thing up with him as he didn’t and still doesn’t communicate well with people,he could and still can sometimes times come across as being cold,has panic attacks when he is around a group of people.He can still feel uncomfortable when he is around his 6 sisters and brothers.but at least now we know he has Asperger,and all know how to somewhat help him,when we feel he needs it.my mum and my brother,and my sisters and I still go to a group meeting,about every 3 months,so we can get some encouragement,and great advice from people who also have a loved one with Asperger.
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My son was diagnosed two years ago at age 5. We’ve (DH and I) read tons since then, and used several different therapies to help him out with some of his developmental deficits (social skills, sensory integration issues, etc.). We’re so proud of who he is and the tremendous strengths that his AS lends to his and our lives. I feel it a privilege to see the world through another set of such creative eyes!
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You wouldn¡¯t believe it but I¡¯ve wasted all day digging for some articles about this. You¡¯re a lifesaver, it was an excellent read and has helped me out to no end. Cheers,