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Mom of an awesome 9 yr old boy

Kristie McCune

Kristie McCune

Active Member
I'm trying to figure out this whole community thing for my son. It's hard to find out where he fits in. He's high functioning, I think. We only had diagnosis by the social worker at school, but he has Asperger's written all over him. I'm just here to see if there is anything else I can do to make his life easier. He's really friendly, loving, and sweet. He doesn't have problems initiating social interactions, goes up to complete strangers and starts conversations. He does not know conversational cues, subject matter, etc. It's all about him and his animals/dinosaurs/skylanders! Again, I just want to make his life easier at school and future and give him all the help I can.
 
Hi and welcome. There are moderators who have posted resources. I will try to find that list and copy/paste that page here (which will take my poking around as I use the app for this forum - and I think that page is easier to find on the website).

There are people of all ranges of function on here and with every range of diagnostic status and some friends and family of same. I myself am very high functioning and have a good job in early stage bio/tech venture capital, but I do have some serious sensory processing issues and dystonia. I have been off and on seizure meds for many years. Simple things like going to the supermarket takes preparation and can still feel like a sensory overload (akin to a bad "acid trip" maybe). I am officially diagnosed (and re-diagnosed) autism spectrum disorder.

Are you in the US? If so, you can watch the PBS POV episode on the autism view of neurotypicals. They did a good job, I believe. If you are not in the US, there are hack work arounds to get a browser to identify as US-associated to stream the show.

Watch Video | Neurotypical: Feature Films | POV | PBS

I have heard this book is good for kids before the middle school years:

Amazon.com: The Asperkid's (Secret) Book of Social Rules: The Handbook of Not-so-obvious Social Guidelines for Tweens and Teens With Asperger Syndrome (9781849059152): Jennifer Cook O'Toole: Books

I mention the sensory issues I have. I will just say, unsolicited, that it is so important to pay attention to the neurology of this and accommodate it, if he has those issues of sensory overload. They are extremely uncomfortable. So I advocate on that aspect of living in an aut/aspie body in a NT world.

If he is an extrovert and interested in people, he can build an understanding of his wiring versus theirs and become his own interpreter. For now, he may be perfectly happy to deliver the monologues to people. It can take years to understand that talking with others is not just sharing information with them. I still cannot make small talk but at least I can better manage my own monologues about my interests (all about humans/science/technology).
 
Welcome to AspiesCentral :)

You should find our little community both helpful and friendly to help you guide him through the tougher spots he may encounter.
It is great to see your concern for his well-being and I applaud you for wanting knowledge to give him a great chance to shine like the star he is.
 
Welcome. Your kid is very lucky for having a caring mother like you. I´m sure he will be great, besides he´s a little boy and it´s always better being diagnosed as a kid. Having asperger´s has a wonderful part too. I wish him the best
 
Best advice I can say don't give up on your son and don't listen what authority say what your son can't do. My father fight hard for me during my childhood. Welcome to our site :)
 
Welcome to our community madame ! I appreciate the effort you are putting for your son and remember this, he will be always special and unique in his own way.
 
Welcome :)

It sounds like he's a bit of a social Aspie, which is quite interesting. His ability to approach people is a great advantage to him, as he obviously doesn't suffer from any anxieties in that regard. The only thing I would be sure to watch out for, is his ability to use his judgement to determine the nature of those he approaches. Speaking as a social Aspie myself, despite our willingness to engage in conversations, we may not always be able to determine the nature of them, or the intentions of others. Of course, allowing him to continue engaging should be encouraged, definitely, but it would be beneficial to teach him what behaviours he should be wary of, as we Aspies can at times be very gullible, and may sometimes fail to spot foul play.

I hope you find many more answers on our forums; it's one of the best resources for information on Asperger's you can find. Feel free to join the discussions in the parenting sections too:
Parenting & Autism Discussions | AspiesCentral.com

Should you wish to find books on AS, you can browse our recommended resources section. Any books by Dr. Tony Attwood are a good place to start:
Resources | AspiesCentral.com
 
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