Resources -

[kyburg]

I'll admit, autism as a childhood issue? Scares the beejesus out of me because I don't understand it. It's in the news a lot right now as recommendations are now coming out that all children - all - get screened for Autism Spectrum Disorders twice by age two.

Nifty. But what are they screening for? What's normal? (Because, to be frank? The chatter I hear about it sounds familiar. Like, I went to school with classrooms full of kids who likely had some kind of ASD and never spent a day in a therapist's office. Evar.)

Wonder no longer. Florida State University (yes, the guys who put Terri Schiavo's CAT scans on the web as part of a class taught on medical ethics) is back, with side-by-side videos where you can see for yourself - typical - and 'at risk.'

http://www.autismspeaks.org/video/glossary.php

You'll need IE - Firefox not supported yet. Surprise.

Adoptive children who have been institutionalized? Oh, you can expect a lot of this to look much the same - initially. Some kids will show both RAD and PDD - oh, very yes. It's been made very clear - be prepared.

This is great for me. I now know what to look for, at least. And when. Side by side.

Comments

[marnanel.livejournal.com]

There has been a lot of anger and upset about this in the autistic community.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

I can understand why. But I also can't help but think the requirement for screening is a welcome one.

More of an identified need means more resources. And for something they currently are estimating is a 1 in 150 (up from 1 in 167 a year ago) occurrence, that can't be bad.

Remember, this is Florida. They kind of hit people over the head with a nuke when they want to make a point about something.

[marnanel.livejournal.com]

Sure, i don't myself think screening is a bad thing; I'm just saying that people are upset. I suppose people are upset over everything.

You might be interested in looking over this blog, if you haven't seen it before, btw.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

Yanno, if I had to deal with autism every day - I'd be upset. Every day.

[malibrarian.livejournal.com]

If you're worried about psychological issues you might want to spend your waiting time reading Attaching in Adoption by Deborah Gray. While the book does repeat itself a bit, it's helpful to have a description of what behaviors might lead you to worry and take action and what's normal for that age. And the tales of what can be accomplished with help are inspiring.

And then you'll get your kid and never need it again.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

Got it, read it and have three more on the same subject on the shelf!

[bleudaisy.livejournal.com]

One of my best friends is a teacher for autistic children in a special school for autistic children. In addition, she has an 8 year old son who was adopted at age 3 and he has what I believe is termed behavioral attachment disorder. I have spent many years seriously considering adoption, but I have to admit that I would hesitate to adopt a child unless they had been tested and found to be free of both these disorders. I know very well that it is quite easy and possible to have a child myself (naturally) with these disorders, but to choose a child with these types of problems is something that I don't think I (personally) could deal with emotionally. I am amazed to see how much patience it takes to teach and raise children with these levels of disability. I bow to anyone who is able to do such; however, I just don't think I can raise a child who hits over 200 times per day or bites over 150 times per day. My friend is still nursing a hand that is nearly disabled from a bite to the base of her thumb where the child she was teaching would not let go for over 5 minutes. My praise, respect and sincere admiration goes to all who have the strength to raise these types of adoptive children as I know they need loving homes.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

I think the term is Reactive Attachment Disorder - but like in autism, they also describe the affects as a spectrum disorder, with some features present in some kids, not so much in others.

You adopt, you accept that your child is going to have some level of attachment issue. Always. Think a moment. Your adoptive child, regardless of age, has had their connection to their biological parent severed - traumatically, even. (My daughter from China? Will have been abandoned by her parents and then been in institutional care for however long after that.)

Over 6,000 kids a year from China alone. You'd hear more about RAD if it was that destructive by itself.

You also hear about the adoptive parents who got jailed when they found their children (most adopted out of foster care) in cages. You can see how you can get there, neh? (It's still WRONG in all kinds of ways.)

That said, a child that hits continuously? Is not normal. A child that bites that frequently? Is not safe in the general population. And it can happen for any number of reasons, besides adoption - I would have some very strong concerns for anyone being left to fend for themselves alone with children that at-risk for violent behavior. I believe the ratio is never more than 2 to 1; at least here in California, that's the recommended ratio. Five minutes? That's enough time to pick up the child and call 911, say I.

I'm also not in favor of allowing that kind of behavior to continue, naturally. While I won't strike a child - you would need to find something age-appropriate to 1) get the message across that won't be tolerated and 2) protect yourself and the community. Wonder what they use...I'm thinking mouthguards.

[ersatzinsomnia.livejournal.com]

I'll admit, autism as a childhood issue? Scares the beejesus out of me because I don't understand it.

You need real info on this? I happen to know an expert.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

I have a whole team here, courtesy of my agency. And the more I learn about it, the longer my list of "people to call" grows. And the more prevalent they find autism to be in the general population? The more the list of therapists and experts grows as well.

If your expert wants to weigh in on the latest stuff, that would be more than welcome.

[ersatzinsomnia.livejournal.com]

My mother is the program coordinator of the Emory Autism Resource Center. She sets up educational programs around the state in coordination with the schools and does diagnoses of individual students or gets called in on consults. In her spare time she lectures on it around the US (and occasionally around the world) and has published three texts outlining school programming.

I wouldn't presume to say I could get someone an appointment for a diagnosis, but if you've got a specific concern, I could get a pretty authoritative answer.

[kyburg.livejournal.com]

My mother was a nursing supervisor when she retired, and had entered nursing during WWII. Talk abut having a resource handy - ain't Moms great?

I would imagine so! *tucks away*