Autism is becoming more and more prevalent in today’s world. I didn’t even hear the word “autism” until around 20 years ago, let along terminology like Asperger’s and Autism Spectrum. It scares me to learn that more and more children are being diagnosed with conditions that fall along the Autism Spectrum. Why so many? Why all of a sudden? Has it always been like this?
I first learned about Asperger’s about twelve years ago. Our son was around two years old at the time. He was displaying unusual characteristics. As a mom I had a gut feeling that something was “off”. He didn’t behave like our daughter did at his age. I know all children are different, but he was even “different” compared to other children his age.
I Googled his characteristics and “quirks” and found Asperger’s. After reading the description it seemed like our son displayed many of the characteristics. I didn’t want to believe it so I pushed it into the back of my mind and just looked at his quirks are a part of his personality and who his is and that was that.
After our son started school his “quirks” started to concern me a lot more. He had no friends. He had a hard time making friends. He never made eye contact. He was fixated on just one thing – snow. That was all he ever talked about. Snow, snow, snow. Its as if it was the only thing in his mind at any time.
The way he played didn’t seem right either. Instead of moving his cars and trucks around like they were driving he would line them up into different patterns. He never actually played with them. He just lined them up. He did that with a lot of other toys too like plush animals and the food/dishes from my kid’s toy kitchen.
He never liked to watch TV, read books or go to the movies. Loud noises bothered him. He didn’t like the way certain things felt. All of these were “signs” that something wasn’t right.
We took him to a pediatric neurologist. He diagnosed our son with Asperger’s and anxiety, which I suspected all along. That is when everything got turned upside down.
You should NEVERY rely on just one doctor’s opinion. So we had our son checked out by the school, psychologists and others to see if we could get a second Asperger’s diagnoses. We never did. We were told by one that he had ADHD (our son has never been hyperactive). We were told he just had AD (attention deficit). We were also told he was perfectly fine and that he was just a shy kid who hated school.
Our son was born 9 weeks premature. We were even told that his quirks had something to do with that. He did get physical, occupational and speech therapies when he was an infant and toddler. These might just be “kinks” that never worked themselves out.
Our son is 14 years old now and we have yet to get a second Asperger’s diagnosis. He doesn’t show as many signs that he once did, but the social awkwardness, lack of eye contact and seemingly focused on just one thing (New York City) seems to lean towards Asperger’s.
Asperger’s is a higher functioning form of Autism. He is perfectly capable of taking care of himself and going to school. He has a harder time “grasping” the stuff he learns in class. He eventually gets it but it often takes a bit longer.
He has no friends. There are kids he’ll talk to, but he doesn’t have friends that he can hang out with after school and do things with. As soon as he comes home from school he eats, maybe does homework, then watches CNN and plays on his phone. What kind of a life is that? I want him to hang out with friends, go to the mall, movies, go for walks, toss a ball around… something. Anything.
Personally I still think he has Asperger’s and maybe one day another so-called specialist will finally agree with me. Until then we just take life one day at a time and hope and pray that things will change for the better so that he can go on to have a happy and successful life filled with his own family, a career and everything that comes with it.
If he does have Asperger’s I worry about what his adult life would be like. Will he be able to hold down a job? Will he make friends? Will he get married and start his own family? I lose sleep thinking about these things.
There is a new documentary that is released today (April 8, 2014) called Too Sane for This World. The documentary introduces viewers to several adults who fall along the Autism Spectrum. Most of them I believe have Asperger’s, but a couple of them have a wee bit more than that.
These adults discuss how they were diagnosed with their condition and at what age. Some were diagnosed as children. Others didn’t get an official diagnosis until they were adults. When they found out (as adults) it brought a sense of relief, but at the same time new challenges. At least it helped them to understand why they were the way they were.
Hearing their stories made me sad. One young woman talked about how she was bullied I school and how years after she moved away her father (who resided in the same town) would get things thrown at his car by the people who used to bully her.
There are A LOT of social discriminations that people on the Autism Spectrum face. Many people see them as “different” and less of a person. That is not the case at all. These people are able to hold jobs and get married, just like you and I. They just have a harder time with making friends and interacting with other people. Most of the time adults with Asperger’s hold jobs where they work by themselves and tend to live by themselves too.
It was an interesting look inside the lives of adults on the Austim Spectrum. For me, as a parent, it provided me with some relief but at the same time left me with more unanswered questions and concerns about my son.
Too Sane for This World is an eye opening look into the lives of adults with Autism related conditions. If you or anyone you know is on the Autism Spectrum you might want to consider renting or picking up a copy of this film. I see that it’s available on Amazon.
You can also check out the official website, www.TooSaneforThisWorldMovie.com and the film’s official Facebook page.
Here is a trailer for your enjoyment.
Kimberly
*I received a free screener copy in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
Tammy S says
I have a friend whose son also has Asperger’s. He has really grown in to a great young man. He has become more confident in himself and has done a great job i college. He will be graduating this spring and already has been going on job interviews. He has come so much farther then she thought he might when he was first diagnosed. This movie sounds like it would be interesting to watch. I hope it shows others that these people may process things slightly different but that they are still high functioning individuals.