<p>Yes, the more kids “zombied” down, the more additional families will be advised going this route. There is no other country in a world that zombie down its offsprings as much. How we expect them to be normal after they go off these dangerous drugs?</p>
<p>The “blow outs” some of these kids experience are far beyond the normal tantrum. One of my kids has a non-verbal learning disability, and some Asperger’s traits (although is not officially diagnosed on the spectrum, although a couple of psychologists have offered the opinion that they believe she would have that diagnosis if we pursued it). Her tantrums as a pre-schooler were on a whole different level than the other preschoolers we knew. The level, intensity, and length (and complete lack of control on her part) were far beyond what a typical parent has experienced. There is an underlying disability that makes this different than the typical tantrum in the grocery store because a kid didn’t get candy or something like that.</p>
<p>MiamiDAP, Aspergers is not considered treatable with any kind of drug, so this has nothing to do with the prescription of medication in kids for behavior issues. Obviously there are some medication options for some kinds of learning disabilities, but this is not one of them.</p>
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<p>I think we’re getting a little OT here…but unless something new has happened within the last 24 hours, there are no medications to treat a learning disability. There are medications to treat other issues that sometimes occur within the LD population but not to treat the LD itself.</p>
<p>Just FYI…there are also kids on the spectrum who have coexisting medical conditions that can be treated with medication.</p>
<p>BUT…this is a preschooler here…and I saw no mention that a Functional Behavior Analysis had been done to determine what precitated the concerning behaviors and the follow up…no behavior plan had been implemented based on the findings of the Functional Behavior Assessment. With any behavioral concern…this is the first step.</p>
<p>I agree with Thumper and all her supporters. I would like to simply add a thought. Yes, it is possible that some 5 y.o. behaviors fall within the broad range which are “normal” at that stage of development. Yes, it is possible some bright (or gifted) kids are so bored in pre-K that they act out. But, if a child does have early signs of a disorder for which he could obtain help, FGS, get him seen by some pro who can monitor and advise. IMO, this often means more than the pediatrician.</p>
<p>We had a similar situation with my dau, at four. My advice: don’t let anyone’s “happy ending” tale reassure you to the point of ignoring valid concerns. It takes extraordinary committment, savvy and detached observation to assess your own kid. By all means, get a good child therapist involved. IME, if they feel the kid is “within range,” they will let you know. Good luck.</p>
<p>Without specifically trying to take one side or the other, I think that any parent of a child who may be diagnosed as having a learning disability, behavior issue, etc, should take a look at the community and schools that they live in, and see how prevalent treating hyperactivity or other issues is. We’ve all read about overmedication in kids and there is a concern that kids today are prescribed more medication than they were years ago.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that this particular kid should or should not be prescribed medication, but if the school district recommends medication to a large percentage of kids, that’d be good for the parents to know. It would provide frame of reference to understand the school’s perspective. Or, if they rarely recommend evaluation, that’s also be a frame of reference and good to know.</p>
<p>I’m not sure that knowing this is much different than knowing the percentage of students on free or reduced lunch, and that is widely available and circulated information.</p>
<p>Agreed, thumper. I was thinking ADHD, but technically that is not a learning disability. My main point was that the OP’s concern (possible Aspergers) is not treatable by medication, so discussion of overmedication raised by some other posters really doesn’t fit in on this thread.</p>
<p>The OP mentioned NOTHING about medication in the OP or subsequent posts. They wanted to know what to do to either confirm or not the concerns presented by the preschool.</p>
<p>Regardless of what was or was not mentioned in the brief and initial meeting, it would still be beneficial as a frame as reference to understand whether diagnosing LDs/medication/etc was a common and prevelant activity at the school or something uncommon and infrequent.</p>
<p>And whether or not medication will eventually be suggested for the OPs kid, many kids are medicated today and many of those have LDs. Whether or not hyperactivity will be diagnosed in addition to Aspergers remains to be seen. It very well could be, or not.</p>
<p>I’m a big advocate of listening and learning all the information that one can. In this case, learning the schools position and frame of reference would be very valuable.</p>
<p>^^^ In my experience, it’s often the other way around. Many public school districts are not responsive until there are real problems - either a significant delay compared to grade level in terms of academics, or a student that is disruptive to the point where there is no question. It’s a matter of budget - few districts have the resources to provide optimal services to each and every child who would benefit. The sad thing is that by then, there is not only the academic and social delays to deal with, but the emotional consequences as well. </p>
<p>It’s kind of like financial aid- those with the greatest need are served, while others are missed completely or “gapped.” Any parent who suspects there is an issue should either seek out independent professional evaluation or pursue very aggressively within the district, as outlined by thumper.</p>
<p>The OP did not mention medication. I believe MiamiDAP is the one who turned the conversation that way.</p>
<p>Our evaluation (as mentioned before, done by the pediatric mental health outpatient unit of a local hospital) included input from the school and both parents, along with their own testing and observation (about 1.5 days of various testing with D). This seemed like a pretty through process to me, and looking back several years later, their results seem pretty close to correct. A school evaluation would not be nearly as thorough, and the schools sometimes have some incentive toward (or away) from specific diagnosis. Honestly, in many school districts, I also think they are not usually as qualified to evaluate the full spectrum of possibilities as the type of team that evaluated D.</p>
<p>BTW,
Einstein would definitely be diagnosed with whatever (the guy could not speak well until 9). He behaviour in school was horrible also. We are zombiying down potential Einsteins as we speak, yes, we zombie them down to “normal” levels. Who is loosing in this? Is it one personal failure or country as a whole? Again, compared our kids’ academic level to the rest of the world, we are not winners. There is no way we can teach kids on drugs at the level that they need in contemporary job market.</p>
<p>Einstein would definitely be diagnosed with whatever (the guy could not speak well until 9)
Einstein actually spoke in complete sentences sometime between two & three yrs, according to his biographers.</p>
<p>[Albert</a> Einstein’s Biographers Disprove Claim of a Learning Disability](<a href=“http://dyslexia.learninginfo.org/einstein.htm]Albert”>Albert Einstein's Biographers Disprove Claim of a Learning Disability)</p>
<p>There are many medications & nutritional supplementation/diet adjustments/therapeutic modalities that can make a difference in day to day life for those with neuro differences.
Zombification- is far from necessary for treatment.</p>
<p>MiamiDAP, I wish you would start another threat to talk about overmedication of kids. This is a kid with Aspergers, which is NOT treated with medication (doesn’t do a thing for it). You keep bringing this up, and it is not related to the OP’s question.</p>
<p>For the other thread :)… there are a lot of kids who do better in school with medication that helps them focus (there is a reason there is a “black market” in drugs used to treat ADD among high school students – it can improve their focus on days when they take important tests).</p>
<p>But, that is a separate debate, so you really should open a separate thread if you want to rant about overmedication of kids in today’s society. Nobody is talking about medicating this kid the OP is talking about.</p>
<p>Also, I believe the point was made earlier in this thread that kids with Aspergers are sometimes very gifted intellectually. So again, you are ranting about something that no one is saying on this thread…</p>
<p>FACT: Medication is used to treat the problems associated with Asperger Syndrome- such as attention problems and anxiety and depression. It does not treat the core symptoms (social communication, social behavior and repetitive interest patterns). This is true for the entire Autism Spectrum Disorder range of diagnoses, of which Asperger is currently a part.</p>
<p>The new DSM- the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual which doctors and psychologists use to diagnose- which will come out in 2013 is likely to not have a category called ‘Asperger Syndrome.’</p>
<p>A child is better off having an ‘evaluation’ rather than an ‘evaluation for Asperger syndrome.’ There is an explanation (whether it is severe enough to be called a disorder or not) for the symptoms and it is the explanation that is important to understand what needs to be done next.</p>
<p>Since your on the west coast, you might find this link interesting</p>
<p>[ACRC</a> - Autism](<a href=“http://www.altaregional.org/whoWeServe/autism/]ACRC”>http://www.altaregional.org/whoWeServe/autism/)</p>
<p>If you search through the website you’ll find a ton of information</p>
<p>Where I live, the school evaluations are largely for purposes of identifying if a child qualifies for services. They are not used for purposed of diagnosis or treatment. Agree that Seeing your peidatrician, a deevelopmental pediatrician and a psychologist or neuropsychologist in conjunction with the school meetings and evals is a good plan.</p>
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<p>If it’s a federal mandate, I guess there may be a little office somewhere, but with the present state of public school funding, schools have every incentiive to NOT identify kids who need special services because special services cost money. Don’t rely on the school district. For five years we heard that Son’s issues were “characteristics of giftedness.” Maybe…but also of Asperger’s, extreme ADD and Executive Function Disorder with a bit of disgraphia and speech impediment thrown in. In my experience, school kids who are behavior problems get attention but well behaved kids don’t.</p>