I went to see the new therapist on Monday. It was amazing. He did more in 40 minutes than everyone else combined during the last 2 1/2 years.
He agreed that there was ample reason to look into the possiblity of Asperger's. THEN he told me that all I had to do was request that the school screen him for the autism spectrum. That's it. Just ask. Why has no one told me this? I have no idea if he does or doesn't have it, but that's one question that can be answered.
THEN he told me about this free service that is available to families going through this. You get a caseworker/advocate that will go with you to meetings and evaluations, help you know which questions to ask, and make sure you get answers. Free. All you have to do is ask for it. Why didn't anyone ever tell me this?
As soon as I left his office I went to the school and requested the evaluation. Come to find out, his teacher had requested it a few days prior. Next week his case will go to committee and they will get the ball rolling. After talking to the school, I went home and called the advocate service... They said they could certainly help and I should hear back from them within the next 2 weeks. I feel like such a huge weight has been taken off of my shoulders. I will finally have direction and someone to give educated insight. Thank the gods.
This therapist seemed shocked that no one had ever sat down with me to discuss options. Apparently, the school should have discussed things like IEP's and 504's. No one discussed anything. I got a letter that said, "Your child has ADHD." That's it. The pediatrician said, "Here's meds" until the med dose got too high, then he said, "Go to the psychologist" who said "Go to the psychiatrist". I have jumped throught hoops and gone from one doctor to another, and no one ever really offered us any help. What a bunch of assholes.
Unfortunately, we don't know if Burp will get to see this new guy. We're waiting to see if the insurance accepts him. I have my fingers crossed. I really like this guy. He's not a psychiatrist, not a psychologist, just a therapist who specializes in autistic children and teaching them to cope with their "quirks". That's exactly what we need, whether Burp is autistic or not. He just needs to learn how to deal with it.
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No one told me about an IEP either until my friend in Seattle, whose son has Asperger's, told me about it. Now my son has one, I can tell you, and I hold it like it's a club if I need to. His school now is good, so I don't really need to, but that hasn't always been true.
Rory's never been screened either as such, but he much more fits the ADHD than Asperger's profile.
I'm so glad you are getting good help. It's so hard to go through all of this wondering what the hell you can do differently.
I ought to know. Mine's going to be in lunch detention Monday (or worse) for fighting back against some kids that were picking on him. Sigh.
I had been wondering how the meeting went. Thank God. I am praying the insurance pulls through.
It pisses me off a parent can jump through all the hoops, is the one on the hook for not being responsible when things aren't right. But the sad truth is, some medical professionals, aren't. They're there for the easy ride and a pay check.
Isn't it always the way that the good doctors/therapiests/psychiatrists/psychologists are never accepted by insurance and are expensive? Swell way of doing things.
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