busymom
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Post by busymom on Aug 22, 2012 21:22:35 GMT -5
We've actually got quite a few kids in our school district that are more than "slightly" autistic. And no, like us, a lot of these kids moved into this district, and weren't born here, so you can't blame the drinking water.
I still think the increase in autism has something to do with all of the chemicals in the environment.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 22, 2012 22:51:01 GMT -5
Oh, I've never been so thankful for not being the brainy one
Lena
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Aug 22, 2012 23:55:15 GMT -5
So, Hugh Hefner probably has a few special needs kids running around the mansion??? Nah, only dust comes out of his.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Aug 22, 2012 23:57:11 GMT -5
Like Downs? We don't call it that anymore, do we? (I am trying to not become my grandmother who missed the memo that you couldn't say "pickaninny" anymore.) What is it - Trisoma or something like that? At least we don't say Mongoloid anymore. Sheesh! It's Trisomy G. Palin named her kid after his condition. Trisomy GWhat a class act.....
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skubikky
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Post by skubikky on Aug 23, 2012 5:59:08 GMT -5
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 6:27:43 GMT -5
Welts...your hatred of all things conservative is shining through...
Trig Paxson Van Palin is the couple's youngest child and second son. According to the governor's spokesperson Sharon Leighow in a statement made shortly after the baby's birth, Trig is Norse and means "true" and "brave victory." Paxson is a region in Alaska the couple favors. Van is a nod to the rock group Van Halen; before Trig's birth, his mother had joked about naming her son Van Palin after the band.
And I have many friends with children that have Down's and have NEVER heard it called Trisomy G...it is Trisomy 21
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 6:33:52 GMT -5
Autism is the hot, new diagnosis and there is ample funding for children wtih autism. Because the umbrella of the spectrum is so big, any child with developmental disabilities can fit the criteria. My dd was labeled PDD-NOS (on the spectrum) by a psychologist when she was 3 years old. This was directly after we had an evaluation with her Neurodevelopmental Pediatrician (who happens to specialize in Autism) and he assured me she was NOT on teh spectrum. I called the neuro and he told me to accept the diagnosis because it opened doors for a variety of programs that would help my dd (they help any child with delays). The psychologist told me without the diagnosis she would not qualify for the special preschool that I wanted her to attend. While she technically fit the criteria, we all knew she wasn't really autistic. Years later that label was removed (hmm...maybe I should be like Jenny McCarthy and claim to have cured my dd's autism!lol).
Using my dd as example, I think evaluators play fast and loose with the diagnosis....and parents like me accept it because our children need the services just as much as the children that have autism.
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happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Aug 23, 2012 6:52:51 GMT -5
"I think autism is overly diagnosed. I have kids "labeled" autistic in my classroom that I would never have suspected had that disability. They did their work, they interacted sociably with me at least, and so on. They now call this "high functioning autism." You have to remember that it is a spectrum."
This. DH works with a woman who had a daughter with 'issues.' Mom hauled her to every specalist in the state and finally paid $15,000 for a full psychological evaluation at a very prestigious hospital and finally, at age 10, DD was labeled high functioning autistic.
DH (who is a community counselor so knows about kids behavior) thinks DD is just spoiled. Dad disappeared when DD was a baby and Mom feels guilty DD doesn't have a dad and tries to give DD every other thing she can. Mom won't discipline kid because she never thinks her kid does anything wrong - it's always other people (or kids) that cause the problem. When kid kept getting in trouble at school, mom pushed and pushed and pushed until she found someone willing to diagnosis her DD with a problem (because it can't be that the kid just behaves badly because she's spoiled) and now she's autistic.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 23, 2012 6:58:31 GMT -5
MT, how did they test your DD for autism? Are there actual neuro tests monitoring brain activity, etc or is it mostly just drs talking and observing the child and taking parent's descriptions into account?
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 7:18:30 GMT -5
Lena,
We are going back 8 years so I am probably a little hazy on some of the details (and she has been evaluated by so many specialists that I might be confusing a few)...but from what I can remember, the evaluation spanned a few days and it was comprised of direct observation by the psychologist, an IQ test (various things were asked of her, some things she had to manipulate, somethings she had to point to, etc), questionairres for me and her preschool teacher and I believe some of her therapists (to gauge what self-help skills she had).
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 23, 2012 7:22:07 GMT -5
Do you think/feel it was an adequate test?
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 7:28:40 GMT -5
Lena, that is a tough question. It was a VERY thorough test and honestly, my dd did meet all of the criteria...but, she was always extremely social, looked for positive reinforcements, would get sad if she saw someone else sad, etc...things that ruled out autism. But, if you are looking to diagnose a child with autism for funding purposes, almost any child with delays will fit the bill. At the time, my dd wasn't aware of her surroundings, had limited speech, pretty much no self-care abilities, and so on and so on. It has been years since I looked at the test but the questions and things to observe would fit both mental retardation AND autism. And from what I can remember there is a scoring system...so even though she is social, that didn't outweigh all of the delays.
Granted, we all KNEW she wasn't autistic but according to the evaluation (which was an approved method of testing) she did meet the criteria. Once I got over them labeling her, I accepted it because it opened the door for services she would benefit from but otherwise wouldn't qualify for.
I have belonged to a message board for parents of special needs children and there were many others who found the same thing. Because of that, I do not believe that autism is truly rising....kids like my dd who are not autistic, are getting diagnosed as such because of the broad umbrella.
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Taxman10
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Post by Taxman10 on Aug 23, 2012 8:06:25 GMT -5
This has been my opinion for a while now. I think creating the Autism Spectrum has allowed a lot more of the kids who may have just been considered quirky ten years ago to now fall on the spectrum and be classified autistic. everybody's got something these days.
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Taxman10
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Post by Taxman10 on Aug 23, 2012 8:09:46 GMT -5
"Of course, there is another theory (no joke). Since women have started becoming engineers, etc., the guys at places like MIT have started marrying the women at places like MIT. And these two non-sociable entities have created an epidemic of autistic children. I actually heard or read this somewhere." Interesting. I think it was in Newsweek or Time about 3-4 months ago?? It got a lot of negative feedback.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 23, 2012 8:20:07 GMT -5
If its chemical why does it affect more boys than girls?
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 23, 2012 8:21:18 GMT -5
There's a family in my old neighborhood with 6 kids. 5 girls and 1 boy. He is autistic and the girls are not. I had more autistic boys in school, one girl and she was spoiled not autistic.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 23, 2012 8:44:29 GMT -5
MT, thanks for your openness and perspective. Can you UN-diagnose your DD at any point? Just so you know, I am asking partially bc of sheer curiosity and partially bc I had a "friendly debate" with my DH about this. There were some questions I wanted to ask our pediatrician about my 4 yr old, but my DH was too concern that once he might get "labeled" as something, it will be in his files forever. I tried telling him, it's not KGB, but.... Lena
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Aug 23, 2012 8:49:20 GMT -5
Generally if it is affects boys more than girls it is a genetics issue and has to do with the X chromosome. My former PI said that he always laughs when people say "Men are the stronger sex" because from a genetics perspective they are screwed. The X chromose does way more than just determine your sex.
Females get two copies, it is extremely rare to inherit two defective X chromosomes. We have a back-up X chromosome.
Men though they only get one X chromosome. If it is faulty then they are SOL because there is not another X chromosome to make up the difference.
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busymom
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Post by busymom on Aug 23, 2012 8:57:35 GMT -5
Men only "think" they're the stronger gender. Actually, newborn baby boys tend to be weaker than the baby girls. (I believe I've learned baby boy mortality is higher too, but can't find a good link.) But yes, out of every 5 kids that are autistic, 4 are boys, and only 1 is a girl....
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Formerly SK
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Post by Formerly SK on Aug 23, 2012 8:59:00 GMT -5
I have an autistic son. He's 7. We got the dx when he was 2. I consider him high functioning. He attends school in a typical classroom with an aide.
I think the label is somewhat meaningless. Since the spectrum is so broad you can have two kids with the same label but have completely different issues. Our medical/school systems don't want to list multiple different issues, though, so the umbrella "autism" is written down. We actually didn't pursue the rigorous exam Tequila did because there wasn't a point: it was several thousand dollars and in the end we knew what our son's issues were - the label didn't change that. We've used our time/money to address his specific issues.
I think there is something to the label being used more. I also think there is something environmental going on that is contributing to it. I've met way too many ASD moms who've been helped tremendously by supplements/diet to say that the label is bullshit and it's all hysterical. There is definitely something medical going on. My personal belief is that it is something like what the Joker did in the first Batman movie: put toxins in various products. You could use the lipstick and be safe, or use the lotion and be safe, but if you used both you were killed. We seem to have a bunch of kids with weaker immune systems. And we have a bunch of toxins in our environment. Living with one or the other won't hurt you, but if you happen to have both you get autism. I don't think there is any researcher looking for a sole cause anymore - it's like cancer where there can be multiple factors. Age of dad, nerdiness of parents, etc are all factors.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2012 9:02:20 GMT -5
LOL on "nerdiness of parents". Maybe the government can fund a study to find the "nerd gene".
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 23, 2012 9:11:02 GMT -5
Don't know. My second cousin has a son who is autistic. She had her daughter before they knew he was autistic or they wouldn't have had another child. She is normal, he isn't. What is different? He's a boy and not a girl, that seems to be it. Born in the same house, same everything. She is almost 2 years younger, that's it. But I also don't remember the link but more males fetuses miscarry than girls, more male babies die from SIDS than girls. They are the weaker sex from the time it's determined they will be male in the womb.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 11:17:49 GMT -5
Lena,
Sorry...I actually had to work this morning!lol To answer your question, as my daughter got older and her speech (especially receptive) and other skills improved, they removed the PDD-NOS diagnosis. I "get" your husband's issue with labels because I had a really hard time swallowing both the autistic and MR diagnosis (even though I knew Autistic was BS)...but at the end of the day, if it helps a child get assistance they need then that is all that matters. Not to be mean, but your husband needs to get over his feelings and do what is best for your child (and yes, that is exactly what I told my husband who also had a hard time with it!lol)
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 23, 2012 11:33:30 GMT -5
I'm sorry, maybe I'm not reading carefully enough - what is "MR"?
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Aug 23, 2012 11:34:41 GMT -5
"I'm sorry, maybe I'm not reading carefully enough - what is "MR"? "
Mental retardation...that is her official diagnosis...don't anyone of you PC'rs blast me, I have a report with that on it so none of this "that term when out in 1982" crap!lol
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Aug 23, 2012 11:35:08 GMT -5
There was an article in the NYT about this this morning and it looks like a very interesting study looking at which parent provides the gene mutations.
However, as I detest reading scientific research that is regurgitated by the popular press, I'm going to have to wait until next month, where I can access Nature to read the original report via the medical school library.
Well.....at least I hope I can. I still have internet access as an employee to employee resources, but I"ve not yet tried the med school library.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 23, 2012 11:36:52 GMT -5
Huh - I thought it did get replaced by something else. But, if you can strip away the emotions around the words, the meaning is clear. Retardation is a word that means slow - just like there are flame retardant clothes, that slow down the fire so it doesn't reach your body as fast. So, as a technical term - I get it. I'm sorry that it comes with baggage.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Aug 23, 2012 11:38:21 GMT -5
Well.....at least I hope I can. I still have internet access as an employee to employee resources, but I"ve not yet tried the med school library.
I think we have a subscription to Nature. Let me know if you can't get it and I'll see if I can get it for you.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2012 11:40:18 GMT -5
Mental Retardation.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Aug 23, 2012 11:53:37 GMT -5
Well.....at least I hope I can. I still have internet access as an employee to employee resources, but I"ve not yet tried the med school library. I think we have a subscription to Nature. Let me know if you can't get it and I'll see if I can get it for you. I can get in, just tried it. Thanks for the offer, DQ....
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