My son is 10 years old. He was diagnosed with High-functioning Autism about 3 years ago. His doctor told us that we should tell him that he has this disorder, but i’ve put it off and put it off. I now feel like i need to tell him and his brothers about Autism, but have no idea how to explain it to them. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
jessiebe
7
well there is alot of info out there. find some positive to share first. reasure him that he is loved. i do have a couple of questions when was he diagnosed and if you waited a long time why? not that i am criticizing. just curious. i have a 12 year old with autism and i have always been open and honest with the kids about it. they all know she is autistic and no one really cares they love her anyway. i think it will help the other children to be more understanding and sensitive to the feelings of the autistic one.
Romantic Gift Ideas
7
I am a huge advocate of being honest with my kids. But no matter the method, reassure them that you are there for them if they need to talk or get support. Maybe a book or a video. I saw a good documentary on MTV about autism and the different varieties recently. Maybe you could watch it together and see if he sees any similarities.
Helen F
7
We have a ten year old in our day school, mainstreamed with high functioning autism BUT there is no doubt both he and his peers notice something is different… His mom came and made a presentation to his class about autism and has worked with him with various therapy education systems.
The other kids now realize he has to work much harder to do what they do easily, but have come to respect his special talents. He is an awesome singer and drummer.
It makes early adolescence just that much harder if you haven’t told him about what is different. You can explain it with a music analogy (Different drummer is a common understanding) or a motor vehicle as different functioning Motorbike, electric car, BMW, race car, etc. Value diversity in all things in the home so he can understand different is not less valued or loved.
chickabo
7
My 10 year old has Asperger’s Syndrome. There are several books written by kids with Aspergers. These have been very helpful. Even if your son’s diagnosis isn’t exactly Asperger’s, I’m sure he could relate to the stories. Christian enjoys reading about others with his same “viewpoint.”
You may be surprised by your son’s reaction to finding out he’s autistic. For one, he probably really likes himself, and like other Autistics they aren’t really into the “labels” like so called normal people. To them, they don’t see a problem with being Autistic. They know that they have an incredible view of the world, and don’t understand why anyone would want to be “normal.” And if you think about it..they’re right. We’re so darn worried about what other people think about everything….while the Aspies are busy being themselves!
I say approach it with optimism. Don’t tell him its a disorder, or that there’s something wrong with his brain. Just tell him that he’s just wired differently and that makes him extremely special!
Lin s
7
You need to tell him. If he is high functioning he will be able to understand. Tell him that he is a very special young man who sometimes sees the world a little differently than others sometimes. Make sure that he is aware of appropriate behavior. Role play behavior in a variety of situations since children with Autism don’t generalize from one situation to another. Children with Autism are fascinating. I am a Special Education Teacher and have taught many children with Autism. I am always amazed at how well they progress. they are usually very good in one or two areas. I had one student who was a math whiz and could figure out any puzzle you put in front of him. Help your son develop his strengths. I hope this helps. You might also check out a web site called the Interactive Autism Network. It is a great forum for families.
dzams
7
Here are some simply-put answers to some difficult questions he may have:
* What is Autism?
Autism is a type of a learning disability. That means that some types of information is harder for your brain to process than it would be for other people. Many people have learning disabilities. I have an Attention Deficit Disorder. That is a type of learning disability where, if the information is not interesting enough for me I have trouble paying attention to it. I take a medicine called Ritalin to help me do better. The learning disability caused by autism is different than mine and there is no medicine that makes it go away. People with Autism have trouble when there is too much information that they have to understand at the same time. They also have trouble when information changes too quickly and they have to make sense of all the new information and decide which changes are important and which are not. Since people change more quickly than anything else on the planet earth, persons with Autism sometimes have trouble making sense of what other people are thinking and feeling or are trying to communicate.
* Where does Autism come from?
Some problems have one single cause. Other problems may be caused by several different things that are not working as well as they should be. Autism is in the second group. People may have the Autism learning disability for a number of different reasons. But we do know that you and your parents did not cause Autism. The cause was something that happened in your brain before you were born. But however it began, your brain is not developing the type of connections it needs to solve all the different problems that you need to learn to solve.
* What makes Autism better or worse?
The main thing that makes Autism better is if we can teach your brain to work in a more connected way. It is helpful to think of your brain not as one single computer, but as hundreds of different computers that need to talk to each other all the time to work really well. That is what we call a network. We believe that when you have Autism, all the computers may be working well, but they are not networking as well as they should be. If we can teach them to communicate better with each other then we can make the autism better.
* How many people have Autism?
The latest information from the Center for Disease Control, which is the government agency that tries to figure out these things, is that about 1 out of every 150 people have some type of Autism.
* How do people behave when they have Autism?
There is no one way that people behave when they have Autism. Some people with Autism are very quiet while others are loud. Some people with Autism act out in class and some have perfect behavior. Some people with Autism like to eat everything and others are very picky eaters.
* Does Autism ever go away?
That is a tricky question. As I said before, I have Attention Deficit Disorder. I have had it my whole life and I do not think it will ever go away. But it does not bother me very much. It does not keep me from doing the job I like to do. It does not keep me from having good friends and a great family. So I don’t really worry about it going away. That is how I feel about Autism. It doesn’t really matter if it goes away or not. It is more important that people with Autism can have a good life and achieve all the goals that they make for themselves. That is what I think can happen.
mistajos
7
have your doctor write down a monologue. autism is so broad i could never begin to start. try wikipedia.org