How long did everyones childs dx take? - Autism Spectrum Message Board

sarahponari · 02-03-2008, 01:42 PM

Im just asking this as we are going through a really lengthy process at the moment, with my youngest daughter who is 3 in May. When she was about 13 or 14 months old we first expressed our concerns for her, and since then she has had a 6 week block of speech therapy, and has seen a couple of different paeds. She went to the paed last time about 8 months ago and she sent her for an assessment. She has now for the past 3 weeks been going for ongoing assessments( they said they thought she needed these ongoing assessments to find out what was wrong and to see how they can help), but im just interested in how long each persons diagnosis has taken so i can see whether we wil be waiting much longer, as she is due tostart nursery school soon so we will need them to know about her.
I know every child with autism is different, and i know that the more severe it is the quicker the diagnosis is, as there is a girl who goes to the assessments at the same time and she has already been diagnosed, but this is because she has severe autism.
When we had the appointment 8 months ago, the paed said its very likely to be autism but she wanted to rule out anything else first, so she has had blood tests and everything which all came back ok, and at the moment on her files they have it written as significant speech and language delay, limited social interaction and other learing difficulties.
So how long did others diagnosis take?
Thanks for any help

meechieny · 02-03-2008, 02:51 PM

I don't know where you live, but in our area I think they are really hesitant on giving a diagnosis before the age of 4 unless the child is severly autistic. You will find that most schools base your child's therapy on the need and not the diagnosis, so it hasn't been a problem for us in the past. The only limitations we found not having one is when we wanted our child to be a part of a study and looking to get in a special program tailored for children with autism only. Good luck.

datgrlstef · 02-03-2008, 06:42 PM

I think I knew something was "off" by the time my son was 18 months.. definitely by the time he was two and still wasn't really speaking. (Although his dr just didn't see it). I pushed the pediatrician, who sent him for a hearing test, and then referred us to the state's Help Me Grow. He was diagnosed just after his 3rd birthday, just after his first year of special needs preschool started.

I think that it really varies not just by state, but even by family or who you deal with. I feel like despite the delay of just the pediatrician "not quite with the program", my son got into the county programs & diagnosed at a good age. Other parents I've seen at my son's OT have kids his age and are really frustrated that they're not getting the services they're asking for.. they're still not sure what's wrong with their child, and they can't seem to get their child seen by anybody who can tell them.

rebecca197334 · 02-03-2008, 07:12 PM

My son just turned four. He is high functioning for autism, but he is the most unresponsive in the ESE class. I really hate the whole process. Because he has good eye contact and attempts to speek, they are reluctant to test him. I had to insist and the school Psy referred us to private help. I was steaming, but we finally got the ball rolling. Their first test for my son is the CARS test. Just to see if he makes the spectrum. I was so discouraged by all the lack interst in diagnosing my son. He is not making any progress in school or therapy. I think if we can find out why, we are 1 step closer to helping him. But I keep getting all this, "we treat the child" lingo from professional who are willing to let my son fall through the cracks because he is not severe. And we live in a "Leave no child behind" state. I wish i knew how long too. It feels like forever. Their is little sympathy where I live.

rachelTN · 02-04-2008, 04:09 PM

We live north of nashville, TN. At about 9 months I could tell something was not right with my son. At his 1 year well check, I voiced my concerns to his ped. I was told everyone develops differently, and to give him time. Well, despite me raising concerns 4-5 more times, the dr didn't refer us for evaluation until he was 28 months old. We have a state agency here called TEIS (tennessee early intervention system), that children with delays can recieve treatment thru their 3rd birthday. I found out at that time, that we didn't need a dr referal for the evaluation. At 9 months old, he could have been evaluated, if the dr. would have just given me that information. At 30 months, my son was developmentally 15 months old. For those of you who have a hard time getting a diagnosis, my son doesn't have a diagnosis. The ST (speech therapist) he had thru TEIS said he would most likely be diagnosed as PDD- NOS. I have had no help from the medical community for getting help for him. I felt that if he got this diagnosis, that is all it was a diagnosis. it wouldn't help him get any more services. I have a friend who has a son with autism and her health ins. company has actually sued her home owners ins co. when her son fell off playground equipment. This was directly related to his diagnosis. whether or not that is legal I don't know. Also, he is uninsurable for life insurance. Apparently because an increase risk of self harm and suicide.