New to Wrongplanet but not new to autism

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Hi! I am mom to a 13 year old boy who has autism, MR and speech delay. Logan is an amazing young man and WAS such a pleasent and interesting young man until February; then he changed! Logan was on Abilify until October at which time he started developing tics. I took him off the abilify and he did well for several months. In March I took him to see the Neurodevelopmental Psychiatrist again (our third visit) and was provided much information but not many solutions.

Logan is operating 5-7 standard deviations above the norm of the human race. How the NDP explained it is that a soldier in Iraq is about 3 standard deviations above the norm and Logan is more like a point man fighting in the deep jungles of Vietnam. This is how Logan's Limbic system is operating 24/7. Logan was put on Intuniv and is now at 5 MG per day ---- he is not adjusting to the meds YET and is aggressive, mean and cusses worse than a truck driver! I am so lost, yet I can't even begin to imagine how Logan is feeling right now. he dosen't understand why his friends want nothing to do with him now or why he keeps yelling the things he does. This is not just short time frames --- it is 24 hours a day. He doesn't eat, doesn't sleep, can't sit still, can't concentrate, can't stop talking, etc.....

I guess now, I just need someone to tell me it is going to be okay and that we will find the right medications to calm him down so he can once again be a liked and accepted member of society --- right now he is not, and I completely understand why. I have an appointment for tomorrow morning with his physician and one on Monday with the physician who is also a facilitator and will hopefully be able to assist us more.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

<< Moved, from getting to know each other, to parent's discussion. >>

Welcome to WP!

Thank you for the welcome.

This morning Logan has been diagnosed as being Bipolar as well. I am not so concerned about the diagnosis!! ! As long as we can help him and find the right combination of therapy, meds and continue to cope together.......I don't care what the doctors tell me. I just need to know I can be the best mom possible for him and all of his needs.

Welkome to WP

Mick

Welcome. I'm so sorry to hear you've been having a hard time - 13 is a tough age for any kid, but especially under the circumstances you describe. Hang in there!

at the risk of sounding like a jerk, i think it is really stupid, not to mention unhelpful and annoying, to just post "welcome to wrongplanet" on a discussion such as this one. welcoming someone is all well and good, but ADDRESS THE POST AS WELL. </end rage>

Ok. Hmmm...i also do not sleep very well. Have you tried melatonin? That is what i currently take and it works, for me, like a crazy knock out pill. I take it...and then half an hour later i pass out. Then I regain consciousness 5-8 hours later. I take 3mg which is probably too much for me. i can't really offer much more than my sympathies in regards to anything else. do you think the bipolar disorder is the cause of the aggression? hopefully once he is on something for that things will be sorted out and run more smoothly. i wish you all the best.

Meds and drugs of any kind in people with ASD can be a bit tricky to start with. We often need much less of a dose than a normal person would simply to achieve the same affects.

Not only do you need to find the right medications, but you need it in the right amounts. Give the right meds in the wrong amount (even a normal amount for his age) and it could have very negative effects on him.

Just something to keep in mind that you as the parent might need to know. Sometimes the people prescribing the meds are not aware of that.

Go slow and careful with the meds; sometimes they are actually the cause and not the cure.

Pay attention to his sensory needs because they may have changed. We know, given that he is 13, that lots is changing in his body, and he is probably confused by much of that. And those changes can and will bring about changes in his sensitivities of every type, so pay attention and look for triggers, just as you probably did when he was very young and you were new on this journey. But things change ... don't forget to look for the changes.

Sorry to hear you are experiencing a set back and best of luck getting it resolved. And, yes, just as fast as new issues seemed to develop, you will probably magically find the solution - but no one can tell you how long that will take or even offer certainty it will happen. Trust your instincts, pay attention to your child.