Aspergers dx given out too much

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There are people you know who are on the spectrum. I am sure those of you who are correctly dx to be on the spectrum would agree. I know it's a "spectrum" but there are a lot of people I have been meeting lately who seem like they really are not true full Aspergers. I am not talking about here but in real life. I see videos of people on here and they are wonderful people who are obviously on the spectrum. Some of the people I have been meeting in real life (children and adults) really seem more typical then Aspergers - you can see the "typical" with the way they talk, move, ability to read nonverbal cues, etc. Just because a person doesn't make eye contact very much and seems a little different, doesn't mean it's appropriate to just slap a label of Aspergers on.

It seems to me that a lot of the people dx with Aspergers should be dx as PDD-NOS as they just don't seem Aspergers

I don't know why it bothers me so much but it really does. I guess the biggest question to people who are dx with being on the spectrum (LFA, HFA, AS, PDD-NOS) is does it bother you when someone is dx with Aspergers and clearly isn't? Can you tell?

I couldn't say. I'm not a psychiatrist.

All I know is that I wouldn't want to be the one deciding who's "real" and who isn't.

It's in the mind, it's nothing you can see. As an adult ages, they learn more things. So detecting such a thing in a child is easier, whereas an adult slowly learns to fit in

Yeah. A lot of adults were kind of forced to adapt, so their AS is going to be pretty hidden. Many children with AS nowadays aren't pressured to adapt so much, because they are often told that they either can't help the way they behave or shouldn't have to. So, many children who were diagnosed younger will not have had that "pressure to fit in" that older children and adults had.

Honestly, it is more with children. I have been working with children who have been dx as Aspergers and who really don't seem to be. Yet there are others who aren't yet dx who you know are. I guess it just bugs me to see some of these children who really aren't being dx.

There is a developmental ped in this area who seems to dx every child YET didn't dx a child who truly is. I think that is the biggest issue.

I hear you about the adults being dx as I still wonder about my husband.

But- a lot of the info needed to dx a child is provided by the parents. I have noticed this through my work too. We've had kids not get vital medical attention because the parents didn't accurately describe what's going on with the kid. Most docs rely on what the parents are saying. If the info they are getting from the parents isn't accurate, they can't accurately diagnose.

When you've seen one person with Asperger's... you've seen one person with Asperger's. I find it more concerning that you seem to be discouraging people from getting help due to the actions of a single doctor in your area who apparently may have erred in diagnosis - isn't the first, and won't be the last. To counter what you have said, it is equally inappropriate for you to sit judging who should and should not be getting a diagnosis in the first place. A lay subjective definition of "typical" does not a re-diagnosis make. My apologies in advance if I come off as short, but this is something that tends to push a button with me.


M.

To PP: You are actually extremely polite - wow!
No apologies. You are just going off what i say here. On the contary, I always encourage parents to see developmental peds. I really do. I still give the parents that particular person's information along with two others (to not seem like I am recommending one person). I guess it didn't seem like that in my previous posts, sorry.

I am not a "lay" person as I am a school psychologist. I may not be the complete expert but have been to a lot of trainings and able to provide the educational dx of autism. I just prefer to get the medical dx and also encourage parents to go out in the community if they can to seek out someone more qualified (we have wonderful clinical,neuropsychs and dev, peds in the area). I still don't consider myself a lay person, though. Just wanted to mention that. I am so sorry if my question pushed a button. I do feel like a lot of you on here are more experts than experts. That is why I come on here:)

I have also found that a lot of parents around here want that dx to get their gets on medicaid (for kids with dx disabilities). They also get extra money. They can easily skew the doctor interview if the doctor doesn't take a lot of time to gather extra information and talk with the child.

Again, there is one person around here who is known for giving those dx. There are a few others that are more accurate and careful. The ones that are more careful have at least three appointments before the dx is made, meet more with the children and talk, and they also gather more information from various sources including the schools. I honestly still do A few highly regarded professionals in the area also feel like the dx of Aspergers is being given out too much in this area by another professional.

You all have to admit that misdiagnosis are made and it is happening more frequently. It is not only misdiagnosis with Aspergers but also with ADHD and Bipolar.

I honestly think around the country the opposite could be happening (people not diagnosed enough) which can leave the parents child (or adult) very confused and thus feel even more alone. When I lived in Arizona, I met quite a few parents who tried to get the medical dx and couldn't. Their kids were definitely on the spectrum. It could just be where you live, really.

It is possible that some individuals are extremely mild aspergers but are still aspergers and even as children, have adapted extremely well.

Misdiagnosis occurs; in the absence of answers, it is in the nature of humans to "find" answers to fit the questions. For everyone one diagnosed mistakenly, there is at least one diagnosis that is missed or labeled as something else. Getting a medical diagnosis in Arizona is an incredible challenge for a child; it is almost an impossibility to find someone qualified in adult analysis here. Even with my childhood reports and tests, speech difficulties, and other developmental challenges (and abilities) that almost detail AS, the desire of doctors here was to initially suggest bipolar until is was obvious that my symptoms did not align with that suggestion. Admittedly, I am a relatively high adaptive; that doesn't mean that they are all functional or healthy, but I have managed to find a way to interact with the world-at-large that works for me and seems to allow others to reach me to an extent. While PDD-NOS might be more encompassing, there isn't the knowledge base on it that there is on autism and AS - would it be a surprise if someone used that aspect to their advantage in gaining services, support, or acceptance of the fact their child has a need? The same likely happened as autism was expanded, those with more classic symptoms feeling that their 'cause' was being diluted and over-diagnosed, until things are expanded and redefined. In time, the pattern will repeat and further distinctions will be made.

Appreciate that you did not take offense; having worked as a teacher with very open students, I am aware that there is a severity in my tone at times that can come off as something else entirely.


M.

I can appreciate where you are coming from. But, it is a spectrum disorder. My own son is not quite diagnosed yet. He can "look" quite normal in one situation, and be quite odd in another. One area on one day will function well. The same area on the next day is completely off.

For me, it's less about the diagnosis and more about being on the right path for therapies, school and general growth. Whether he gets a diagnosis of HFA, AS or PPD-NOS, I want to be confident that all the specialists on our ever-growing team understand HIM, and are not simply treating him for their own generalized versions of some disorder. He needs to be treated for his own issues, not what some autism handbook for professionals requires.

As long as we have specialists who look at him and treat him as an *individual* with autism, I don't care what label they stick on him.

I'm guessing my son's diagnosis will be AS. I don't care if it's a misdiagnosis as long as it allows us to take into account in own personal needs and move in the right direction. Hope that makes sense.

As long as there are conditions/disorders there will always be misdiagnosises of it. To prevent as many the proffesionals need to do thorough testing with 3 or more meetings including meetings with the child and all elements of behaviour can be noted and looked at with great detail, because they might have already adapted pretty well. That's how my dx' went anyway, and I don't feel anything was misdiagnosed.

I do sometimes feel that it is a bit over diagnosed, a bit like ADHD, it's just thrown around randomly by "experts" that haven't had a close enough look at the child (or adult of course) so someone with ADHD might get mistaken for having AS or vice versa.

As long as there are conditions/disorders there will always be misdiagnosises of it. To prevent as many the proffesionals need to do thorough testing with 3 or more meetings including meetings with the child and all elements of behaviour can be noted and looked at with great detail, because they might have already adapted pretty well. That's how my dx' went anyway, and I don't feel anything was misdiagnosed.

I do sometimes feel that it is a bit over diagnosed, a bit like ADHD, it's just thrown around randomly by "experts" that haven't had a close enough look at the child (or adult of course) so someone with ADHD might get mistaken for having AS or vice versa.

I know at least two aspies online who don't seem fully AS because they don't have the typical signs like being literal in speech but I am aware you don't need to have every single symptom to have it so not every aspie is going to be literal. One of them seems like he outgrew his AS. He claims he met the criteria when diagnosed and now he doesn't anymore. It happens so some people.
But the other aspie has troubles fitting in so that's his major core there in AS. People keep thinking he is weird and stuff. But he is better in other things than I am and knows more about normality than I do.

It's an interesting question and I have to say that the first thing that struck me is that I tend to think the opposite, as in why are they so busy calling kids who are clearly on the spectrum PDD-NOS? I don't know if I can call AS clearly, but I can call spectrum kids overal fairly clearly. And, really, so many of the issues are the same. The difference is more in severity and what is actually impaired v. just different. But I'm more of a pragmatic sort, less interested in the label than what it does for one.

Thanks everyone for responding. I feel so much better now that I heard from all of you!!

You are all right. I have to keep in mind that it is definitely a spectrum. There are a few people I know that do come across as more bipolar like (kids). They don't seem typical but really what is typical as each person presents very differently. This is the reason why I feel that people need to go to a very qualified person for a diagnosis. I find that the more I learn the more I realize I don't know things. Make sense? Honestly, educationally and through trainings I have learned a lot of information. I have learned the most information from people here.

Thanks for putting everything in perspective. Instead of letting it bother me, I just need to remember that the dx helps us to give them the services they wouldn't otherwise qualify for. Some of these children don't qualify for LD or other dx criteria. . If the individual has the label and does need at least even a little help (even just social skills), it is best to get them the help they need.

Also, I don't know it all and could be completely wrong. I realize that.

My son could be a prime example. He was definitely HFA when he was 2 years, 4 months - when he was first diagnosed. There were no questions. Now that he is 5 years, 6 months a lot of people would have no idea - none. He seems like a typical child and then may meltdown out of the blue during a transition (not always) or just do something that is completely shocking. Even for the first two months in school, his kindergarten teacher stated that she didn't see it at all (granted she isn't an expert). She said he had some attention problems but was doing great. Then about four months into school, she noticed so much more. She attended a conference where a woman with AS was presenting. She was extremely high functioning. After that, the teacher stated that she now sees it.

I honestly feel that school districts should have a panel of adults on the spectrum - who present very differently to talk to school staff and dispel myths. That would be wonderful but I know it would take a lot out of the presenters speaking.

So - it's not about the dx - good point.

Which scares me because as an (self diagnosed with almost no doubt) aspie i don't know if i CAN explain my daughters issues well when we come to the evaluatio. I've spoken to Dr's and a Psychologist about here and both times i didn't feel they were "getting" what i was telling them. They even asked me why i thought i had aspergers, and i couldn't answer them really (short of telling my whole life story which they werent interested in) ... i tried but they were just looking at me like "Uh huh, want fries with that?" and said "Well, you seem to be explaining yourself pretty well today" (i.e. you don't seem like an Aspie to me) i KNOW they think i'm just one of "those" people who WANTS something to be wrong with my child and myself... and i'm so SICK of people thinking that of me! This is real whether YOU believe me or not, i'm not making it up, i'm not one of those people. I did indeed go through hell and back to learn the little social skills i have.

Also you can't look for typical signs in everyone. Take for example the eye contact thing, i STARE at people, i don't not make eye contact, i stare straight at their eyes the entire time... i get rather annoyed when they look away. So it's a similar thing, but the opposite of the "stereotypical" aspie. And i have Empathy... but it's always been exaggerated (i felt sad for a rain puddle because a rain drop fell in it when i was a kid, i used to sob when OTHER kids got in trouble etc.)