Is it because of the OCD?

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Hi all,
I have an 11 yr old son dx'd AS, ADHD,GAD,OCD and Tourettes. At the start of this year he was on meds to help the ADHD and the OCD, however we have had him off these meds now for approx 4 months, just to see if there is a major difference with or without.
My problem is, prior to the meds J my son had started eating like you wouldn't believe. Constantly looking for the next food source, constantly telling me he was hungry (but when questioned admitted he isn't sure if he is hungry or just wants to chew something with taste). I had tried chewing gum, ice , chewy necklaces etc etc. He will eat until he is sick and or has pain, wait a few minutes then nag for more food or search the cupboard or fridge. I am constantly saying No, constantly redirecting etc etc. When this all started J only had the AS dx. He got the extra 4 after going threw the mental health team at our local children's hospital, this is when they started the meds. When he was on the meds (Strattera) he barely ate any thing and dropped a lot of weight (not sickly thin, just trim) . I took him off the meds because I wasn't sure just how beneficial they were, you see I thought J's eating was just a form of stimming. This isn't the only reason we are resting him from the meds. Sorry I'm all over the place.
My question now is, is it possible or do you think this eating is part of the OCD? and not sensory seeking or stim behavior at all?
Do any of your kids do this? How do you help them? J has put on a lot of weight very quickly, so it's not good for his health.
Thanks guys/ girls.

I eat A LOT due to a high metabolism. I don't believe it would deal with OCD unless it's compulsive in nature. I have heard of autistic people having gustatory sensitivities, and over-eating is their way of dealing with it. Also, all of those other dx's go along with autism spectrum disorders.

It'd be unusual for OCD to cause compulsive eating, as the reason behind OCD compulsion is the fear that "something bad will happen," or a sense of dirtyness or something along those lines. Compulsive eaters on the other hand, who do not have OCD, usually eat for emotional comfort or they have an unusually pleasurable response to food.

Most people who have food oriented OCD have issues with not wanting to eat something.

Hi all,
I have an 11 yr old son dx'd AS, ADHD,GAD,OCD and Tourettes. At the start of this year he was on meds to help the ADHD and the OCD, however we have had him off these meds now for approx 4 months, just to see if there is a major difference with or without.
My problem is, prior to the meds J my son had started eating like you wouldn't believe. Constantly looking for the next food source, constantly telling me he was hungry (but when questioned admitted he isn't sure if he is hungry or just wants to chew something with taste). I had tried chewing gum, ice , chewy necklaces etc etc. He will eat until he is sick and or has pain, wait a few minutes then nag for more food or search the cupboard or fridge. I am constantly saying No, constantly redirecting etc etc. When this all started J only had the AS dx. He got the extra 4 after going threw the mental health team at our local children's hospital, this is when they started the meds. When he was on the meds (Strattera) he barely ate any thing and dropped a lot of weight (not sickly thin, just trim) . I took him off the meds because I wasn't sure just how beneficial they were, you see I thought J's eating was just a form of stimming. This isn't the only reason we are resting him from the meds. Sorry I'm all over the place.
My question now is, is it possible or do you think this eating is part of the OCD? and not sensory seeking or stim behavior at all?
Do any of your kids do this? How do you help them? J has put on a lot of weight very quickly, so it's not good for his health.
Thanks guys/ girls.

I have had the same situation periodically with my 10 year old son. He becomes aggressive about food. It seems to come and go for him. I do not believe it is related to any of my son's diagnosis. I believe it is his age. He also puts on the weight seemingly overnight. I have found that I can counteract the weight gain by doing little things such as using cooking spray for cooking pancakes, buying lite syrup,etc...all the little cut backs seem to work to slow the weight down. Then as quickly as he became aggressive about food, he is suddenly back to normal. I think it may be better attributed to hormonal changes, at least in our case.

Also, I am just curious, I was told that a doctor cannot (according to the DSM) diagnosis AS along with OCD, ADHD or Tourettes. I was told that ADHD, OCD and Tourettes symptoms are part of an ASD diagnosis, not separate. Did your doc tell you anything like this??

Hi all, Thanks to those that replied. J's eating is very obsessive in nature he feels compelled to eat. I know it's not just hormonal it goes beyond that, J is my youngest of two boys the oldest is almost 21. My oldest does have bad eating habits, what is happening with J is not the same.

In relation to all the dx's, you don't know how many times I've heard "Oh that's all part of the AS". No it's not! Not all people with AS have had one or all of the other dx's. My understanding is that a lot of people on the spectrum display traits for one or a few of the other dx's but the intensity and frequency may not necessarily be there for them to have a clinical dx of that particular condition. I to thought that all of J's symptoms were just the AS. I was firmly told NO he clinically meets the criteria for all 5 dx's. It took a whole team of people over a number of weeks and lots of observations to come to their final diagnoses. It actually irks me a little when people (especially those with a family member on the spectrum) tell me "well that's all part and parcel of being on the spectrum, they are all like that" ( I'm not just talking about people here, this happens every where.) I ask for support or understanding and I'm dismissed with an attitude like "ah well get over it, all our kids are like that". Then they go on to tell me what strategies work for their kids, when I tell them they don't work for mine, they act like I haven't tried. These strategies don't work for my child because one or more of the other dx's interferes. Don't get me wrong, the extra labels don't change who my son is (I love him dearly) but in a support type setting I include the extra info so people can get the bigger picture.

If the extra dx's came BEFORE the AS dx I would question the validity of the original diagnoses. The extra labels came after. He was originally labeled ADHD, this lasted for a few years. This label was replaced with the aspergers'. 12 months later the Asperger's was re tested and reconfirmed along with the ADHD, OCD, GAD and Tourettes. Years prior to the As dx, my son was diagnosed with CAPD aswell as the ADHD, I don't add this to his list of dx's because it was probably just part of the AS.

Any way I'm sorry for ranting it just bothers me that so many people are so quick to tell me that J's dx's are all just AS. This is part of the reason I stopped coming here. If I wanted my concerns dismissed so quickly I could just go to my local primary school.

P.S Thank You Chronos

Thanks for explaining this!