My ASD Child

"My husband as well as most of his side of the family often accuse me of mollycoddling our 6 y.o. girl with high functioning autism. They believe she should receive the same treatment as her brothers. What do you say about this? Should you treat a child with the condition the same as those without it? I'm torn on this issues, because I know that my daughter has some special needs, yet I don't want to enable. Advice?" Click here for the answer...

What issues should I consider when contemplating broaching high functioning autism to my 28-year-old son? I want to help him -- he has no social life, lives at home, is rigid in his habits...in short is on the spectrum in both me and my husband's opinion. Should we tell him what we're thinking? Click here for the answer...

"My 8 year old son is going to begin testing in a few weeks. I'm not sure if he has high functioning autism or not, but he sure has many of the behaviors and tendencies. He does have sensory issues and severe anxiety. My question is about the constant judgment and ignorance of other parents and teachers. I do have plenty of supportive friends, but recently I've had some intense altercations with my son's teacher (saying he's only "oppositional" with me, he's fine at school and this is "something I need to work out in therapy"). Her comment was so ignorant - she knew nothing about his level of anxiety, his sensory issues or how he melts at the end of each day after just trying to hold it together. I also had another mom leave our playdate the other day because of inappropriate behavior (slamming a door b/c of frustration). She couldn't believe I let that happen. Ugh!! My parents and even husband have called me a pushover an...

I am the dubiously proud mother of a 7-year-old girl with Aspergers. As with many "Aspies" she likes a certain sense of order in her surroundings, and will rearrange other people's belongings to accommodate her own preferences. We have spoken to her time and time again about not touching other people's things... all to no avail. Now her teacher reports she is taking things from others. This has been happening in our home rather regularly, and we have tried everything we can think of to stop or prevent the behavior, but it seems to be getting worse not better. Any help you can give me would be MUCH appreciated! Click here for my response...

Scientific study has identified a link between high levels of androgen hormone or testosterone in infants still in the womb and autistic characteristics in kids. Infants subjected to high levels of the sex hormone testosterone in the womb seem to be at higher risk for these autistic traits. While the scientists are cautious to note that even though they can't prove testosterone exposure in the womb leads to Aspergers, they firmly believe it might eventually be implicated as one of the primary factors associated with Aspergers. The concept that fetal testosterone might play a causal role in Aspergers is a current hypothesis. There is no proof that it is a causal factor, however this research is undoubtedly in keeping with that hypothesis. The research followed 235 moms and their kids over 8 years. At the onset of the research, the mothers had an amniocentesis, a normal womb examination during pregnancy which identified testosterone levels present. The kids were closely...