INTRODUCE YOURSELF SPECIAL NEEDS MAMAS!

[Trey]

Please introduce yourself (and please don't respond, think of this as a collective list to search for friends, people in similar situations, etc... more of a contact list).

You can include your name, your child's name, age, diagnosis, problems, any information you would like and you can add to it and edit it at any time.

[LaneyBug]

I'm Jamie, DS has Autism, specifically PDD-NOS. He will possibly have a more firm diagnosis in the next few years, he may not. His name is Tristan and he is 5. He was diagnosed just after his third birthday.
We have sleep issues, behavior issues, all kinds of things. He is very smart. He can read on at least a second grade level. He is in special pre-school and will be starting Collaborative Kindergarten in the fall. I'm very excited about that. His teacher told me today that he is ahead of all the kindergarteners in speech, so I'm excited about that. A big accomplishment.

[Trey]

My name is Trey, my son is Riley, he is 2 years old (roughly 2 years 3 months) and was just diagnosed with a provisionary diagnosis of PDD-NOS. He has social problems, communication problems and some problems with motor skills, balance, etc. He has made great progress since starting speech therapy though! He just started occupational therapy, we put him in daycare/preschool for two days a week to work on his interaction with other children, he has group classes once a week, and the state is sending someone out a couple times a week real soon here. He is very smart cognitively... he knows his colors, can count to 15, knows all his numbers up to 20 and knows all his ABC's too. He knows the "sound" of a lot of letters too... so we are trying to remain optimistic and help him as much as we can in these critical years.

I also have a brother who is autistic, so we were pretty familiar to start! I have worked with special needs children since I was a kid too, but man being a mommy vs. an outsider is a whole different world!

[trtnavywife]

My name is Christi, and my son Trenton is 6. He was diagnosed with a speech delay while he was in Pre-k. At the time, he was 4 years old but could only speak and understand on a 2 year old level. He was immediately put in speech and even now in Kindergarten he goes to speech 2 times a week He has made wonderful progress and continues to get better everyday.

Everything mentally and physically is normal with him, the speech pathologist calls it a speech atriculation!

[wb3690]

Aloha!

I'm Amy I have a 4, almost 5 year old who was dianosed with PDD-NOS when he was 3. Really just a year ago! Since then he's been receiving speech therapy and OT and I've seen a HUGE change in him.

Pre therapies he had a hard time communicating. He had alot of echolaylia, social issues, gross and fine motor skills issues and behavorial issues (which I really think were tied into his communication)

One year after he can hold a conversation (he was never able to hold a conversation before). His fine motor skills are getting better, but he still has issues with them. He's still clumsy and has problems with "motor skill planning" That was a weird thing to come to terms with because he can ride a bike, jump, skip etc, but if he has to do something new it takes a LONG time for him. I didn't even see it until they pointed it out.

Interestingly enough as I was reading trey's post I thought "hey I could have just copied it" because Sean tested very high cognitively and can "get" things faster than other kids in his class. Pretty much her entire post could have been mine.

Sean's doing great and is in special needs preschool and will transition into regular kindergarten next year with speech/ot and an eduacational assistant in the room for him.

[Christine]

My name is Christine. My son is 8 years old and has autism. He was nonverbal until the age of 4-5. His original diagnosis was PDD-NOS, it was changed when he was 6 to ASD. Now, he talks up a storm, I love it!

We have major food issues. He can read, but doesn't understand what he's reading. (hyperlexia) He's in a regular classroom for part of the day and the rest with his special ed. teacher. Homework is modified for him.

[missjenn00]

My name is Jennifer. my daughter Brooklynn is 5 and she is developmental delays and some medical problems due to having multiple strokes at 6 weeks old.and my daughter Brianna 6 was born 4 weeks early with immature lungs and just has speech problems and my son Clinton 8 has a heart murmur.

[Sarah]

Hello

I'm Sarah, and my son Noah(almost 6 yrs old) was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome & PDD/NOS Dec 2006. He has had a lot of therapy since he was 1 1/2 yrs old. Now, the only therapy he needs is speech. Mainly for his articulation. The only difficulty we have with him are his meltdowns. They aren't your average type of kid meltdowns. He is on Risperidone for it, and it works really well. He is main streamed in school, and is extremely smart .

[~Christina~]

my names christina...my daughter Gabbi is 2 and a couple months and has Microtia. One ear did not develop fully. So far it has not affected her speech. We are not sure how well her learning will be in a classroom setting. Could be fine as long as she sits in certain areas with her good ear out. We are still not sure yet if she is a canidate to open the ear and be able to use it to an extent. In about a year or so we will be able to figure out a more definitive plan..

[luvmysailor81904]

My name is Katie and my son was diagnosed with a developmental speech delay. Since starting his specialized pre-school in January there have been HUGE changes to his social, motor and speech skills. We still have a road in front of us but my Dh and I remain positive He goes to school 5 days a week and love it. We are working on getting him to the same level as his peers and when he hits Kindergarden, enrolling him in a Montessori. But as always, we are taking it day by day!