So many of you know that we have had some real issues with our son Ethan. Let me start by saying that Ethan is an amazing kid. He is incredibly loving and is very determined to do the things he knows are right. He is the one that is constantly telling us, "they said shut up on that show, do you think it is appropriate in our dedicated home?" (Seriously) He is a genius. Yeah I know EVERYONE'S kid is a genius and my girls ARE incredibly smart too but Ethan actually is a genius. He taught himself (I wish I could take the credit but I can't) to read at around 2 and a half years old. We were out at Clear Creek one day and our two-year-old asks, "Dad what does 'potable' mean (he pronounced it pottable but hey he was two)?" We finally saw the sign he was pointing at that said, "Notice water is not potable". His first grade teacher taught all of the kids to count to 30 in Cantonese. We were in the car again and I heard what sounded like Ethan Chanting in the back seat and so I asked what he was saying. He replied, "I figured out that there is a pattern and so I can count to 99 in Cantonese but I am stuck because I don't know the word for 100, can I look it up online when we get home?" I could go on and on with all of his good points but he has his struggles too.
Ethan has ADHD. We have tried diet changes, environment changes, coping technique counseling, and 4 different medications. Everything has helped. . . a little. Unfortunately most of the meds had side effects that were worse than the ADHD (hitting, crying, anger, aggression. . . ). We are back to the first med we tried that has so far been the most helpful. Ethan will tell you that it isn't just about the meds, that he has to make good choices or all the meds in the world won't help so he doesn't use it as a crutch. Throughout this process we have had 2 teachers and 2 principals suggest that Ethan might have Asperger's Syndrome. It is a very high functioning form of Autism characterized by high intelligence, poor social skills, and bad handwriting (click
here for more information). Obviously it is more in depth than that but you get the point. At first I was against even pursuing the idea, I didn't want any stigma associated with the word autism applied to my son. He doesn't need help being the weird one. :) I have realized that one, I was just being judgemental and shallow concerning the word autism and that it can only help to find out if it does apply, then at least I would have and idea how best to help my sweet son. Long story short in about a week Ethan is going to meet with a doctor in flagstaff who specializes in ADHD and hopefully then we will have some better answers to help Ethan.
So I guess the point of this blog is that I would love to hear any advice anyone has on either ADHD or Asperger's Syndrome. Thanks for the support! :)
