My son has just been diagnoized with high f... - Autism Support
My son has just been diagnoized with high functioning autism, wot does this mean?
Hi deco,
Maybe as the community grows someone with experience of HFA can comment on this, but until then I found this article. not sure, but you might find it useful
autism.org.uk/About-autism/...
Wishing you the best
Deco,
I would like to help you as much as I possibly can. My husband was diagnosed with HFA last year. The symptoms are no different to Aspergers, except that their speech develops differently - one is slow, other is fast and I can't remember which way around that is. I think HFA is slow in developing speech if I remember correctly.
Here are the things my husband struggles with:
- He is very sensitive to light. He cannot sleep if there is any light that comes through the curtains or door. We bought some black-out curtains and he sleeps in a seperate room now because I open my curtains to wake up with the sun.
- He is very sensitive to sounds. If he hasn't had a good night's sleep, he struggles to cope with noise or talking etc. Having the television on in the background can be overwhelming.
- He needs to be in control of his day to day routine. Any changes brings panic and meltdowns. He also struggles with new food, new places to visit, meeting new people. Once he is familiar with these and knows what to expect and how to react, he is absolutely fine. This does take time, though.
- He is only interested in whatever it is that he is interesed in - he will dominate conversations, adn cannot see that everyone else has already switched off and lost interest. This is getting better as we have had to encourage him to let other people speak as well, and show an interest in what they have to say.
- He struggles to make any emotional connection with anyone - he needs to constantly be told and shown that I love him. He needs understanding and love and very few people have the patience to come alongside. You will be his rock, his steady support all through his life. My husband still needs his mother and his home environment when we have a tough time.
I had better stop now. I hope this is helpful, and all the best to you both.
It means you have most likely got a suppressed genius on your hands too.
Hrs should always be aloud to let themselves be absorbed into their interests without distraction and only stopped if their interest is of a dangerous nature. I can learn languages in two weeks or memorize a phone book + names + addresses. Then when I decide I don't need that info because I find another interest I can either push it into the storage room in my head or delete it.
I know I couldn't be bothered with correct punctuation but its unimportant but the message is important.
Encourage his interests by letting him simply be.
