High Functioning Autism

My son is almost four and has been given the interim diagnosis of social communication and interaction disorder pending a formal autism clinic assessment. He has a very high IQ and can read and write and do math, but he can't converse with his peers and has trouble managing his emotions and behaviour. He speaks fluently but is only now learning how to communicate interactively and not just make statements or answer specific questions. He has sensory difficulties and motor mannerisms too as well as suffering from melt-downs and having trouble understanding that other people can't see what he sees. But his intelligence and his loveable nature help to make up for his difficulties, and he'll go far in life with the right early help and support.

I'd love to share experiences with anyone who's dealing with an autistic child.

i used to teach 2 little boys in swim lessons. they were fab kids.
how does school work for your little one? will he go to a special needs school or mainstream?

He's going to mainstream nursery and has only just started. As he has not got a statement, he will just be kept an eye on by the nursery assistant for now and the SENCO has promised that they will implement ASD-friendly procedures for helping if he repeatedly struggles in specific areas. I have a review meeting set up for a few weeks time to see what will be necessary. They had things in place at his playgroup but nursery is a whole new ball game really. I guess they will do a new IEP at the meeting though I hadn't actually thought to ask about that.

To be honest it's mostly just a case of 'time will tell'.

Awwww bless his little cotton socks. How are you dealing with it all?

I'm actually alright with it now that I understand what's going on thanks Sam! I thought I was going insane in the early years and was desperate for answers. But now I've got them, I understand what I'm dealing with and that makes it a lot easier. It's still very frustrating some days watching a nearly 4yr old child, who started reading and writing at 2yrs old, soil himself or roll around on the floor in Tesco screaming and flapping his hands; but it could be worse. I can't imagine how awful that must be to have a low-functioning autistic child or a savant even. In some ways, being high functioning is almost like having the ability to function in both worlds: his world a lot of the time, and our world with support.