Wondering how common some things are with children that have ASD?

Tanya - posted on 09/16/2012

My son is 5 and on the spectrum. Out of the all the things on the list I can say he probably only gets the red ears/cheeks and flat feet but nothing else. When he was younger he had an issue with loose bowels but that changed once he went on a dairy/gluten free diet. I'm thankful we have never had an issue with sleeping - he is in bed at 7 pm and sleeps straight through until 6 am. It's hard with my son as he is non verbal so he couldn't really tell me if something didn't feel right so it's a guessing game with him for a lot of things but he's never have nosebleeds, glue ear, grommets, sleeping issues, etc.

Julie - posted on 09/15/2012

Hi yes i have a son who has severe aspergers. He also goes as red as a tomatoe after little exertion. He is 10 years old and is quite hard work. He also has sleep problems and is on melotonin, and he has bad meltdowns as well - although not as bad as a year ago. He is getting help at school and he has been to play therapy. He also has a continual smile on his face and you never know how he is feeling. If you ask him he always says he is ok so its very difficult to know. Sometimes he seperates himself from others and finds it very hard to mix. He does get the odd times when he complains of headaches.



My name is Julie by the way, my son is called

Amanda - posted on 08/27/2010

My son is 4 with an ASD diagnosis. The symptoms he can claim are hypermobility/low muscle tone, itchy skin (no sign of why), sleep problems. He gets pretty red in the face, but then, he's usually exerting himself QUITE a bit (sensory seeker), we live in Florida where it's hotter'n bujeezus, and he has his father's fair English skin so he blushes like a bride. So I never gave it much thought. I'm going to have to pay closer attention to how he looks in comparison with his classmates after equal exertion.

Tina - posted on 08/27/2010

my son has a VERY ovweractive bladder. He seems to go through a ton f diapers every day, and that is even with him using the potty some. (we are TRYING to train, lol) He also has the sleep issues. we used melatonin for about a year, and then it just stopped working. His dr put him on trazadone, which I was skeptical about, but it is amazing how much better he sleeps now. Even with the melatonin, he would toss and turn all night and wake up at least once or twice.

Sarah - posted on 08/27/2010

My daughter has the turning bright red when she is a little bit warm, it has been helpful with a fever :-) as I know for sure it is a fever before I check the temp. But this happens also from exercise as well.
She also has itchy dry skin, the Dr. says it is from her constantly washing her hands (she does wash them a lot). My daughter does sleep though she needs to have a minimum of 10 hours a night or her next day will not be a good one.
Hope this helps.

Tina - posted on 08/27/2010

Hi Angela,
Where are you from? Just curious. I am in the US, state of Missouri. My 10 yr. old daughter has all but the eczema, heart pounding and red ears. She was just diagnoed a couple of weeks ago, it had not occured to me maybe some of her other physical problems might be related.... thanks for the post!

Michelle - posted on 08/20/2010

If I had to make an educated guess, I would say that there is definitely a physiological component to Autism, ASD. "Yes" is the answer to most of those things listed with the little guys in our family, tonsils and adenoids removed, in and out of the hospital with seizures and coughing up blood...

Some of the studies that I think are the most interesting, and most promising, are those that involve intestinal development and a high percentage of ASD kids with permeated intestines. We've had lots of success with both GF/DF diets and nutritional supplements from the Sunrider brand. (Quinary, Nuplus, Fortune Delight, TOP, etc.) Much better clarity and attention spans on the GF/DF diet, and lots fewer tantrums since we started about 3 years ago. And actually, we've had no need for hospital visits since starting up with the supplements about a year and a half ago. Praise the Lord!

I have lots of hope for some good solutions in the future for our little guys. Who knows if they'll ever be fully "neuro-typical" (always hoping), but at least they'll be feeling a lot better.

Suzanne - posted on 08/19/2010

I have a 15 year old daughter with Aspberger's. As a child around the ages of 4 thru 10, she had severe nosebleeds, sleep apnea so bad until the age of 5. She could hardly breath nwhen sleeping. Tonsils were very large, had ear infections all the time. I think glue ear. Her fluid would never drain out of her ears. Had some hearing loss. After tonsillectomy and adnoids, and tube 2 times, things got better. She still is a terrible sleeper. Wakes very easily, and used to take forever to fall asleep. She is afraid to sleep alone.

Angela - posted on 08/15/2010

Hi again Connie,

So sorry to here that you are going through the diagnosis process so late!!! I hope you and your daughter recieve all the help and support you both need!

My son is still waiting for many referalls ie OT and educational Phsycologist etc and has no plan of action so to speak. He has meds for his bladder because he has a medical condition that means his bladder just empties without him even knowing and weather it is full or not. It took me until last year to get him referred to an Enuresis nurse. I kept being told that it was probably his bladder capacity and that he would grow out of it, despite the fact that his day and night accidents were severely affecting him daily!!! Despite his meds and a regular and strict fluid intake he still has accidents, bless him but nothing to the extent that it was!!!

Good luck and best wishes

Angela

Connie - posted on 08/15/2010

We are just now getting the autism and ADD diagnoses, so until we get her meds and behavior and occupational therapy and a nutrition plan (she's very picky eater!!) we won't know what works for her.

Angela - posted on 08/15/2010

Hi Shiela,

Glue ear is a build up of fluid in the ear and like in my sons case can cause severe hearing loss. He ended up having to have 2 lots of grommets inserted and the removal of his adenoids and tonsils to try to clear up the fluid build up and stop it from recurring. Grommets are tiny tubes that are inserted into a small incision into the ear canal.

It does seem that our children have alot of illness and other medical conditions compared to NL children and just wonder if some of these other difficulties, should'nt be being looked at more closely as possible warning and flag signs to ASD. Especially the flat feet etc, as like with our son's i am finding these things extremely common factors between children on the spectrum! Is it just me or does anyone else think their could be certain other factors that could be used as early warning signs?

For all our children go through, i think you'll all agree they are lil stars :)

Thanks for all the replies so far ladies and sharing what your lil ones go through or have been through, bless 'em all xxx

To Connie, Hi,

my son is 8 years old now and has had and continues to have many of these problems since he was born :( He is on medication for some and am not sure at present if he will have to permanently remain on meds for some ie his overactive bladder and sleep problems!!!

Have many of your daughters problems got better as she got older, bless her?

Best wishes to all

Angela

Connie - posted on 08/15/2010

What age are you talking about? My daughter is 22 years old; and has had some of these such as constipation; diffifculty with sleeping sometimes like she's wound up so tight!

Rita - posted on 08/15/2010

My son is now eight. He get eczema on his face, usually in winter. Still has to wear a pull up to bed everynight, and has never woke with a dry one. Has was diagnosed with a lazy eye. He wakes up several times at night. More often then not, I wake to find him sleeping in my bed. His feet are like icecubes at times.

Anke - posted on 08/15/2010

Hi there,

I agree with Rae- a lot of these symptoms sound a lot like possible food sensitivities/allergies, or sensitivities to toxins present in food, cosmetics etc. Especially the skin and chest/ear/digestive ones. Personally I am not very experienced in this area, but there is a lot of information out there on food sensitivities and autism, and how changing the diet, cutting out wheat, gluten, sugar, processed foods, dairy or whatever can seriously benefit children on the spectrum. It is worth looking into it, you never know, you might be able to help him yourself with some of these symptoms easier than you thought!
Good luck.

Melissa - posted on 08/14/2010

All of my kids have gotten eczema flare-ups since birth. My "little middle" child had huge tonsils that were eventually removed. They also seem particularly vulnerable to heat exhaustion. The constipation issues have come and gone teh other direction as well, but nothing too serious.

Sheila - posted on 08/14/2010

Hi Angela,



My son has flat feet, hypermobility, low muscle tone, WAS chronically constipated up until 18 months (when he started walking), gets red ears, and feels the heat quickly (but DOES not get cold)....that's it.



I am not sure was glue ear is, but he has extreme build-up of ear wax (to this day). Thankfully, unlike his sister, he did not have many ear infections; however, he did have croup at least five times every winter and we were there again in April (he's six)



His eyes crossed and became very apparent by the time he was 2....getting a good pediatric opthamologist was a bit of a run-around before finally getting to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Kids (hooray for Dr. Smith and his staff).



Sheila