A Diagnosis

This morning we took Joseph to the Nisonger Center at OSUMC to be screened for a study they are doing comparing two training programs for parents with autistic children. They had us fill out another questionnaire, then they took Kristy and myself to another room with the psychologist, Dr. Lecavalier, while they tried to administer an IQ test to Joseph. Dr. Lecavalier went through a big thick booklet of questions (I forget what it's called), and then went through the diagnostic criteria for Autism from the DSM-IV. At that point he said that he thought Joseph does meet the criteria for Autism. We took a break for lunch, and when he came back he told us that because Joseph's speech is so limited, they were going to stop the screening at that point. He said he was giving Joseph a diagnosis of autism, which we had expected. He also suggested that Joseph may have ADHD, but the surprise came when he told us that he thought Joseph may have impaired cognitive function (mental retardation).

That was a shock, we were totally unprepared for that suggestion. We really don't think it's true. Dr. Lecavalier only saw Joseph playing for a moment when we went back to have lunch and he didn't really interact with him. Joseph was uncooperative during the IQ test, Kristy was there for some of it, she said that some of the things they were asking Joseph to do he was capable of, he just wasn't following instructions.

I think we're still stunned about this last bit. Kristy's a little upset. We are already on a waiting list of the Autism Center at Children's Hospital. So we'll see what they say. I thought that today would give us some kind of certainty and peace, but I feel just about as uncertain about all of this as I did before.

So... Yeah.