Help my son NIck Please

[nikniksmom]

I have two and half year old little boy who will be three in August. He is very bright and imaginative and can be very loving. I am worried deeply though of signs that lean toward Autism that he has. He has been through in home speech and ot therapy. They are going to discontinue feeling he has progressed enough. BUT, he rock HARD on the couch, car seat, chair ect. So hard at times it sound as though he is knocking the wind out of himself. These episodes can last from five min. to and hour steadily! He lines all things up cars ect. And gets very aggravated if something is in his path ( say playing with the cars and a pillow is in the way, but he won't move it rather stand and screech at it) He survives on Silk soy milk, and chicken nuggets, yogurt,and sprite LITERALLY he won't eat anything else and chokes or gags very easily if say we give him bread. When he is ROCKING he is completely zoned out not myself a tv or sibling can stop him if you draw attention to it he consciously stops for a moment and then unconsciously starts back as though he can't resist the erge, He is also a drooler which I thought we would be past at this age. He smiles, laughs, plays but even as an infant days old he would rather be in a bouncy seat than held, and to this day doesn't "enjoy" hugs. And doesn't enjoy being around other kids his age a childcare he is a definate loner. Help................

[MJIthewriter]

That lunch experience was some time in 1st grade...

Now days I don't play with my food as much... I still don't certain canned things.  Canned fruit I used to eat, but recently the can taste wins over and I can't stand it...  I have a hard time with pineapples, ever since I tried to drink juice from a corroded, rusty can. (It didn’t look so bad on the outside!)  The "green" color should have alerted me that can't be good...

Nowdays I am more open to trying new things if they aren't like things I have an established dislike. I don't like cold dishes that are mixed with vinegar, cream or cool whip... (It seems to have been an aversion ever since I got a really bad stomach upset at age 5 or so from eating at a buffet.
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French dressing I won't touch either (even today)... I couldn't pour it well as a kid (and I still have issues pouring things like that, if the lip is too wide.) I ended up with a bowl full on my salad. My parents insisted upon "eat your bit” And wanted me to eat it all or at least most of it.
I tried but gave up after feeling sick. I decided the stuffed troll doll (I was trying to earn as a reward from a point system my parents tried) just wasn't worth it, even if I spent about a month working for and anticipating it... I was horribly disappointed, but what was I to do? The doll ended up given to my sister which made me resent her for a while.
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That was the last time I remember my parents forcing me to eat a food. I think they learned their lesson.

[MJIthewriter]

Playing with food:

I used to smash my peas and corn or "pop" them by squeezing the skin until it burst... I probably did that to beans too. Sor some reason I didn't like peas. No I've figured out it's canned peas I don't like...or canned vegetables in general... Canned things taste like...can... Corn...I don't really care for, but I eat it if it is served. I may have up-chucked it at one time... Anything that comes out after supposidly having been digested, usually becomes a food I have a very hard time eating again if ever...

If allowed to play with my food I would do strange things... One time I couldn't stand to eat a chicken leg, so I poured maple serup on it and actually liked it. O_o But I didn't get to take more than one or two bites before a lunch aid came over, scolded me and took it away. :(

I was upset!  They made me go to some other room and offered something else like a sandwich after I cried much...  I wish I could remember more detail. I do know I was very confused... Hey I was starting to eat it. What's wrong with eating something my way?
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Picky eaters:
Some people on another forum seem to have found this book helpful: Just Take A Bite, foreward by Dr. Temple Grandin.

[Sally44]

Autism is a 'spectrum' condition which ranges from severe to mild.  I would agree that some people can have aspects of autistic traits, but believe me, even to be at the 'mild' end of the spectrum you have to have enough symptoms, in all the categories, and to such a degree where they interfere with language/communication and social interaction and rigid routines/obsessions/behaviours that interfere in daily activities for any adult/child to get a diagnosis.  If any child/adults improves significantly in any of the three areas known as the triad so that they do not meet the criteria they will lose their diagnosis (even though difficulties may remain in other areas recognised as autistic).  

To:  Nikniksmom:  As recommended above, you need to air your concerns to a paediatrician or GP.  Your son is on a very restricted diet and they should be able to refer you to a professional (not sure which one is most appropriate), who can help you introduce new tastes and textures to your child.  Many autistic children have problems with food and it is different for each child.  There are many other conditions (including Downs Syndrome), where children have difficulty with a varied diet and therefore I know there are professionals who help with it - when asking for a referal ask for someone who has experience with autism.  My son had a limited diet for a while and would vomit if he tried anything new.  But he has got better.  I used to try new tastes/textures and would give him a piece of kitchen towel so that he could spit it out if he didn't like it.  My son used to complain that things were burning his mouth (ie. spicy) when they weren't (but that is how it tasted to him).  He has problems with different textures on the same plate.  He cannot eat food with a shell covering such as peas, beans etc.  Give him the opportunity to 'play with food' without the pressure of trying to get him to eat it.  Eg. carrot/cucumber pieces, pieces of chocolate, a rusk etc and let him experience it.  See what he does to it.  Does he smell it and discard it.  Does he not want to touch it.  Does he put it in his mouth and spit it out.  All these things will give you indications of his difficulty.  Eg. smell is linked to taste.  If it smells 'wrong or horrible' (sense of smell) he won't put it in his mouth.  If he doesn't like the 'feel' of it (tactile sense) he won't put it in his mouth.  If he puts it in his mouth and spits it out it is probably sense of taste that is different.
Regarding the rocking:  this can be a sensory thing.  Have you mentioned it to the OT?  I know I keep mentioning a book by Olga Bogdashina about different sensory perspectives in Autism and Aspergers.  I do not get commission honestly!!  But I have found it the best book about sensory issues.  There is a questionnaire at the back of the book that gives you a sensory profile for your child.  This profile is used by professionals in the UK.  
If he likes rocking he may not get enough sensory information through his body from the vestibular/proprioceptive senses and the extra movement helps him 'feel where he is' and will also help calm him down, and he will also like the sensation.  Children like this can like the feel of a weighted duvet wrapped around them.  You can also buy weighted toys that they can put around their shoulders or on their knee (an OT should know all about this, but so should an Early Learning Department's autism specialist).  
You could also invest in an exercise trampette for inside the house (if he likes bouncing).  Again bouncing gives extra sensory information to the joints and deep muscles.
Every person needs a certain amount of stimulus to function and we need to be able to reduce stimulation to calm down and increase stimulation to complete a task.  If any child has sensory differences their bodies to not 'modulate' their sensory systems automatically.  That is why you get alot of the behaviours.  It has been proven that many children will regulate themselves if they have access to the correct equipment to stimulate themselves and calm themselves.  But I recommend reading the book to get a better understanding of what is going on with your child.

Screaming at the pillow:  autistic children can have problems with planning, sequencing, predicting outcomes etc.  At nearly 3 years old your child may not 'know' that he has to do to remove the pillow himself.  You could help show him by taking his hand to the pillow and 'removing it' together and you could say 'move please' at the same time.  
My son used to do something similar on the pavement.  If he came to someone standing in his way, he wouldn't move around them and he wouldn't ask them to move.  He would just stand there, get frustrated and then scream.  Now he is 7 he doesn't do that anymore.
I know another boy who does something similar.  If he is in a room full of obstacles, and he wants to get something on the other side of the room, he doesn't walk around the obstacles he walks straight through them knocking them over/breaking them on the way, as if unaware of them because his focus is on what he was trying to get at.

I read in another forum that drooling can continue for a while after teething has stopped.

[abhay_dogra]

Hi
I really dont understand this disorder called autism . If it is  lack of social interaction , Lack of language or comunication skills , sensoury problems , rigid behaviour . Dont you think we all at some stage have this  . As a child my mom told me that she used to push me for playing with childern of my own age . i started late at speach , still i feel uncomfortable to talk to a stranger , we all do . as a child i hated most people who used to do  a lot of smootching and kissing at my cheeks , cudling me a lot , think we all hate it at some point and age  , n food we all have choice for it we like some we dislike some . n when we dont get a thing of our interest we do follow certain odd behaviours to show our anger . We all do that all times . If this is what autism is then i feel that we all have some autistic features in us . Dont u think so

[NicolaMc]

I agree with MJIthewriter, the speech and language therapy shouldn't be stopped just because he seems to have progressed.
My own sons ot diagnoised him with a sensory processing disoder, which consists of many things including the eg MJIthewriter just gave you. He doesn't like light hugs, he nearly has to be squeesed and his food can't be any way mushy. Currently we are waiting appointments to see phyc's etc for futher diagnosis.
Have you spoke to your doctor about your concerns?

[MJIthewriter]

I don't agree with the speech and ot. therapy being quit, just because he seems to have progressed. I remembering having a few in school speech therapists and I believe they helped me, especially with exercises on symbols, idioms, and other abstract things.

But then again it seems like the going trend is that people with autism can recover… which I dread will be the death of important services down the road.

I don’t believe there is such a thing as recovery, but I do believe that autistic people mature and grow like any other person and get better skills if taught with understanding and patience.

Things that need to be taught:
- Recognize ones own emotions, identify them and classify them as angry, sad, happy, and as they get older more complex emotions.
- after being able to recognize ones own emotions, learn how to cope with them. That has to be shown.

Thinking back in my childhood, I thought people just automatically stopped feeling upset, angry, lonely, etc…and get really mad at myself for not being able to stop… That only made me angry with myself and frustrated to the point I bit myself really hard.

After learning it’s normal to feel and that some emotions just can’t be handled on my own, violent meltdowns like that significantly decreased as I leanred better coping strategies.

When I’m in the heat of a meltdown it’s like the fight or flee reaction. I’m not thinking and if I’m feeling something, it’s not something I can put into words very well. “Trapped wild animal” may be a good visual.

Knowing that… the best thing to do is be able to spot ones own feelings leading up to a meltdown before it gets there.

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Hugs: do you give him light ones or firm ones?  Many autistic people report they enjoy firm hugs but dislike light touches. For me, light touches itch. A firm touch seems to last a bit longer and feel more pleasant. If I’m touched I prefer a rub, than a tap or pat. That leaves kind of a burn like feel.
I hope this helps.
With the food sensitivities it could be either he dislikes the taste, texture, feel or he has had a bad experience such as indigestion.

With the bread, could it be because it gets too soft in his mouth? I can't stand soggy bread. Anything that can't be chewed up and swallowed quickly before becoming a mushy mess in my mouth grosses me out. As a kid I may have had a hard time eating tough meat because of that. (at least I remember such an experiance when young. I don't know if it was my first time, but my parents insisted I eat it.) I just about gagged because it kept in my mouth too long.

That's something to keep in mind.