Aa
Preschool eligability under special needs denied today for child with PDD-NOS
The school told me today that they don't see a need for my child to have special needs services as she was evaluated in their classroom and "she should be the model in the classroom" according to the principal. According to their team, she was the perfect child, had no sensory issues, followed instructions, played next to other children (even though she never initiated an interaction), so they saw no need as educationally she was wonderful. They continued to suggest that we, the parents, seek out guidance for ourselves instead stating that her sensory stuff may have become behavioral as she is expecting a certain reaction from us. I got so angry during this meeting as these people have never spent a day with my daughter and have not experienced her daily fears, anxieties and contant needs to be reassured that all is okay. She vomits for baths, has had chronic reflux and feeding issues from birth and they said that this vomiting is now a learned behavior from the medical condition (which I agree with to a point). I even posted images of my daughter for them to review and they basically told me that it doesn't matter how she responds in the world, but in the classroom from an educational standpoint, she is completely wonderful. They also said they don't see her as a PDD or autistic spectrum child which I just don't know anymore. My question is, should I just suck it up and accept the refusal for services since she is thriving so well, or should we fight this? Our videos were put on youtube to get some help but I am not even sure she has autism now...www.youtube.com/threeredheads
it is just important to make sure everyone (at home and nursery/school is aware of your daughter using this strategy and that they MUST NOT say anything negative to her about it. For most people it is a bit disconcerting to see a child frequently spitting out food. But she can be taught to do it quite discreetly as she gets older and the important thing is that she becomes more confident in 'trying' textures and feeling 'confident' that she can remove them without gagging or vomiting. You may well find that over time (years), her variety of food consumption will broaden. Today my son ate some bread with sesame seeds on. That is a first. Usually bread cannot have any other texture/seed or grain in it or on it.
You can also encourage her to touch, squash and sniff food without any pressure to eat it or even put it in her mouth. But that is usually for even more severe cases where childrens variety of food is severely limited to just a couple of items.
You can also encourage her to touch, squash and sniff food without any pressure to eat it or even put it in her mouth. But that is usually for even more severe cases where childrens variety of food is severely limited to just a couple of items.
LMAO...this is the best advice ever! Thank you to Malinda1998 and Sally44 for teaching us that spitting is better than swallowing!!!! So funny...but it has worked amazing. My DD had easter dinner today and put a texture in her mouth that didn't agree (stuffing) and she was able to spit it out and not vomit. The rest of the family was appauled that we are teaching her to spit into her napkin, but they will get over it if it means no vomit at the table...lol... AMAZING ADVICE!!!!! Any other inside tips on this gag reflex and stopping it? Really happy!!!!!!!!
A number of other things I have noticed about my son regarding food, which might be relevant is:-
(a) anxiety over different labels, where it was in the supermarket shelf (if it moved place), if the packaging or name has been changed.
(b) when on holiday he will eat food he will not touch at home. And some familar food he appears not to recognise. Quite bizzare really. At home he likes fish fingers and likes blackcurrent juice to drink. On one holiday he really didn't appear to know what this food was and was starting to get quite anxious about it. I can only assume he in some way recognises the food by the environment it is in and not just by the look and smell of it.
The above examples are things that happened when he was younger ie. 4-6 years old. I haven't had anything similar since. Apart from a change in food naming causing an absolute meltdown in the middle of a cafe. We went to order chicken nuggets and were told they were now called chicken chunks. He didn't like that! So he said okay i'll have fish fingers. And we were then told they aren't called fish fingers anymore they are called fish nuggets. Well all hell broke loose with him kicking and screaming on the floor.
But I think that all of the above is down to sensory, perceptual and language difficulties.
(a) anxiety over different labels, where it was in the supermarket shelf (if it moved place), if the packaging or name has been changed.
(b) when on holiday he will eat food he will not touch at home. And some familar food he appears not to recognise. Quite bizzare really. At home he likes fish fingers and likes blackcurrent juice to drink. On one holiday he really didn't appear to know what this food was and was starting to get quite anxious about it. I can only assume he in some way recognises the food by the environment it is in and not just by the look and smell of it.
The above examples are things that happened when he was younger ie. 4-6 years old. I haven't had anything similar since. Apart from a change in food naming causing an absolute meltdown in the middle of a cafe. We went to order chicken nuggets and were told they were now called chicken chunks. He didn't like that! So he said okay i'll have fish fingers. And we were then told they aren't called fish fingers anymore they are called fish nuggets. Well all hell broke loose with him kicking and screaming on the floor.
But I think that all of the above is down to sensory, perceptual and language difficulties.
I also taught my son to try food and that it was okay to spit it on a paper napkin if he thought he was going to vomit. This also worked for us. Thankfully he then grew out of this at about the same time he started school. Otherwise I am sure he would have got told off for doing that in school. But it is a sensory thing, and also a reflex action. Then it also gets associated with anxiety etc. So, by telling him I wanted him to taste, but that it was okay to get it out his mouth fast, he became much more able to try stuff. We started with just sniffing and touching food with the tip of his tongue, then just putting it in his mouth etc. There are still certain food types and textures that he cannot bear, but his overall food intake is very good and is from a wide range of food. He now even eats cabbage and brussels! But he still cannot tolerate baked beans, peas, sweetcorn etc.
And I also worked on teaching him how to swallow vitamin tablets, because I knew that we would have huge difficulties with medicine. He had liquid antibiotics once and just vomited it back up every single time. I spoke with the doctor about it and he was just not understanding at all and told me 'you have to get it down him'. Well, I did eventually find a way. I mixed it in with hot chocolate milk and he drank it. But after that we worked on tablets, and he can now swallow tablets okay. So if he ever needs any kind of medication in the future I know he should be able to manage it.
So it is possible. Just lots of encouragement, small steps and a get out clause (ie. spit it out) to reduce anxiety.
And I also worked on teaching him how to swallow vitamin tablets, because I knew that we would have huge difficulties with medicine. He had liquid antibiotics once and just vomited it back up every single time. I spoke with the doctor about it and he was just not understanding at all and told me 'you have to get it down him'. Well, I did eventually find a way. I mixed it in with hot chocolate milk and he drank it. But after that we worked on tablets, and he can now swallow tablets okay. So if he ever needs any kind of medication in the future I know he should be able to manage it.
So it is possible. Just lots of encouragement, small steps and a get out clause (ie. spit it out) to reduce anxiety.
Hi there,
I read your post and I really apreciate the info. I have a meeting scheduled with the school for this upcoming week and my very vocal and persuasive mother in law will be going with me this time (lol...breaking out the MIL). I am definitely going to look up feeding programs for sensory as you suggested...the feeding team she has right now is more medically focused...she is having an upper GI next month to monitor damage to her esophagus. Poor kid... Thank you for suggesting the spitting the food out before she gaggs...we just started doing that and soooooo much better! If it hits the back of her gag reflex though, there is no stopping it...but for the initial textures that she feels when she gets the first bite, spitting has helped a lot! Any suggestions on potty traning issues? We are no where near potty training and she does it all over the house! She doesn't understand not to go in her underwear. I have a potty in the living room as she is petrified of the bathroom. We keep prompting her to go every 5-10 mins and she says she doesn't have to...but she will go every 10 mins if you sit her on the potty each time she does go. Also, she just started becomming hyperactive and uncontrollable (partly regular 3 year old) and she began hitting people this month which she has never done before.
I read your post and I really apreciate the info. I have a meeting scheduled with the school for this upcoming week and my very vocal and persuasive mother in law will be going with me this time (lol...breaking out the MIL). I am definitely going to look up feeding programs for sensory as you suggested...the feeding team she has right now is more medically focused...she is having an upper GI next month to monitor damage to her esophagus. Poor kid... Thank you for suggesting the spitting the food out before she gaggs...we just started doing that and soooooo much better! If it hits the back of her gag reflex though, there is no stopping it...but for the initial textures that she feels when she gets the first bite, spitting has helped a lot! Any suggestions on potty traning issues? We are no where near potty training and she does it all over the house! She doesn't understand not to go in her underwear. I have a potty in the living room as she is petrified of the bathroom. We keep prompting her to go every 5-10 mins and she says she doesn't have to...but she will go every 10 mins if you sit her on the potty each time she does go. Also, she just started becomming hyperactive and uncontrollable (partly regular 3 year old) and she began hitting people this month which she has never done before.
I am sorry you are having such a hard time. Usually, in the States, it is easier on the pre-school level. Honestly, in NYC I knew parents that faked a disabled cild to get free pre-school. I really don't understand how you got all of these doctor reports and still did not qualify for any services. Perhaps you need an advocate - because it seems like this school isn't telling you all your rights. You need to go to your state's websites and find out who/what your rights are. My son is borderline too - and honestly at that age I didn't get anything for him because he was muddling through. There is a big wait and see thing going on. We took care of it privately (which is pretty expensive) until his problems interfered with his school work. The fact that your child is 3 and is still in diapers already indicates that they are a bit lagging. Kudos for finding a school that allows it.
If you qualify for Head Start then you probably can find an advocate who will help you on a sliding scale. Every state has to provide a public advocate service and they are less expensive than the private ones. Also, some of the private schools work with advocates who charge a substantially lower fee.
My daughters had a kid in their preschool who used to upchuck any real food every time she ate - but magically could keep down potato chips and cheese doodles. The teachers viewed it as a control issue to get more chips - so sometimes teachers read their own feelings into it. Just remember you are dealing with a professon that has the lowest SAT scores of any licensed group. Furthemore teachers who have scored elementary education degrees also have the lowest critical thinking skills of any college major. This knowledge really helped us deal with them on a psychological level - all of a sudden the professional was no longer very insightful or intimidating.
Be happy that your child is functioning in school. Sam buried many a preschool director/teacher. He then grew up to bury a principal or two. You should be happy no one is politely asking you to pack up your urchin (and I mean public school) and handing you a letter telling you to go find any private school and they will happily foot the bill - just get him the hell out of their sight.
If you qualify for Head Start then you probably can find an advocate who will help you on a sliding scale. Every state has to provide a public advocate service and they are less expensive than the private ones. Also, some of the private schools work with advocates who charge a substantially lower fee.
My daughters had a kid in their preschool who used to upchuck any real food every time she ate - but magically could keep down potato chips and cheese doodles. The teachers viewed it as a control issue to get more chips - so sometimes teachers read their own feelings into it. Just remember you are dealing with a professon that has the lowest SAT scores of any licensed group. Furthemore teachers who have scored elementary education degrees also have the lowest critical thinking skills of any college major. This knowledge really helped us deal with them on a psychological level - all of a sudden the professional was no longer very insightful or intimidating.
Be happy that your child is functioning in school. Sam buried many a preschool director/teacher. He then grew up to bury a principal or two. You should be happy no one is politely asking you to pack up your urchin (and I mean public school) and handing you a letter telling you to go find any private school and they will happily foot the bill - just get him the hell out of their sight.
You are reading content posted in the Autism & Asperger's Syndrome Forum
Fearing autism, many parents aren't vaccinating their kids. Can doctors reverse this dangerous trend?
Yummy eats that will keep your child healthy and happy
What to expect in your growing baby
Is the PS3 the new Prozac … or causing ADHD in your kid?
Autism expert Dr. Richard Graff weighs in on the vaccine-autism media scandal.
Could your home be a haven for toxins that can cause ADHD?
