Monday, February 21, 2011

Could Allie have Aspergers Syndrome?

This mornings appointment with Dr. Mohrland at the Achieve Center went really well.  The meeting was basically for Matt and I to meet the doctor and answers questions about Allie.  It was our first time meeting the staff at the Achieve Center and everyone was great and very welcoming.  The reason Allie is being seen here is to rule out Asperger's Syndrome and other neurological delays.  Basically she is getting a full neuro-development assessment.  Since there are so many links between eating disorders and Autism, Dr. Brown thought it would be best to get Allie evaluated fully so we are not missing anything with her care.  Dr. Brown thought there was a "small" chance Allie could have Asperger's Syndrome which is a form of Autism - so he wanted to get Allie tested so it could be ruled out.

I am happy to report that Dr. Mohrland ruled out any form of Autism or Asperger's Syndrome today.  His exact words were, "Allie is to sly to have Asperger's".  Sly meaning crafty, tricksy and slick. He said that Allie knew exactly what she wanted and wasn't going to play any one's game.  Not sure if "sly" is a good thing but it sums up our little girl.  She most definitely has a mind of her own and knows how to play the field.

Dr. Mohrland has more testing for Allie which is scheduled for March 1st.  The next round of testing is her cognitive development.  Dr. Morlan thinks there will be a delay mostly due to her speech delay.  He said the two go hand in hand and most often if there a delay in one, the other is also delayed.  We know Allie has issues with listening and it's often hard to distinguish if she really doesn't understand what your asking or if she's just being stubborn and doesn't want to do what your asking.  Hopefully Dr. Mohrland's testing can shed some light on this issue for us.  It's been a long time battle that we are slowly winning but it's taken a lot of patience and if she really is having a hard time understanding or processing what we say, we want to get her the help she needs right away!

So, today's appointment was a success and I look forward to finishing up her testing so we can move on. Another interesting part of today was that Dr. Morlan has a son about Allie's age and he was recently diagnosed with a delayed reaction corn allergy (same as Allie).  It was nice talking about that too.  Allie was a challenging patient for Dr. Mohrland today - she gave him a run for his money.  Poor Dr. was trying everything to have Allie make eye contact with him and she just wouldn't do it.  For some reason, Allie is scared of men and today was no exception.  Little stinker - she eventually said "Thank you" after he gave her 2 stickers. :)

So, one appointment done and one more has been added.  Allie's hydrogen breath test was scheduled this morning and it's set for Monday, February 28th at 9:00.  The test is done at the hospital and it will take 1-4 hours.  Time for me to start researching so we know what to expect. 

Hope everyone is having a wonderful day. Here are some recent pictures of the girls making sugar cookies for Chloe's Valentine's day party at school - enjoy!












2 comments:

  1. Well that's good to know about Aspergers....I had wondered about it regarding Haven. But she and Allie seem to share those "sly" qualities. I think they would be best of friends but together could probably bring down the world! HA

    Best of luck with the breath test! Interested to see what's going on. AND thank you for the info in your dentist post. Haven has mega plaque buildup but it was so strange to me because she doesn't eat. But it makes sense now that you said they don't have food in there to wear any of it away. Good knowledge. Her feeding therapist says don't take her to the dentist while her ped says just find a good one and do it. Haven't decided yet. Trying to find out if they will use gas on a child this young. Humm... anyway-lovin the updates.

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  2. I've known a quite a few people with Asperger's and I'd be able to tell within a few minutes and I wouldn't charge Doctors' prices. I can tell by her pics she's well connected to her environment.

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