Alyssa my eldest is borderline autistic. She receives no treatment for this so who knows what the future holds.
Erika was born with a very bad cough *sounded like an old man who smoked a pipe most of his life* Anyway I have been fighting with doctors for years to get her properly tested as this cough has been consistent for the past 4 years.
Finally she got referred to Yorkhill Childrens Hospital & they are very angry that no medical professional has picked up the fact that yes her lungs are clear & her throat is clear but they should have referred her after hearing the cough for themselves.
Turns out the cartilage in her windpipe is softer than it should be causing her airways to close up.
The hospital xrayed her & will determine where to go from there.
Post by Berry McPaper-cuts on Apr 11, 2015 7:42:58 GMT
The Education system is different in Scotland so I don't know what support you get for identifying Alyssa's condition. You don't say how old she is so I don't know if you are dealing with pre school or whether she has already started. Whatever stage she is at , I am sure that you should find that education professionals should be working with you as it Alyssa's needs that are paramount. It sounds as if Erika is now going to get some treatment and that will help both her and you.Good luck getting a prompt response from now on.
As I was a SENCo, before I allegedly retired from teaching last year, I oversaw the provision for children in my school who had learning difficulties, physical difficulties and who were on the autistic spectrum. In a lot of cases it was the school who identified a child who was on the spectrum and by following the correct protocol (according to the Code of Practice) we were able to get a positive diagnosis and then put into place educational, social and emotional programmes to support the child. The same provision was afforded to the children who arrived in the school having been identified as being autistic. We also ensured that the family had external support from the Autistic services.
As Flying Pigs said, the school should be supporting Alyssa but if they aren't then ask to speak to the school's SENCo (Special Educational Needs Coordinator) or the equivalent. If needs be then contact the school's Community Paediatrician or your own G.P. because all parties should be working hand in hand to support a child with additional needs. It might also be worth looking online for any parent support groups in your area.
The Education system is different in Scotland so I don't know what support you get for identifying Alyssa's condition. You don't say how old she is so I don't know if you are dealing with pre school or whether she has already started. Whatever stage she is at , I am sure that you should find that education professionals should be working with you as it Alyssa's needs that are paramount. It sounds as if Erika is now going to get some treatment and that will help both her and you.Good luck getting a prompt response from now on.
I agree it is very different. Alyssa is 9 she started her school life in Sheffield until my marriage ended & we came back to Glasgow. She is under the school special needs sector but I find them not very supportive. All they do is complain that Alyssa is easily distracted sometimes yet her teacher says she is very happy with her progress in class even if she does struggle at times.
Post by Berry McPaper-cuts on Apr 11, 2015 18:58:00 GMT
Toril knows a lot about this area cumberdoodle so I would take her advice. I think you need some support to help you help her. It is hard being on your own to cope with this. Alyssa seems to be making good progress on the whole. As a retired HT I would say that her teachers need to help her have strategies in place to prevent her being distracted such as breaking her tasks up into shorter pieces and seeing how she is getting on so that she doesn't have time to get distracted. Toril might have other strategies you can try at home to help Alyssa take control of this.
Also our pupils respond very positively to a structured routine because many autistic pupils cannot cope with change. Consequently, if her routine changes in school her teacher should have strategies in place to deal with this so as to minimise anxiety. Ideally, there would be another adult available in class, like a teaching assistant/learning support assistant, who can do this too. The strategy can be as simple as taking the time to talk to the child before the change (e.g. if a lesson is cancelled because something else is going to happen, like a visiting theatre group or in the event of Christmas performance rehearsals.)