ADHD and Aspergers Links

Filed under:Aspergers Diagnosis — posted by admin on March 17, 2009 @ 8:16 am

Welcome to this week’s Aspergers blog post.

To be honest it’s been a hectic 7 days since the launch of www.ParentingAspergersCommunity.com – but I’m so glad that I’ve created the new site …

Already I am getting tons of great feedback from people that it is really helping, and I am able to interact with members much more easily than before.

If you are still interested in becoming a member then don’t forget that for the next 5 days you can take advantage of a special offer to join the site at: http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com/public/10.cfm

I am also working on bringing in several expert guests to the new site to add an even greater variety of specialist information to the site … so watch out for that.

But that’s all on the new site for now and here’s this week’s article:

Question

Are there any connections between ADHD children and those with Asperger’s Syndrome? My child is diagnosed with ADHD, but he seems to cross over a bit with weak social skills and emotional behaviour. How do you determine what is ADHD and what is Asperger’s?

Answer

The symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Asperger’s Syndrome do mimic one another, and there are some connections between ADHD and Asperger’s. In fact, there are dual diagnoses of ADHD and Asperger’s Syndrome in many cases. Both of these diagnoses are developmental disorders; they share many of the same behavioural features and both affect children in the areas of behaviour, communication, and social interaction. As a result, there is often some confusion as to which disorder(s) is present. Medical, mental health, and educational professionals need to be trained to differentiate between the disorders and diagnose the correct one.

Here is a list of the behaviours seen in Autism/Asperger’s Syndrome and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder:

Autism / Asperger’s Syndrome

Difficulty interacting with peers

Fearlessness; feelings of invincibility

Temper tantrums without provocation

Inappropriate laughter

Resistant to intimacy

Physical over-activity or lack of physical activity

Minimal eye contact

Impulsive work effort that results in mistakes

Inconsistent fine motor skills

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Disruptive with others; cannot talk or play quietly

Impatient; does not want to wait

Risk taker; willingly becomes involved in potentially dangerous activities

Exhibits severe temper tantrums

Interrupts others; talks and/or acts inappropriately

Resistant to intimacy during younger years

Constantly active

Inattentive; has difficulty listening or conversing

Avoids attending to details; makes mistakes in work activities.

Both ADHD and Asperger’s Syndrome

Problems with gross/fine motor skills

Behavior driven by impulses

Difficulty with appropriate emotional responses.

An ideal reference book for you is The ADHD Autism Connection, A Step Toward More Accurate Diagnosis and Effective Treatment, written by Diane M. Kennedy. Go to the internet and access this book by clicking the following link – ADHD

Ms. Kennedy’s book answers questions that you and many other parents with Asperger’s children have asked. In addition, this book contains information on children with Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, and similar conditions.

This book recognizes that Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is now one of the most rapidly growing diagnoses. Ms. Kennedy states that many people have not found the help that they need for their children, and parents are not aware of what to do as a result. This book provides knowledge of the similarities and differences between Autism and ADHD.

This book also addresses the fact that a diagnosis of Autism carries a negative connotation. In light of this diagnosis, parents are afraid to admit that their child is Autistic, and they do not create an atmosphere of open communication. Ms. Kennedy’s book portrays the connection between Autism and ADHD in a manner that gives parents the courage to candidly discuss these diagnoses with a sense of understanding and optimism.

Knowledge of the diagnostic differences, along with the information provided in The ADHD Autism Connection, A Step Toward More Accurate Diagnosis and Effective Treatment, will help you differentiate between symptoms of ADHD and Asperger’s Syndrome.

That’s all for this week … and don’t forget to head over to http://www.parentingaspergerscommunity.com/public/10.cfm if you want to take advantage of the current special offer to join The Parenting Aspergers Community (only 5 days left …)

Have a great day,

Dave Angel

comments (10)

10 comments »

Hope I’m doing this right. I need to ask a question. Have you heard of a baby being dx. at 6 weeks with fetal alcohol and then 2&1/2 yrs later being told he has pdd.nos. And then he gets a dx of aspergers. That is what he has been seen for . He is turning 15. Thank you.
Comment by Ruth Brannan — March 17, 2009 @ 9:19 am
My son has a diagnosis of ADHD and Aspergers. He is on medication for the ADHD. This has been helpful, but I believe it has been posted before and so does not offer any further information – What a shame.
Comment by Jennifer — March 17, 2009 @ 11:23 am
Great article. My 8 year old son has been diagnosed with both Asperger syndrome and ADHD. I will be purchasing a copy of this book to help identify where any help is available especially for school life.
This is a great site and always find helpful comments
Comment by Julie Beard — March 17, 2009 @ 11:23 am
I have a grandson with aspergers/ADHD. He started receiving help with the Babies Can’t Wait Program in Georgia and started in public school at 3 years old in the summer and full day at 4 years old. He is now in second grade and doing fantastic academically and socially. We have received much help from PCSD and the local school. To help with the ADHD, he is medicated. We were reluctant to do this, but he was suffering academically until we relented. Now he makes straight A’s and his conduct grades are quite normal. To be honest, one could meet him and never know he is “different.” We keep him “socialized” and in Tae Kwon Do, which has been a great asset. I guess we, as a family, do not consider aspergers as a “downer” but a special talent he has. He is quite smart and imaginative and keeps us challenged to keep his mind occupied. Reading on a 4th grade level, he can’t get enough of it. We are so blessed. Granny
Comment by Sandra G. Farris — March 17, 2009 @ 2:12 pm
Any recomendations on good books about Aspergers/ADHD, written from a professional point of view and not personal experience. I am living the experience, just looking for more concrete info and insight.
Comment by Jeff — March 17, 2009 @ 3:09 pm
very good simply explained i could relate my children to this
Comment by Jan — March 17, 2009 @ 3:37 pm
When I first went to the pediatrician with my 12 year old grandson because of inappropiate behaviour i.e. spitting, eating paper, biting nails etc, he believed my grandson was Aspergers Syndrome (he found he had little eye contact when he was talking to him and that he was more interested in the scales and his weight with his jumper on and off). Also he believed his father who was a addict had AS also. (This could be so because his relations with the opposite sex always ended in dismal failures). My grandson lived with me nine out of his twelve years and I never really had a problem but his teachers always had things to say about his odd behaviour i.e. touching himself inappropriately though when talking to them about it, was usually because of what underpants he had on. (This was actually remarked on in Tony Attwoods book ‘Aspergers Syndrome’. I then had him diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome by C.A.R.D. The court psychologist said he had ADHD because of the Connors Scales report even though we, his grandparents, didn’t agree with his teachers or mothers view on some of the areas. We found that depending on his teacher his reports were either good or not good. The court decided that because of the specialists disagreeing on the diagnosis, he would be better off with his mother at the age of 13 to get on better with his half siblings and get better equipped to going out in the world instead of being pampered by his grandparents. My grandson knows he has Aspergers and has read some things in Tony Attwoods book and in some ways it has relieved his mind that there are opther people who are like minded.
Comment by Lillian Carde — March 17, 2009 @ 5:07 pm
Hi,
I have worked in the Autism/ Aspergers field for almost 18 years and I have a son who is gifted and has ADHD. The similarities are unbelivable. We actally had a very extensive evaluation done because his Psychitrist thought he might Aspergers, but is was just the ADHD. One thing I did was watch him with some kids with ASD and when I saw that he was able to use more appropriate eye contact, voice inflection and emotion for the situation it did show me that although he had so many similar qualities, he did not have the one major identifying quality which was the severity of social interactions. I hope this helps those parents who have ADHD children understand some of the simularities and differences that at least one parent sees.
Comment by Dianna — March 22, 2009 @ 9:16 pm
An excellent book that explains about children with multiple diagnosis and gives practical hints about dealing with behaviour at both home and at school is KIDS IN THE SYNDROME MIX by Dr. Martin L. Kutscher, 2005 Jessica Kinglsey Publishers (hardcover) 2007 softcover. It was so good we bought an extra copy for our child’s school to help the teachers and teaching assistants to deal with these children
Comment by Steven & Heather — March 22, 2009 @ 10:18 pm
Hi my name is Jan Greenman and I have written a book about our life with my son Luke who has ADHD and Aspergers Syndrome called Life At The Edge.Luke himself is now 17years and has just been presented with Young Citizen of the Year Award by Malmesbury Town for his ‘inspirational’ public speaking about his conditions – he was expelled from Malmesbury school less than 2 years ago! Our story is one of hope and encouragment, my book tells the sometimes shocking truth of the first 15years of Luke’s life – Luke himself is rewriting his behaviour now by the day, with the specialist help that we were denied for so long. It is so worth the wait!
Comment by jan greenman — May 12, 2009 @ 2:43 am