Can Children With Autism Have Other Difficulties?Posted in February 28th, 2008 by admin in Behaviours, ADHD, DiagnosisJust because a child has autism, it doesn’t mean that he or she is unable to suffer from other disorders and difficulties as well. However, it is often challenging for parents to know whether what they are seeing in their child is a symptom of autism, or if the autism has combined with another condition. It is not uncommon for children with autism to suffer from conditions like ADHD , dyslexia, attachment disorder, or schizophrenia among others.
The difficult part can be getting an accurate diagnosis, as it is not uncommon for children to be initially misdiagnosed with their diagnosis changing over time.
So, if another disorder is suspected, it is important that any concerns be raised with your child’s doctor. Educating yourself about the various symptoms of any suspected disorder is important so that they may be confirmed or ruled out.
For example, here are the most common symptoms of ADHD, dyslexia, attachment disorder, and schizophrenia - disorders that may occur alongside autism:
ADHD
- Unable to speak or play quietly – disruptive to others in speech or actions
- Struggle to wait his or her turn in a game or in a line
- Takes on dangerous activities
- Plays without thinking of the consequences or being cautious
- Has extreme temper tantrums
- Commonly disrupts, interrupts, and struggles when being soothed or held
- Always active, never settling down, even during sleep
- Appears not to be listening when directly spoken to
- Uneven fine or overall motor skills
- Does not pay attention to finer details and makes careless mistakes
Dyslexia
- Appears to be intelligent and bright, as well as articulate, but struggles to write, read, or spell at the appropriate age level.
- Is labeled as being careless, immature, dumb, lazy, or simply not trying hard enough
- Has a high IQ but does not fare well in academic testing
- Isn’t far “enough” behind to require special attention at school
- Has poor self esteem, feels as though he or she is dumb, makes efforts to cover-up weaknesses, becomes easily frustrated and emotional about grades and testing
- More prone to excelling in drama, music, art, sports, telling stories, mechanics, business, sales, design, engineering, building
- Appears to lose track of time, daydream, or zone-out frequently
- Learns better through demonstrations, hands-on activities, experimentation, observation, and visual aids.
Attachment Disorder
- Superficially engaging and charming, especially around strangers and other people they feel they will be able to manipulate
- Are indiscriminately affectionate, even to strangers, but not on the terms of the parent
- Struggle to make eye contact, especially when being dishonest or angry
- Strong desire to control everyone and everything
- Hyper-vigilant
- Hyperactive overall but lazy when it comes to accomplishing tasks and goals
- Argumentative, frequently over insignificant issues
- Prone to rage and tantrums, frequently over insignificant issues
- Demanding
- Poor impulse control
- Struggle to understand cause and effect
- Low levels of values, morals, and spiritual faith
- Little to no empathy
- Dishonesty for no clear reason
- Potentially cruel to animals
- Falsely allege abuse
- Steal
- Chattering constantly, asking silly questions
- Destructive to self or property
- Abnormal speech patterns
- Learning delays
- Fascination with blood, gore, fire, weapons, and evil, and when presented the options, will make a bad choice
- Food issues; refusing to eat or hoarding
- Focusing on details but not the overall issue
- Few long term friends, or none at all
- Self-entitled or self-important attitude
- Sneaks things even if he or she could have taken it simply by asking
Schizophrenia
- Oversleeping or insomnia
- Hostility or suspiciousness
- Decrease in personal hygiene
- Social withdrawal
- Expressionless gaze
- Inability to express joy or sorrow
- Inappropriate laughter or tears
- Depression
- Odd or nonsensical statements
- Struggle to concentrate, forgetful
- React strongly to criticism
- Use of words in strange ways
- Delusions
- Hallucinations
Once symptoms of a suspected additional disorder are understood, parents may better watch for them in their children. This can be challenging, as many symptoms can cross over between both autism and other conditions. It is important to try to watch for symptoms that divert from those of autism, and to determine what is causing certain reactions.
Should a diagnosis be made for additional condition present alongside autism it is possible to begin treatment for the additional disorder in conjunction with any current autism treatment.
