((((((((((((((lemmesee))))))))))))))))

I remember when my son was diagnosed, it really hurt for a while. Even though I *knew* before his diagnosis that he had autism, it was still kind of a shock to have it become so "official". Everyone reminded me he was still the same kid that he was before the diagnosis, and it's true, he was...it's just a label to help us know how to help them.

When my son was diagnosed, the psychologist was on the fence between autism/aspergers. Now that he is older (9), I would definitely say he has aspergers. If I remember correctly, it's easier to just identify kids as being "on the spectrum" when they are young, and it becomes more obvious as they get older sort of where exactly they fall on the spectrum.

My son had very few words at that age. I read about making dietary changes, and removed dairy from his diet to see if that would help. His language increased dramatically. Then we removed gluten and saw more improvements. We've tweaked it a lot over the years, removing and adding things to see what helps him feel better.

My son has always been VERY VERY obsessed with really specific things. For a while it was rockets....recently it's been first aid...now he's into making comics, but they are first aid comics. He has a tough time understanding social nuances, and has taken some social skills classes to help with that. I think those are two of the things that really point to aspergers for him.

I hope you are able to get your questions answered...there's a lot of information to wade through at first!!