[Moose72]

I think my younger son has aspergers. The waiting list to get him tested is 3 to 5 YEARS! He's 15. The aspergers board here is basically non-existent. Am I going to have to a mom-reararched-everything-everything-herself? This is very difficult to deal with both as a single mom and my having bipolar on top of it.

[Victoria'smom]

Get into a reg. Pdoc they can dx . It's a shorter wait time. Also look into children's hospital 's even if it's a 4+ hour drive the travel is worth it. We were able to stay at the Ronald McDonald house when my son was in the hospital.

Honest question since I don't know much about Asperger's...

How will he benefit from a diagnosis?

Just wondering what you're thinking about. The only thing I can think of off the top of my head is special accommodations, but there may be more reasons he could benefit. But special accommodations is definitely important sometimes. IDK. What do you think?

I know that therapy helps a lot with Asperger's and autism in general. But therapy is all about teaching you how to cope with symptoms and stressors, so technically a Dx isn't necessary for that.

Medication wise, I think sometimes mood stabilizers, SSRIs, and stimulants are used. But if you explained his symptoms to a pdoc, the pdoc may be able to just prescribe stuff to help him with the symptoms. But do you think he needs medication? That's the other thing you have to ask yourself.

So if he doesn't *need* the Dx right away, could you hold off for 3-5 years? I agree with Miguel'smom that a pdoc can just write down the diagnosis. I know that my school's counseling services wrote down that I had "tentative ADHD", and then I got the ADHD Dx later.

Food for thought.

[Moose72]

He has Medicaid and the regular pdoc's don't take it I don't think.

[Moose72]

He's missing school and I don't know how to deal with him. I'm at a loss sometimes.

Originally Posted by Moose72

He has Medicaid and the regular pdoc's don't take it I don't think.

You should investigate. From a quick Google search for my city, I see psychiatrists and psychologists who accept Medicaid. Some organizations, such as the Kaiser Family Foundation, also offer psychological testing services for people on Medicaid in certain states.

Call the mental health services number for your state (https://www.medicaid.gov/about-us/co...tate-page.html). They should be able to tell you more about benefits and if there are Medicaid-eligible mental health providers in your area.

[Victoria'smom]

Pdoc's do take medicaid. They're usually at clinics though. I think one of the biggest things is to get him into therapy. You need to have professionals working with you to help him complete school. When does he turn 16? What does he like to do?