r/SpecialNeedsChildren

My younger brother (15M) has been diagnosed with adhd, dyslexia and has some other behavioral issues, affecting his executive functions and impairing his understanding of social cues

My brother has been someone who openly displays affection, since he was a child. He's well liked by older people because of it

By affection I mean hugging, holding wrists, standing really close to you

Some more things about him : He often takes people asking for space as rejecting or hating him which annoys me but no matter how many gazillions of times I tried explaining this to him he still get's hurt.

He's never had friends and has been bullied his entire life so he's homeschooled. He's able to make friends for a little while but has never been able to maintain them, this isn't like my parents haven't tried to help him make friends, he truly always ends up either being bullied or isolated because he externally looks like a regular kid but he isn't and kids are jerks so he get's relentlessly picked on because of it. He's said he's tired of trying so my parents and I have set that issue aside and have been helping with mostly with school and focusing on his other problems rather than this

but even though he has a ton of things going on he is at his core a pretty great guy as I know this is going to come across a biased anyway but as a pretty critical person myself , he just doesn't realize it.

I apologize if this is very haphazardly written, this is my first time trying to describe his behavior to people that don't know him

About 3 months ago my brother joined a educational institute to help him pursue to career he's interested in, and it's been brought to our attention (by staff because he doesn't have the capability to recognize it himself) that he isn't respecting other people's personal spaces.

This is something we've been working on but I just don't think the severity of it is getting through to him, especially with women. Verbal conversations only get so far with my brother, repetition of instructions only work so well too.

I've recently been able to convince my mother to get him back on medication after he had a bad experience with it when he was younger, and he also visited a new doctor today.

Said doctor has given him the task of begin conscious of his and others personal space

I wanted to ask for any advice, or videos to show him anyone thinks would help.

I did do research but it was either for much younger kids or because the kids were being sexual which is thankfully not what this is

Hello eveyone! we are moving out of state from Seattle to the Houston area. My son has special ed needs. He is in the genes setting with 1:1 currently and have an IEP. He will be going to middle school next year.

can you share feedback on the pros and cons or fortbend vs Katy vs Lamar school districts for middle school and high schools in general.

we are looking for more inclusive setup and good 1:1 support to help catch up with the academics. sports and music clubs he can participate will be a nice to have. Thank you for your inputs.

If a parent doesn't know an important detail about their child's symptoms, should an AI system make its best recommendation with the available information, or should it ask additional questions before deciding the appropriate level of care?

Hi, my 5 year old DD has just received a private diagnosis of ASD.

I’ve contacted the school SENCO to share this and we have a meeting arranged at the start of new school year (year 1) to discuss how to support her.

However, I know very little about what it might be realistic to request in the meeting, what is available for autistic kids, either from school or the NHS or charities, if any. Do I also contact my daughters gp? Do they offer anything?

What were other people’s next steps post diagnosis?

So far I’ve signed up to a parents support/information group and started reading the book How To Raise a Happy Autistic Child. Any guidance of what else might be helpful or what is even out there would be much appreciated!

I want to do a good job by my daughter but a bit overwhelmed about where to start.

Sensory tolerance seems to be the most important thing with wearable trackers. For those of you whose child will actually keep something on: what was it? Compression fit vs loose, soft knit vs elastic, hidden under clothing vs visible, introduced gradually?

Full disclosure (Why I'm asking): I'm a 17 year old founder and I'm building a GPS tracker for kids who wander, currently on Kickstarter, and I'm designing the band now. Not here to promote anything, I'd love your input on what's worked for parents who've figured it out.

Hi everyone, my name is Kayla McMenimen and I am a doctoral student at the University of Indianapolis. I am reaching out to ask you if you would be willing to complete a survey for a dissertation research project I am running. The study will investigate the decision-making process for parents with children with autism spectrum disorder. Findings will contribute to our overall understanding about how parents make treatment decisions for children with autism spectrum disorder. If you decide to participate you will see a series of questions about demographic information, your beliefs and perspectives on autism spectrum disorder, as well as your experiences with making decisions for your child. The survey should only take about 15 minutes to complete and responses are anonymous.

Your participation is completely voluntary. To participate in the study, you must be aged 18 or above, be the parent or guardian of a child under the age of 18 that has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, have primary or equal say in treatment decisions, and be able to read and comprehend written English to complete study questionnaires.

I am using a snowball sampling technique, which means that I ask people I know if they would like to participate and then they ask other people they know who meet the eligibility requirements if they would like to participate. If you are willing, please share this project with other people you know who meet the eligibility requirements using this same script.

If you have any questions, please contact me (mcmenimenk@uindy.edu) or my faculty project advisor Dr. Candice Burkett (burkettc@uindy.edu).

Survey link:

https://uindy.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_00zqCw2poTxp2DA

Please note that this survey functions better and is easier to navigate on a computer/laptop rather than a smartphone.

Thank you!

Kayla

The Human Research Protections Program (HRPP) approved this research study on 2/13/2026. Study number: 02390

hi all. i’m 27, i was diagnosed with Level 1 ASD when i was 24. i struggled my entire life due to being autistic but never knew why until adulthood. my previous partner has an ADHD diagnosis, and we suspect he’s autistic as well. he has a late-ish diagnosed (preteen age) autistic son with a different mother (i am uninvolved in this child’s life), and then we have a daughter together.

our daughter is 13 months old. she had health issues from birth but had them surgically corrected by 7 months. she is considered advanced in all of her motor skills and feeding, and has been walking since 10 months.
however, she has no words, doesn’t try to speak, doesn’t babble much at all, and doesn’t respond to her name. she claps and flaps her hands constantly whether she’s happy or upset. she is unfazed by loud noises. she will laugh at me while i’m crying she prefers to eat spicy food which her therapist made note of as extreme sensory seeking lmao. she has just started getting in downward facing dog pose a lot and likes being upside down. she has a 99th percentile sized head with no fluid or any physical or neurological issues. she loves to cover her ears with her hands and hates wearing headbands but will keep earmuffs on with no issue. (i’m mostly listing things that i can relate to from an autistic female standpoint)

she was recently diagnosed with a severe speech, communication, and cognitive delay, and starts speech therapy next month.

i know it’s too soon to have any sort of evaluation. however, both myself and her brother were speaking on time, and i was considered hyperlexic. neither of us had very obvious signs of autism as far as i know.

with my daughter showing pretty blatant signs, i keep trying to find others who have children with autism that showed signs so young and would love to hear about their experiences and process. i’m certainly aware that a diagnosis is not possible for a long while. but i don’t know anyone else with an autistic daughter who showed these traits and i certainly didn’t as a child. so if anyone can share their story (if you’re comfortable sharing your child’s journey to diagnosis or no diagnosis) i am just seeing peer support i suppose.

Hi folks. I have a 14 year old son with severe impairment with hand guided movement. He’s 14 are writes like a toddler- it’s getting worse. His teachers are struggling to decipher his work. And he’s smart, like super talented in STEM subjects. Our schools provide only basic word software which he is outgrowing rapidly. We are looking at computers and software that would manage with his handwriting (trackpads etc) and with scientific notations. Has anyone came across this issue before and do you have any advice? Thanks

My 4-year-old daughter was recently diagnosed with ASD Level 1, and I’m looking for advice from parents who have been through something similar.
She has been in speech therapy and occupational therapy since she was 2.5 years old. She was a late talker and used to be very sensitive to loud noises and bright lights, but those sensitivities have improved significantly over time and I can say they don’t bother her as much now.
She is a gestalt language processor and has made a lot of progress. She’s beginning to form her own sentences, has a great vocabulary, and is constantly asking questions. She’s bright and knows her letters, numbers, shapes, colors, etc.
Our biggest concern is her social communication.
She genuinely enjoys being around other children and wants to interact with them, but she doesn’t seem to know how to join in. She usually ends up playing alongside them instead of with them. She isn’t able to have back-and-forth conversations yet beyond asking and answering questions. She often wants to talk only about her own interests and has difficulty sustaining reciprocal conversations.

She also:
Wobbles a lot while sitting.
Has difficulty paying attention when someone is talking to her.
Repeats scripts she hears from peers later at home in unrelated situations.
Has limited pretend play and struggles with imaginative play and coming up with play ideas on her own.
Engages in repetitive play.
She recently had to leave both Taekwondo and dance because she was too distracted to participate in a group setting, which was heartbreaking for us.
She’s been on an IEP for about 3 months and continues with speech and OT.

My questions are:
What therapies, strategies, or activities helped your child develop better back-and-forth conversations and social skills?
Did your child eventually learn how to join peer play and make friendships more naturally?
If your child had challenges like repetitive play, scripting, distractibility, or difficulty with conversations at age 4, did those improve over time?
Are there any additional services that made a significant difference (social skills groups, ABA, play therapy, etc.)?

I know every autistic child is different, and I’m not expecting her to become someone she’s not. My biggest hope is simply that she won’t feel isolated or left out as she gets older. If she can build meaningful friendships and navigate school with confidence, that’s all I want for her.
I’d really appreciate hearing your experiences—both the successes and the challenges. Thank you.

So my grandson 7 months old was tested for fragile X syndrome in the womb, because his mother also has the syndrome, he had came back positive. So far he has hit all his milestones, reaching, grabbing, rolling over, trying to crawl, baby talk, and incredible eye contact, at what point to we start seeing the delay? Hoping for someone that has experience this.. is it possible he is just a carrier?

TLDR: My Level 3 autistic, pre verbal son has significant PICA and elopement risks, and I’m trying to get appropriate 1:1 support added to his IEP. I’ve been advocating for months, but we’ve had repeated communication and procedural issues with his school district, and I’m struggling to get his needs properly addressed. His new ABA team has offered a potential solution where his BT could accompany him to school 3 days a week, but I’m being asked to explain the service delivery model before the district will consider it. I’m looking for advice from Washington parents or special education advocates on how to move forward, get his IEP corrected, and make sure he has appropriate 1:1 support every day.
Okay, I honestly don’t even know where to start, but I’m really hoping someone here, especially a Washington parent advocate, can point me in the right direction.

My son is Level 3 autistic, pre verbal, and has regular PICA and elopement risks. He had an unofficial 1:1 para for his first 1.5 years of preschool, and it was a wonderful experience. Looking back, I was probably too naïve about the IEP process and wish I had pushed much sooner to have that level of support formally addressed in his IEP. Now I’m trying to get that support in place, and I’m extremely frustrated with how things have been handled by his IEP team.

There have been ongoing communication and procedural issues. We had an official IEP meeting scheduled where the administrator didn’t show, and afterward they tried to say it wasn’t actually an official meeting, despite emails confirming it was. They apologized to me in person, but the explanation over email was very different.

Since then, when I’ve politely asked them to clarify things in writing so there is a paper trail, I’ve been removed from email chains regarding my own son while my husband remained on them. It has happened more than once. I want to be very clear that I have been nothing but polite and respectful throughout this entire process. I am not being removed from these email chains because I have been rude, inappropriate, or speaking badly to anyone. I have simply been asking questions, requesting clarification, and trying to advocate for my son.

It has also been extremely difficult to get meetings scheduled or even get consistent communication. At one point his case manager told me he wasn’t receiving my emails, despite his teacher receiving them. I’ve repeatedly had to follow up just to get basic answers and timelines.

About 5 weeks before the end of the school year, we made requests for changes to his IEP. I intentionally brought everything up that early because I knew we needed enough time to address everything before summer and make sure he had the appropriate supports in place for the following school year. Unfortunately, the changes we discussed were not made. His principal also told me it was inappropriate to submit a letter from his pediatrician and refused to include it in his IEP documentation.

Then the principal resigned, and the meeting we had been trying to get scheduled was pushed until essentially the end of the school year. So I have spent most of the summer in limbo, trying to figure out what support my son will actually have when school starts.

We have since started in home ABA, and thankfully that has been a really positive experience. His BCBA suggested that his BT potentially accompany him to school. Since I am already advocating for 1:1 support, I initially thought this could potentially be a great solution. A familiar person who already knows my son and his needs, while also allowing him to access school.

Because our new principal has not started yet, I was told I would need to go through the superintendent. I received this response today:

“Hello _____,
I am back at work, and appreciate the opportunity to respond now.
I need to know and better understand the delivery model you envision for non school provided services for your student. To my knowledge, having a non school employee provide private services to a _____ student while on the _____ campus is unprecedented.
For that reason, I think it would be counterproductive for me to state a willingness or an unwillingness to consider your request at this time until I have a clearer understanding of what is being proposed.
Please explain to the best of your ability, or the ability of the potential service provider, what the intended service delivery model would entail. Having that information will help me better understand your request.
Thank You!”

I understand that she is asking for clarification, and I don’t necessarily expect the superintendent to automatically approve something she hasn’t been given enough information about. But I’m struggling with the bigger picture because I feel like I have been fighting for months just to get my son’s basic safety and support needs properly addressed.

He will only have his BT with him 3 out of 4 school days each week. Ideally, I would like his IEP to clearly provide that he requires 1:1 adult support throughout the school day, with his BT providing that support when she is present and another trained adult designated by the school providing it when she is not.

I don’t want to have to pull him from school on the days his BT isn’t there because his safety needs and support shouldn’t depend on which day of the week it is.

I am honestly so disappointed in how some of the adults involved in this process have handled things that I’m having second thoughts about whether I even feel comfortable having my vulnerable, non verbal child around these adults next school year. That is a really difficult thing for me to say because I want to trust the people responsible for caring for and supporting my child while he is at school. I genuinely hope they understand how deeply disappointing this has been and how much this has damaged my trust in the team.

At this point, I’m honestly so frustrated and worried about sending him back without appropriate support that I’ve even started considering homeschooling, which is something I never wanted to have to consider because I do think school can have many positive benefits for him when the right safety and support structure is in place.

Even little things have left me feeling uneasy. When I spoke with the front office a few weeks ago, the woman sounded genuinely surprised that I was planning to enroll him again this year. I don’t want to assume bad intentions, but after everything that has happened, it has contributed to the feeling that I’m having to fight just to make sure my son has a place and the support he needs.

I’m not trying to play the victim, and I’m not looking for people to simply tell me the school is terrible. I genuinely want to find the right way to approach this and get his IEP corrected before school starts.

I also know we have a big IEP meeting coming up, either before the school year starts or very early in the school year, and I’m trying to do everything I can to prepare for it so we can actually have a successful outcome for him this time. The last two meetings did not result in what we needed, and I really feel like his IEP needs to be amended now to accurately reflect his needs and the support he requires to safely access school.

If anyone here is a Washington parent advocate, special education advocate, or has experience navigating a situation like this, I would really appreciate advice on what my next steps should be. I would also love recommendations for someone I could work with who understands Washington special education law and can help me advocate for him.

I’m also wondering about something more immediate. Am I allowed to keep him home from school until we feel his IEP has been appropriately amended to address his safety and support needs, or would that create a separate problem for us? I obviously don’t want to make the situation worse or violate any attendance requirements, but I also don’t feel comfortable sending my vulnerable, non verbal child into a situation where I don’t believe the necessary support is currently in place.

I’m at the point where I feel like I’ve tried going through the appropriate chain of command, documenting everything, communicating respectfully, and asking for solutions, and I’m just exhausted. I really want to find a way forward that allows my son to safely attend school with the support he needs.

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