Diagnosis

       One of the things about support for Autism is that it's hard to get it. Firstly, they don't tell people openly about the programs, like the Autism Waiver and suchlike, since if everyone who needed it had it, the government would lose alot of money. It's often those who are unable to get word to these things that need it most, such as lower-income families who work hard and really need someone to help their child while they work. In addition, it's often hard to get the right diagnosis. Today we ate dinner with another family with a child that I am sure is Autistic. I checked the diagnostic criteria afterwards, which I have here. I noted the lack of verbal communication, stimming (repetitive behaviors), lack of attention (today the child kept trying to go somewhere else), and lack of eye contact. Yet this child was diagnosed with mental retardation. I doubt that s/he is mentally retarded. Did they even test her/his IQ appropriatly? My brother had normal IQ for everything except for verbal, which was extremly low. Yet that is typical for Autistics.
       There's also another disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder- Not Otherwise Specified, or PDD-NOS. I've heard it called "Pediatrician Didn't Decide-Neurologically Odd Son (or daughter, of course)." I agree. The diagnostic criteria is basically this (from NIMH: "If a child has symptoms of either of these disorders [Autism, Rett's Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD), Aspergers], but does not meet the specific criteria for either, the diagnosis is called pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)." PDD-NOS is like the place where stuff that doesn't fit in the other recyling categories is put. Not only that, those diagnosed with PDD-NOS miss out on alot of services. These people deserve support. They aren't getting it.