Hello, I've just joined this list. Need help.

[Guest guest]

Hello,

My nine-year-old daughter, adopted from Russia age 4.5 has just been

diagnosed with AS by a neuropsychologist. My daughter spent her

first three years in a hospital crib and then one year in an

orphanage.

I am finding it hard to believe that she has an inherited condition

when she has such terrible deprivation in her background.

Yet she seems to fit what I read about AS very well. She can't make

friends, reads about Egyptian mummies and other dead bog people etc

all the time and is always saying and doing the wrong thing in public

situations. I had to place her in an EIP third grade class because

she couldn't handle a regular classroom. Not for academics, which

are OK, but for her weird behavior which led to such bad teasing that

she was miserable.

Does anyone have any insight into this? Have you heard of other post-

institutionalised kids developing AS? If she does have AS I feel

terrible that it has taken me so long to find out. I have been

impatient with her at times because she seemed so unmotivated to

learn basic normal behavior. I have been reading about the ABA

approach. Should I be looking into that for her?

Another big question I have-should I take her to some expert in AS to

be absolutely sure she has it? Who is Mr or Mrs AS diagnostic

specialist in the US?

Sorry for so many questions. I appreciate any advice. Geraldine