One Single Diagnosis for Autism? New DSM Criteria

It has come to my attention today that the American Psychiatric Association plans to change the autism diagnostic categories in the new version of the DSM. In particular, they are planning on removing the categories of Asperger Syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)from the DSM and changing the category of Autism to be more broad. You can visit the following link to the Autism Speaks blog to view the details: Autism Speaks Official Blog

I am not completely sure how I feel about this change, being that I have one child diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome and one with PDD-NOS. On the one hand, I have always just considered my children to be Autistic, regardless of their actual label so the change would not necessarily change how I view my children. If anything, it would stop some people who only see children who are diagnosed with Autism as being truly autistic from telling me that my children are not Autistic and therefor shouldn't be included in funding for services. I can't tell you how many times I have had someone accuse me of using up their child's funds for my non-autistic children.

So this change would actually put an end to MOST of that argument. I say MOST because no matter what the label there will still always be people out there who feel their children are more entitled to services than mine because their children are "more" autistic than mine. It is sad, but unfortunately how some people think.

This change would also put an end to insurance companies or schools telling us that we do not qualify for services like OT or Speech or ABA because our children are not diagnosed with Autism. That could be a good change for many people.

On the other hand, the one that is skeptical and see's conspiracy behind any change like this, fears what this will actually mean for the autism community as a whole. As most of you know, with every passing year, the percentage of children with autism has increased. Just his past year the numbers jumped from 1 in 150 a year ago to 1 in 115 now. That is a HUGE increase. And this increase is leaving insurance companies, schools, the government and the CDC scrambling and shaking in their boots. More and more people are looking at environmental causes for this epidemic that can no longer be explained by better diagnosis. One of those causes, some believe, could be the vaccines our children get but that the CDC has long denied could be a contributing factor.

In my skeptical and conspiracy riddled mind I wonder how much of this change that is "hidden" behind the greater good of our children is really nothing more than an attempt by the Medical Community to "lower" the rate of Autism so that they can then turn around and say "See? If it was the vaccines (or other environmental cause) then the rates would not have gone down?"

It has been my experience, with my own children, that doctors are hesitant to diagnose a child with Autism but less hesitant when they have PDD-NOS or Asperger's to fall back on. Now, this is just my opinion and as I said at the beginning, to me it is ALL Autism and having the diagnosis of Aspergers or PDD-NOS has still gotten us the label of Autism in the schools since they do not distinguish. But it is my fear that with only the diagnosis of Autism many doctors will be reluctant to diagnosis a child with Autism if they do not meet the original criteria that the Autism diagnosis had, regardless of any changes in the DSM.

We all know that Autism is a Spectrum disorder and that there are many differences among every child with Autism. That does not mean that doctors always agree and I remember in the beginning when I had doctors tell me that they were not comfortable with diagnosing my child on the Autism Spectrum because they did not meet all the criteria. It wasnt until much later that we finally received a diagnosis of PDD-NOS. So how many children will be left undiagnosed if this change takes place? And how will the Medical Community use the lower rate (which will undoubtably happen) to reduce our access to funds for research into why there are so many children on the Spectrum?

So I really am torn and not sure how I feel? I am not saying this is a good thing or a bad thing. I do not really know how I feel and I admit that I have a habit of looking at the negative side of things but that thinking has helped me many times in the past when I felt something was going on that should not be and I have almost ALWAYS been right when it comes to my own children. It just took digging a little deeper to find out the truth and when I have been wrong, I admitted I was wrong, but when I have been right I have been able to stop abuse and my children's rights from being ignored. So all I am suggesting is that maybe a little more digging is in order?

Again, this is all just my opinion and I know that many may not agree with me but I would really be interested in all of your thoughts? How do you feel about the change?

Fibromyalgia and Autism Connected?

Every once in awhile I go through a phase where I find myself blaming myself for my children being autistic. Trust me, I know this is pointless and silly, but I think every parent goes through something similar when their children are either disabled, ill or otherwise "special". It's just natural human nature.

I often find myself thinking, is this something I did during my rebellious years as a teen and young adult, is this something I did wrong when I was pregnant, did I eat too much tuna fish, did I not take enough vitamins, was I too trusting in the doctors when it came time to giving them their vaccines (something I still firmly believe played a contributing factor), did I stay in my marriage too long and many other self-deprecating thoughts.

This time, however, is different. This isn't about blaming myself for something. This is simple curiosity about a link between my chronic, painful disorder and Autism and the fact that both disorders are still inundated with mystery and puzzles. Could the mystery lie in a connection?

Well, as I started to pay more attention I started to notice that it seemed like not only could I not go anywhere without meeting at least one person who had either a child or family member who was autistic, but I also couldn't go anywhere without meeting someone who either had, or knew someone who had fibromyalgia (FMS). Is it just me or are both disorders becoming more prevalent at an alarming rate?

Then I started looking at some of the similarities in physical symptoms. Now, I know I may be alone here but my children are always complaining of one ache or pain and sometimes it seems like it is more so than others. At times Justin even seems like he is oversensitive to pain and both children are over sensitive to certain textures, smells, etc. Something I also struggle with myself. In fibromyalgia there is a definite oversensitivity to pain. Children on the Autism spectrum are known to have many sensory processing problems causing many of these children to be hypersensitive to things like touch, taste, smell, etc.

Then there are the gastrointestinal problems. Many children with autism suffer from multiple gastrointestinal issues, including, but not limited to, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). IBS is one of the most common conditions associated with Fibromyalgia as well and I am certainly one of those who suffer from this condition as are both of my children.

On top of that there is the possible oversensitivity or vulnerability to the effects of toxins and medications. I, myself, am extremely sensitive to any medication. I found out that many people with FMS are also very oversensitive and this is one of the reasons this disorder is so difficult to treat. FMS is not curable but with certain medications some sufferers have found relief from some of the symptoms. I, unfortunately, am not one of them. I cant take anything without either getting violently ill or suffering any number of strange side effects. Both of my children are the same although their side effects seem to be more with the mind (hallucinations, irritability, suicidal thoughts, etc).

In doing an online search on a connection between autism and FMS I actually found an article that discusses how one clinic in Atlanta that specializes in FMS treatment was NOT recommending the H1N1 vaccine for their patients because of this sensitivity to toxins and the fact that the H1N1 vaccine contains the preservative Thimerisol which contains mercury. Thimerisol is one of the factors that many people, myself included, blame in the HUGE increase in the prevalence of autism. Many parents of autistic children have become more careful about vaccines because of their belief that Thimerisol contributed to their child's autism. There is a whole movement based on this premise.

I found many interesting articles while doing a search for a connection between the two and I found many articles (links that I will try and post below) that talk about this connection and some that even point to the XMRV retrovirus that has recently been found to be in blood samples taken from BOTH patients who are autistic and in those with FMS or CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and more research is being done to further investigate this connection.

So, again, I wonder, if for no other reason than simple curiosity, could there be a link? I am wondering how many other people out there have a family history of BOTH autism and Fibromyalgia and if there is any benefit to doing more research to see.

Just food for thought. Please don't read any deep, dark meaning behind this post. This isn't another crusade to FIND A CURE for my children's autism because I have jumped OFF that bandwagon a long time ago. My goal is acceptance and awareness for my children, not a CURE. But I do find this hint of a connection, at the least, interesting. Make sure you check out the poll I have in the right hand column and let me know if you have a family history of both FMS and Autism.

Here are a list of some interesting articles I found and there are many more out there:


Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the H1N1 Vaccine

Doc who worked for CDC theorizes relation between Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome and Autism

Retrovirus Implicated in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia

Is Autism Associated With a Viral Infection?