HomeFirst, Aspergers, Psychologists, Etc. Need Some Help/direction!!!

Hi Amanda, I am originally from NC too. I love IL and hope you find it a welcoming place! Our family has struggled with allergies and other health issues for a long time. We don't have Asperger's; however, in my quest for health, that has always cropped up in the literature that I read. Have you found any info about gluten and the different health problems that it can cause? There is a great lab in TX that you can order tests from www.enterlab.com They will test for gluten, dairy, and also, more importantly, test for how the gut is actually digesting and absorbing the nutrients. Most things can be healed with proper nutrients IF the gut is absorbing correctly. This was the only way our family was able to get on the road to health(get rid of gluten/dairy/and heal the gut). We also did the allergy testing (by blood) which was positive, but our health did not improve just by avoiding the food(except for gluten) and we still had symptoms until we got our gut healed. If you'd like more info or have questions, feel free to email me. I wish you the best in your quest. C.

We also have a special needs child and the parents in our school district (158 - Huntley) is in the process of forming a network for parents with special needs kids. It is not run by the school district, but rather by the parents, and is open to anyone in the area (not just D158). I think it will be a good resource for info, etc. We are setting up a yahoo group. Send me an email, and once I receive the info, I would be more than happy to forward it to you or anyone else who is interested...Knowledge is power!!

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Hi Amanda.
I work with special needs kids (don't have one of my own)and read all I can to help me. There are some good websites out there to get you started, and perhaps pointed in the right direction.
www.MyKidCan.com has a 'pre screener' for many mental health issues. www.Autismkey.com is a site put together by parents with children on the spectrum (including Aspergers) This site also has a "friend finder" search to find other parents in your similar situation. There is a wealth of information out there, if you know where to look. I learned alot from www.autism.org as well. At least there are some places to start, while you search for a doctor / allergist. I also just read 'Louder Than Words' by Jenny Mc Carthy.-There are some websites and such that she mentions in the end of the book, as well as a book called 'Special Diets for Special Kids' that I plan on picking up this weekend. Good Luck! I do have other websites if you are interested.

my 7 yr old son is being tested now through the school for it- I am sure he doesnt have it- just tourettes but we went to Neuro/psych and had him tested and elavuated there- it took many trips because the kids can only test an hour at the time and even that is stretching it. They are awesome- I had Dr. Monti and her student- Tim. They are so great and really went out of their way. they will not diagnose a child so young but say- features of- therefore the kids are not labeled. I am presnetly looking into a psychiatrist or psychologist closer to home. We went through personal growth assoc once and I really did not like dr Rae. He is a nice man but we got no feedback or direction. my son has a very low self esteem and is very negative.

Hi Amanda,

I have a 17 yr old who was just diagnosed with Aspergers, when he was younger he was mis dagnosed with ADHD. We were going to a consulor at Streamwood Behavorial Hosptial in Hanover Park for the ADHD, we were stating some symptons he had and she informed us that it sounded like Aspergers instead, he went through some psychologist testing and found out that yes he was mis diagnosed. Now that he is on the right meds and is being treated correctly and we know why acts the way he does has helped us greatly. I have not heard of HomeFirst, what I would do if I were you and your husband is to look this place up online and then call and ask questions, as you are the main speaker for the treatment of your child. We had called a lot of places and we asked our doctors and our sons psycholgist for his recommondation, this is how we came to Streamwood Behavioral Hosptial.

I hope that I am not confusing you too much. I hope that this helps and just don't be afraid to ask questions-just remember that you are looking out for your child more so than anyone else is.

K.

We have gone to HomeFirst for over 4 years now for the care of our children. We love Dr. Zumhagen - he is great with the kids. We have only seen a couple of the other doctors. I have to agree with the other post - the one time we saw Dr. Rosi, he was very opinionated. We have BCBS insurance and our costs have been covered at all times. I have only taken our children there for wellness checkups and the occasional cold. I do not have any experience with allergy testing there.

Good luck!

Amanda I do not have a child with aspergers but have worked with child that do.If you need to talk please feel free to drop me a line.Take care of yourself im here of you need to talk

I would go to an allergist for allergy testing. I used to go to Homefirst, and let me just say you need to be VERY natural medicine/homeopathic medicine really to be happy there, and they charge you extra for this special care. I only really liked one doc there and she has since left. I really disliked Dr. Rosi as he is very condescending and pretty much makes you feel like every choice you have made is wrong...and he doesn't shy away from telling you why.

We suspected Asperger's in my son and we went to Dr Stein at Comprehensive Psychological. Their number is ###-###-#### and they are in Arlington Heights. They did an evaluation and were very professional, but just be aware that if you don't get a positive diagnosis (ie my son was just diagnosed with some small non specific issues alot of which he has outgrown) the fee for testing is very high and my insurance covered very little of it since it was so "benign". But how else are you supposed to know if you should be concerned or not?

The school districts also do evals but you might want to be careful there. I didn't want my child to be labeled and put into special ed classes because I felt that being in contact with REGULAR kids is what would best encourage him and model better behavior for him.

There is also a yahoo group for individuals and families of Asperger individuals that you might find helpful at www.mcautismgroup.org. It is a group based out of McHenry county.