BellaOnline Forums Health and Fitness Autism Spectrum Disorders 18 year old son has high active autism

Hello all..my son was diagnosed with high active autism..and will be graduating from high school soon..the doctor stated that he would not do well in a traditional college but would do well in a trade school or learning hands on. when he was diagnosed the doctor stated that he was in between asburger syndrome and high active autism..basically because of the following: his speech was delayed to the age of 4, he did not express any outrages when he would get angry or upset other than what a normal teenage would react, his iq was very low but did not fall into being labeled retarted, when he was in his early teens he did shake his hands alot especially when he was excited about something, he no longer does that and now carries a a small chain in his pocket to swing around his finger every so often, he is unsocialable except when it comes to family and work..he works at a grocery store and deals with the public alot..they are constantly having to tell him to interact with the customers..and i have to remind him that he needs to do so. he likes to do things on his own..like go to the movies by himself or a basketball game, he is having trouble staying focused when it comes to learning to drive..I have to drive him everywhere..the doctor told me it would be a very long process for him to learn..at this point I dont know if its worth teaching him..my biggest worry right now is wanting to know what direction to take after high school? does anyone have any insite on where to start? thanks and God Bless...

I would suggest looking into careers/jobs that fit him. Does he have any special interests? Perhaps some interest inventory tests would be a good idea to find out what he likes and what careers are possible.

Here's a free one he can do online in about 30 minutes. (And, he can save & continue, so no need to do it all at once).

http://www.iccweb.com/careerfocus/index.asp

There are many tests out there, and some cost money, and some are better than others, but often just determining the type of work and possible fields of interest are enough to get someone going.

I almost could have written the the starting post. My son is 18 and graduating and I have the same career questions. My son has aspergers along with thyroid disorder. Thank you for the link...
Tina

Hi there and welcome to the forums. Thanks for posting and sharing your concerns. Just so you know the spelling is Asperger's Syndrome, this will help you when doing research.

I have a subject heading at the site for teen issues:

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Thank you so much for all your insite..we currently reside in Texas.

The latest issue of the MAAP newsletter has a listing of transition tips for college. You can check out the site at http://maapservices.org for more information.