I've found that the professionals don't always know as much about autism as they need to. Our son is 54, and we recently had a specialist tell us that he thought Ben had the beginnings of short-term memory loss because the Dr. had asked him a question and he answered it with one word, and when he asked him again, he didn't answer. He thought he had forgotten the answer. I said, "THAT is part of autism...you were lucky to get an answer the first time--(and I was thinking---DUH)! Don't mean any disrespect...we've had some wonderful doctors, but my husband's assessment of the situation was, "He was expected to come up with something, and that's what he came up with!" Ben never forgets ANYTHING!

YES, you can. They hold on to hopes that parents not have a clue that they can challenge it. You are your child's voice, fight like you know you can. You are in control more than you think. ☺

You certainly can get a 2nd and even 3rd opinion if you need to! I think it may be a wise decision if you are not in agreement as the evaluation often only takes into account what they observe in that moment. It is possible that even the evaluator being in the room can be enough to cause a child to act completely different! My son can speak well and always has, however, he will not speak one word in front of his developmental ped. It is worth getting a more accurate evaluation for sure to account for some of the potential differences. Good luck!

I agree with all of the above....try looking for resources from your local Autism Society chapter, or check on www.yellowpagesforkids.com just click on your state for a resources list