DS2 had been seeing a therapist and she believes he most likely has high functioning autism. He's 8.5. Until this past year, nobody ever suspected ASD, but he has always had behavior issues and certain quirks. In speaking with the therapist, I can see why she believes it, so we have an appointment for assessment next month. Has anyone here dealt with such a late diagnosis? I always thought that autism wasn't really a concern once kids are school aged, that by then you'd know if the child had it.
Also I haven't discussed it with DS2. How should I explain to him what the appointment is, what the assessments are for, etc? He has a cousin who is autistic so we've always told our boys that it's just that the cousin's brain works a little differently so he struggles with certain things. But I think it would be hard to tell DS2 that his own brain works differently... Any advice for me?