As we move further into the month, I am still talking about Autism Awareness because well it’s important alongside many other topics, but this is the one I am learning the most about this month with the recent DX of my son. Today, I discuss the technology addiction my son has always had and was easily confused in the beginning with an ADHD type of child.
Aj has always loved electronics, video games could have easily ruled his world back in the younger days, ages 2-5. Then he got older, he learned about MineCraft and YouTube. Most days you will find my son in front of YouTube doing his research, as I like to call it. YouTube has become my son’s television so-to-speak, but he doesn’t just watch any old videos.
Aj enjoys watching videos that teach him something, that allow him to work deeper with his current loved video game, MineCraft.
The counselor, Aj’s Dad and I have all discussed this electronic “addiction” that Aj has and from time to time it had become quite the monster of his world, keeping him from interacting with his family on a more one-to-one basis. Then as time went on, I realized that Aj wasn’t using the laptop for the purpose of game playing, I realized he was showing a high level of interest in learning how to manipulate games or coding to make the game work in ways it wasn’t built from the “box” to do. It seems Aj has a bit of his father in him, his Dad loves to build computers and different things like that so it fits the mold of “like father like son” for sure.
In the past couple, almost three, months of having Aj off of medications, I have noticed that his brain is just intrigued by how things work, not necessarily the hands on building like his brother, but more so the “behind-the-scenes” of how things work and Aj gets it! Aj picks up on things that most of us don’t as it pertains to mathematics or how technology works. Aj seems to me to be that child who will grow up with a love of programming. Instead of doing what we had previously thought to be the right decision, keeping Aj from electronics, my ex husband and I have allowed the computer to be an open access item for him at both our homes. We have found in the past few months that Aj will not use the computer beyond a decent level of time, eventually Aj will bore of not being able to find just the right YouTube video for his needs and will see his family is interacting playing tag or Lego’s and want to join in with us.
I love that Aj is starting to take an interest in family life. I love that, while he isn’t as into the physical play like his siblings, he does take a part in it on a daily basis for a limited amount of time. Upon discussions with the psychiatrist who diagnosed Aj, she stated it is fairly common for autistic people to have a high level of interest in mathematics, and usually do end up in the field of programming. It seems we found just another area where Autism Spectrum – High Functioning makes sense for Aj’s diagnosis.
What are some things that your child just adores and makes you wonder why he/she is sooooo fixated on that area of their world?
