Posted by IsoM on December 26, 2001, at 13:38:32
In reply to Re: Asperger's disorder for Sara IsoM, posted by Dinah on December 26, 2001, at 8:22:49
I'm not sure, Dinah, if there's more to toe-walking as I had never read it mentioned in any literature on Asperger either (& I've read quite a few books & articles on Asperger). But when my son was being evaluated regarding Asperger, the psychologist took a very detailed childhood history & I mentioned his toe-walking. He said it's commonly seen in Asperger but not all Aperger people toe-walk. It was the first time I learned about it.
My son no longer toe-walks but as a small child & baby, he did it a lot. Enough to give himself hard little calluses on his toe knuckles. He later switched to his tip-toes instead of bending his toes over & walking on them. He started walking at 11 months but he would've walked earlier if he hadn't been on his toes so much & would fall over.
I even have a photo I took of him when he was around 8 months old. He hated lying down or crawling & was happiest when he was in a walker. He would lean over the front of it watching one wheel as he walked around & around in circles, pivoting on the one wheel. He also would put his forehead down on the floor & push himself about on his knees, dragging that spot on his forehead over the rug. I used to have to forcefully stop him as he developed such a rug-burn there & would rub it raw each time.
As for over-lap in schizoid personality, I thought initially when he was young that perhaps he had that. My father had been diagnosed as such. But all tests came back negative (I'm glad to say). My former mother-in-law had VERY strong Asperger traits, as does my ex-husband. Look for any other members in your family that may exhibit Asperger traits.
Remember it was only in the late 40s that Hans Asperger thought of classifying this syndrome as a separate sub-type. I think that previously, many doctors were puzzled as to what they saw in some patients & classified it as schizoid type behaviours instead. It's only been fairly recent that Asperger is being recognised for what it is. Even now some psychologists don't believe it. One wrote an article lately saying it doesn't really exist but is just an overblown reaction to extremely bright boys (she never even mentioned females) who have trouble intergrating with those of lesser intelligence. I was indignant about such a stereotypical & arrogant assumption from her!
> I hope you don't mind if I ask another question. Both of you mentioned toe walking. I have always walked on my tippy toes when allowed to walk naturally. And if I am in shoes that force my heel down, there is a very noticeable bounce to my walk. You would not believe the size of my calves. I got teased no end about these things, and I remember that someone (a doctor) once told my mother that it was a sign of a problem. Is that what toe walking is, or is there a special meaning to it?
> I have visited several internet sites and read "Pretending to be Normal" by Liane Holliday Willey, but neither mentions toe walking. I also glanced at a rather scholarly text that mentioned the overlap in criteria between the schizoid and schizotypal personality disorder and Asperger's. If I read correctly, they look to family history, which in my case would lean towards schizotypal since I have at least one aunt and two cousins with a firm diagnosis of schizophrenia.
> I really appreciate that the two of you, and Caroline, have been sharing your experiences. I'm sure that many of us have been educated about the syndrome.
poster:IsoM
thread:87154
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011222/msgs/87880.html