When I give talks, I tell people that the prosodic presentation can be the most difficult piece of the puzzle. My oldest has it and so does my husband. Teddy has it too, but it looks different in him. Prosodic means that while you are trying hard to decode exactly what words are being said, you loose the ability to decode the meaning of those words. The question, "What are you doing?" can either be said by someone showing interest or someone who is questioning your motives. For someone who has the prosodic presentation, the latter is often assumed.
For Seth, it has been a struggle all his life to try to realize that people are not always mad at him. Because he doesn't 'hear' the irony or sarcasm in someones voice, he usually assumes the worse. He hears people being upset with him and angry with him, all the time. In the hallways at school, he was always questioning why someone would call him a name or why teachers were singling him out.
When he was in second grade, he was the child who thought kids were always picking on him and laughing at him. He sat in the back corner of his classroom and cried when others talked to him. At recess, he often hung out by the teacher so that he felt safe from childhood messing around. He switched schools in middle school and finally started coming out of his shell a little bit. He started to make friends with a couple of great kids who remain friendly today. When he started high school in a small rural environment, we were very concerned for him. His graduating class of 40 only had 5 boys and they didn't share any real interests with him. Seth did begin to make friends in high school though and gained a large group of people who were friendly with him. Seth also began to advocate for himself which made him a much more successful student and helped with his self confidence.
Becoming involved in sports such as cheerleading and baseball and in clubs like DECA and FFA helped him gain even more confidence. In college now, Seth continues to struggle to maintain successful relationships with his peers. As his mom, I continue to try to encourage him to watch body language and assume people are being good, but it is hard. Seth is wanting to leave home and go out on his own for school. I continue to pray for him as he moves forward with his life. His potential is huge. He is bright and good looking. He is a real go-getter having started his own business and financed a vehicle already. I hope he continues to grow in understanding of the way his APD affects his social relationships so he does what I want him to do most; be happy.
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