The Mother Bear Syndrome

Aaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh! I observed a little boy in class. He had voluntarily isolated his desk from the rest of the students. He was upset when someone accidentally bumped his desk. He wouldn't go to Vehicle Day, which looked dang fun to me! He was upset by the sirens from the fire engine. He was very perfectionistic with his work. In short, he demonstrated a few Aspergers characteristics. His teacher thinks he's an Aspy, too. But I didn't want to do Autism testing without the parent's knowledge. So, I did what any self-respecting School Psychologist would do. I called the mom. "Mrs. So and So. While I was observing your son, I noticed that he did a few things that are typical of Aspergers Syndrome and I didn't want to do any testing without your permission." Silence. I knew by the silence that I had not taken a soft enough approach when I said the word "Asperger's", so I did the best I could at damage control and she seemed OK at the end of the conversation. But she didn't want testing. And she wasn't OK. Today she came in fuming mad and observed her son in class, steam coming out of all head orifices. The teacher did the best she could to comfort her and heal the wounds inflicted by the evil witch psychologist. I'm embarrassed and regret not being more empathic when I called her. I, of all people, know that when discussing a woman's child, you step lightly. Damn!