concerned.. slight autism? adhd?

My son is 4 and half and I've always thought he was advanced but he started pre-k last month and his teacher said she has some concerns with him but that I shouldn't freak out, to give him time and work with him.. she said he may need speech therapy, no matter how hard he tries he can't pronounce some words (simple words) correctly, he has a hard time focusing and is very easily distracted, he isn't really "absorbing" things like the other kids, the teacher can read a story or give directions and ask him about it and he will start talking about totally random stuff .. he does remember songs they learn in class, idk if that makes any difference .. but his teacher, principal and the speech therapist that tests all the kids say that my son is very intelligent and considerate to others.. am I overreacting? Should I just give him time or talk to a Dr about having him tested?

I would bet he is just not used to school, structure ect, maybe ADHD....but that is not something i know much about, I would rule out anything autism though.

adhd is an autism spectrum disorder. however, in a child of that age, they are likely to misdiagnose. id give it a year or two. im a high functioning autistic myself and they thought i was adhd, which i am, and extremely bipolar, which im not. i was 24 before they got the diagnosis right. but if he was advanced at home, you may want to share some of the ways you were working with him with his teacher. better to be overinvolved if you think that might be the issue.

Very true! We "played school" for about a year before he started but that was with me, not strangers lol.. but I've had concerns about adhd for several months now bc I can't get him to stay still or focused either but then again he's 4 and I don't want to be one of those parents that are like "hey my kid won't stay calm, give them meds" ya know?

i definately understand. i was a guinea pig from age 8 to 18 because they misdiagnosed me. id bring him to a neurologist instead of a psych doctor. they are the ones who finally diagnosed me correctly.

Thanks for the advice, my stepson has adhd really bad but when I.was told about the things he went threw to be diagnosed, I was like whoa I don't want to do that to my child but mu stepson went to a physic

Quoting nightshaderebel:" adhd is an autism spectrum disorder. however, in a child of that age, they are likely to misdiagnose. ... [snip!] ... of the ways you were working with him with his teacher. better to be overinvolved if you think that might be the issue. "

ADHD is on the spectrum?

yes, bipolar and ocd are also.

Quoting nightshaderebel:" yes, bipolar and ocd are also."

ADHD, bipolar and OCD are NOT on the autism spectrum

They can happen in people with an ASD, but alone, they are not an ASD