Autism Magazine - Issue 1

AUTISM ISSUE 01 - OCT 2021

Magazine

WHAT IS AUTISM? Behaviour support plan EARLY INTERVENTION

GLUTEN FREE DIET

TEACH THROUGH PLAY AUTISM IN SA

AUTISM MAGAZINE

TABLE OF CONTENT 1.

WELCOME

2.

WHAT IS AUTISM?

3.

AUTISM IN SOUTH AFRICA

4.

BEHAVIOUR SUPPORT PLAN

5.

EARLY INTERVENTION

6.

PLAY SENSE INTERVIEW

7.

AUTISM DIAGNOSIS

8.

GLUTEN FREE DIET

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AUTISM MAGAZINE

WELCOME

Welcome to Autism Magazine a platform that is specially designed to share all the information about autism spectrum disorder. We aim to provide information about development, special education, behaviour, communication and social skills.

Autism Magazine aims to serve as guidance to all the questions relating to autism. We will regularly have interviews of professionals, organizations and families affected by autism around South Africa.

Our Autism Magazine is suitably made for adults or parents with children on ASD, NOS and professionals.

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WHAT IS AUTISM? Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental disorder that cause communication, social and behavioural challenges. Autism varies from mild, sever and somehow in between. Symptoms may differ from one individual to another they include: • patterns of behaviour • delayed language • social difficulties • emotional regulation • problem processing physical sensations Autism is a disorder not a disease. There are a number of disorders that fall in the autism category such as Pervasive Developmental Disorder (nottherwise specified) and Asperger Syndrome Research shows that there’s no one cause of autism, autism develops from combination of genetic and non-genetic influences.

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BEHAVIOUR SUPPORT PLAN

An ABC data also known as three term contingency is an assessment tool used to observe behaviours.

ABC refers to: Antecedent – incident that occurred before the behaviour (what might have triggered the behaviour) Behaviour- behaviour that follows the event (tantrum, meltdown etc.)

Consequence – how behaviour is dealt with.

ABC assessment is used by ABA practitioners to best understand behaviour and how to best manage it. The ABC assessment can also be used at home to help identify factors that occasion the behaviour as well as maintain the variables.

Behaviour often occurs as a result to sensory issues, attention seeking, access to tangibles or sometimes as a reason to escape and understanding all those cues helps to best deal with the behaviour that follows. For an example: A child may cry or throw tantrums when their iPad is being taken away. Understanding that crying is used as access to tangible helps to best prepare and plan to avoid the behaviour.

Dealing with behaviour takes a lot of consistency and patience but with love and understanding all of that can be overcome.

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Positive behaviour support helps to emphasises the impact of contextual variables to enhance participation, choice and quality of life.

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early intervention Even though every child develops differently there are known milestones that children need to achieve at a certain age. As a parent, you notice everything, from when your baby start grasping toys to their first words. When you have a sense that some milestones might be a bit delayed it might be a good idea to visit the doctor so that the child can get the necessary treatment.

A treatment or educational method that works for one child may not work for another child. Early intervention helps to best meet children’s needs, the worst thing you could do for your child is nothing. Early intervention lays foundation that will improve the life of the child and offers greater opportunities.

It’s completly normal to be concerned about your child’s development and milestones not only does it help to act quick but it helps to seek support. One of the characters known for autism is developmental delays that occurs in areas of motor function, speech, language, social skills, cognitive and play. Implementing early intervention to support development helps children with emotional and social skills. Early intervention is used to reduce the risk factors and to produce the protective factor in a child’s life, early intervention can be provided in different settings (school, home and in therapy). There are different forms of interventions such as play therapy, educational stimulation, physical therapy, speech therapy and many more.

Even though studies show that early intervention might have its strongest impact when offered during the first few years, it’s never too late to get your child started on early intervention. Intervention starts at home through stimulation, play and engagement. Its good to engage in activities such as puzzles, singing, reading, games etc. to help develop your child’s brain.

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I nterviev

NOELLA NDEKERA

“Having to work with both neorotipical and children on ASD I have realised that every child is at a different level and it’s important to adapt what you are teaching to their level.”

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I nterview An environment that is enriched with play and play materials provides the best life experience for children. Early playing is associated with high possibility of intelligence later in life. Offering ageappropriate toys to infants and toddlers is found to enrich their IQ. Play can be adjusted to best suit children’s learning capacity, it can also use to stimulates children educationally through making alphabets, numbers, shapes, colours etc fun.

Play is one of the essential skills used in early childhood to help self- regulation.

Self- regulation needs to be mastered for children to get ready for school.

Well regulated children can wait for a turn, resist temptation to grab objects from other children, to control negative emotions and to persist through challenging activities.

Playing is an important part of early learning. As children are playing, they are developing their cognitive, socio -emotional and social and physical skills that will later help them into adulthood. Play helps children develop their curiosity, verbal and nonverbal skills, intentionality and flexibility.

When children are playing, they develop their emotional intelligence, learning confidence, cooperation, negotiation, empathy and how to appropriately communicate. Physically their gross motor and fine motor skills are being developed. It’s not just “play” they are skills for life

How does learning though play help?

Early childhood is an exciting stage because it’s when children start developing interests that will stay with them forever. play help to nature imagination and it gives children a sense of adventure. Our learning keeps the student entertained, interested and it helps to develop skills such as inquiry, experimentation, expression and teamwork How can parents support their children through play?

Learning can occur in different settings.

It doesn’t have to be formal or structured it just have to be meaningful. Parents can engage with their children in different ways through touch, games, music, sound, craft etc. It’s important to start stimulating children at a young age it helps with communication and development.

Early stimulation can be provided through colourful toys, different textures, shapes and toys of different sizes.

AUTISM MAGAZINE

What do you development?

think

of

childhood

Everyone is unique and every child develops differently whether they are neurotypical or on ASD. Having to work with both neorotypical and children on ASD I have learned that each child has different learning style and its important to adapt what you teach to their level.

What is play sense?

Play sense is learning through play, our programs help the children develop social skills. We focus on helping children develop capacities like language and emotional foundation. We use different kinds of play adapting to children’s personality to develop skills like creativity, self- regulation, collaboration and problem solving.

Except for the skills how else do you think play sense might be beneficial?

Play sense is structured in small groups with a maximum of six children, our learning is more focused and it helps tailor lesson to best suite students development level. Our programs are designed for neurotypical children but they can be adapted to children with ASD. 31

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AUTISM IN SOUTH AFRICA

“I knew that my child’s behaviour and development was a bit delayed. He was also hyper and I didn’t know exactly what was causing the behaviours that he had and people would always encourage me that he will outgrow them.

Until I was watching Dr Phill back in 2006 and a lady was sharing a story about her autistic child and all the symptoms that she mentioned were no different from my son’s symptoms. That’s how I knew that my son might be autistic and I started doing more research on ASD. A year later he was diagnosed, I was very sad but I had a sense of relieve because I knew what I was dealing with.”

-Anonymous-

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There is a need for more research in South Africa. We need to understand the nature of autism better so that assistance can be provided to families and communities and resources such as support and education can be provided.

Studies show that 2% of the Sub Sahara population is affected by autism and over the past few years’ autism has increased, not because the disorder is increasing but because more people are being diagnosed. Even though the number of diagnoses has increased over the years, most South Africans are still unaware of the disorder. Due to the lack of awareness some diagnoses are delayed resulting in late treatment for most children. Lack of awareness is affecting services more especially for public schools (most government schools are not catering for children on autism spectrum disorder), unfortunately not everyone can afford private schools with the necessary therapies. Intervention for autism is improving but almost exclusively for high income families. South African schools has to provide a sustainable model for children and families affected by autism.

Ensuring better understanding and quality of life for those affected by autism starts with raising awareness amongst caregivers, healthcare staff and teachers to recognise symptoms. Despite the gaps in knowledge, we have hope in South Africa, most caregivers are opening up about their experiences and South Africa has made a general policy on the importance of early intervention for children with developmental disabilities.

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gluten free diet

How does gluten free diet work for autism?

Gluten-free/casein -free diet also known as GFCF diet is one of the treatments used for children with autism. When following this diet parents avoid food containing gluten (wheat, rye etc.) and casein (milk and dairy products). Among other benefits some parents have reported changes in speech and behaviour.

Besides the fact that some children are allergic to food containing gluten and casein, study shows that children with autism may have high sensitivity to food with gluten and casein. According to the theory children on ASD processes proteins in food differently than other people do and the processing may aggravate autism symptoms.

Does a diet help with autism?

Children that are diagnosed with autism sometimes have foodrelated challenges such as allergies, indigestion and most times they are picky eaters. A diet could differ from one individual to another and its best that parents seek medical advice before engaging in any diet.

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AUTISM DIAGNOSIS

Autism diagnosis in South Africa Autism is found across all countries but yet resources that can be used to improve the life of those affected by autism are mainly limited to those who can pay for them. ASD can be diagnosed from 18 month, by age 2 a diagnosis from a medical professional can be considered very reliable. Autism symptoms can be seen early in development through ways that they play, learn, speak or behave.

Mental health professionals emphasise that autism spectrum disorder is not a behavioural or psychological disorder – its brain based, it’s a neuropsychiatric condition that requires treatment and support.

There are no physical and biological symptoms of ASD and diagnosis are made based on developmental history and behavioural observation using an assessment tool. If your child shows any autism symptoms you should book an appointment with a specialist who treats children on autism spectrum disorder such as a child psychologist, paediatric neurologist, psychologist or developmental paediatric for evaluation.

Public diagnosis can be a lengthy delay but people can be assessed privately to avoid the waiting period.

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autism is a neuropsychaitric condition that requires treatment and support.

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Treatments and Therapies

Medication for ASD

Treatment for ASD should begin soon after the diagnosis. Treatment generally starts with parents and caregivers on how they can support the child with ASD. Early treatment is important to help individuals learn new skills. Treatment can vary from one individual to another, working with health care professional is important to help find the right treatment program.

There no one specific medication for ASD although medication can be prescribed for other conditions that exist such as ADHD, epilepsy, anxiety and depression.Autism South Africa advocates for awareness and educate the public and educators, caregivers, organisations about autism

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