Do you ever feel like your CHILD is not mentally there with YOU?
Contents What is Autism?
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Symptoms
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Understanding an Autistic child
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10 things your child wish you knew
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Contact information
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What is Autism? Autism is a lifelong developmental disability, also known as ‘Autism spectrum disorder’ (ASD). The word ‘spectrum’ is being used because people with the condition will have different affect on them but share the three main areas of difficulties, some will have affect on the everyday life they will need a lifetime specialist support, as some will not need the support.
Autism (including Asperger syndrome) appears to be more common among boys than girls. This could be because of genetic differences between the sexes, or that the criteria used to diagnose autism are based on the characteristics of male behaviour. However, our understanding is far from complete, and this will remain the case until we know more about the causes of autism.
Asperger syndrome: Asperger syndrome is a form of autism and people with it are often average or above average intelligence with fewer problems with speaking but possibly have difficulty with understanding and processing language. Asperger syndrome is also known as hidden disability it is unlikely to tell is someone has the condition with their appearance, the main difficulties in the condition are ‘Social Communication’ which will leed them to difficulties in reading and understanding gestures, facial expressions and tone of voice prefer talking about a subject they have chosen instead of continuing a conversation led by someone else.
‘Social Interaction’ in this area they will have difficulty making friends and maintaining a friendship because they are not aware of when they are being inappropriate manners and they will not understand the meaning of personal space, for example they will stand too close to a person to start a conversation. ‘Social imagination’ will hard to understand other people thoughts, feelings and actions as they have difficulties in reading other people body language and facial expressions, they find it hard to predict what will happen next in situations.
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Symptoms. A child who has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder has different symptoms, however there is not a specific symptom to look out for as the condition will affect them differently. Interacting with others: • Not aware of people’s emotions. • Not aware of people’s personal space. • Will not interact with other people even children of a similar age. • Prefer playing alone instead of playing with other people. • Do not use face expressions when communicating. • Avoid eye contact with others. • Will not make friends with other people. • Does not understand how to interact with others, for example saying hello or goodbye. Responding to others: • Will not respond to others when there name being called. • Rejecting cuddles. • When been ask to do something they will act negatively. • Will not able to understand when people are being sarcastic or when metaphors are being used.
Behaviour: • Having repetitive movements. (Flapping hands, rocking back and forth or flicking fingers.) • Not being imaginative, for example lining up Lego in size and order instead of building something creative. • Become anxious when not following a familiar routine. • Prefer to play with objects instead of people. • Develop a high interest in a subject or activity. Language development: • Delayed in speech. • Not speaking all. • Use a maximum 10 different words by the age of 2. • Monotonous or flat tone of voice. • Use single words to answer questions instead of using sentences. • Repeating the same word more than once.
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Understanding an Autistic child. People with autism may experience over or under sensitivity to sounds, touch, tastes, smells, lights and colours. An autistic child may become considerably anxious as they struggle to make sense of every object and person around them. With the condition the child will find it hard to understand other people, relate to them and also find it hard to take part in activities, everyday family and social life. When others are interacting and communicating with each other an autistic person will wonder why they are different. Learning disabilities I have a helper who sits with me and if I’m stuck on a word she helps me. It makes a big difference. People with autism may have learning disabilities, which can affect all aspects of someone’s life, from studying in school, to learning how to wash themselves or make a meal. As with autism, people can have different ‘degrees’ of learning disability, so some will be able to live fairly independently - although they may need a degree of support to achieve this - while others may require lifelong, specialist support. However, all people with autism can, and do, learn and develop with the right sort of support.
Love of routines One young person with autism attended a day service. He would be dropped off by taxi, walk up to the door of the day service, knock on it and be let in. One day, the door opened before he could knock and a person came out. Rather than go in through the open door, he returned to the taxi and began the routine again. The world can seem a very unpredictable and confusing place to people with autism, who often prefer to have a fixed daily routine that they know what is going to happen every day. This routine can extend to always wanting to travel the same way to and from school or work, or eat exactly the same food for breakfast. Rules can also be important: it may be difficult for a person with autism to take a different approach to something once they have been taught the ‘right’ way to do it. People with autism may not be comfortable with the idea of change, but can cope well if they are prepared for it in advance.
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Special interests
Sensory sensitivity
My art activity has enabled me to become a part of society. When there is something that a person with autism does well, it should be encouraged and cultivated. Many people with autism have intense special interests, often from a fairly young age. These can change over time or be lifelong, and can be anything from art or music, to trains or computers. Some people with autism may eventually be able to work or study in related areas. For others, it will remain a hobby. A special interest may sometimes be unusual. One person with autism loved collecting rubbish, for example; with encouragement, this was channeled into an interest in recycling and the environment.
Rowan loves art but he hates wearing a shirt to protect his clothing the feeling of the fabric against his skin causes him distress. We have agreed with his school that he can wear a loose-fitting apron instead. People with autism may experience some form of sensory sensitivity. This can occur in one or more of the five senses - sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. A person’s senses are either intensified (hypersensitive) or under-sensitive (hypo-sensitive). For example, a person with autism may find certain background sounds, which other people ignore or block out, unbearably loud or distracting. This can cause anxiety or even physical pain. People who are hyposensitive may not feel pain or extremes of temperature. Some may rock, spin or flap their hands to stimulate sensation, to help with balance and posture or to deal with stress. People with sensory sensitivity may also find it harder to use their body awareness system. This system tells us where our bodies are, so for those with reduced body awareness, it can be harder to navigate rooms avoiding obstructions, stand at an appropriate distance from other people and carry out ‘fine motor’ tasks such as tying shoelaces.
Information by Autism.org
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10 things they wish you knew. 1. I am a child. My autism is part of who I am, not all of who I am. Are you just one thing, or are you a person with thoughts, feelings, preferences, ideas, talents, and dreams? Are you fat (overweight), myopic (wear glasses) or klutzy (uncoordinated)? Those may be things that I see first when I meet you, but you’re more than just that, aren’t you? As an adult, you have control over how you define yourself. If you want to single out one characteristic, you can make that known. As a child, I am still unfolding. Neither you nor I yet know what I may be capable of. If you think of me as just one thing, you run the danger of setting up an expectation that may be too low. And if I get a sense that you don’t think I “can do it,” my natural response will be, why try? 2. My senses are out of sync. This means that ordinary sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches that you may not even notice can be downright painful for me. My environment often feels hostile. I may appear withdrawn or belligerent or mean to you, but I’m just trying to defend myself. Here’s why a simple trip to the grocery store may be agonizing for me.
My hearing may be hyperacute. Dozens of people jabber at once. The loudspeaker booms today’s special. Music blares from the sound system. Registers beep and cough, a coffee grinder chugs. The meat cutter screeches, babies wail, carts creak, the fluorescent lighting hums. My brain can’t filter all the input and I’m in overload! My sense of smell may be highly sensitive. The fish at the meat counter isn’t quite fresh, the guy standing next to us hasn’t showered today, the deli is handing out sausage samples, the baby in line ahead of us has a poopy diaper, they’re mopping up pickles on aisle three with ammonia. I feel like throwing up. And there’s so much hitting my eyes! The fluorescent light is not only too bright, it flickers. The space seems to be moving; the pulsating light bounces off everything and distorts what I am seeing. There are too many items for me to be able to focus (my brain may compensate with tunnel vision), swirling fans on the ceiling, so many bodies in constant motion. All this affects how I feel just standing there, and now I can’t even tell where my body is in space.
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3. Distinguish between won’t (I choose not to) and can’t (I am not able to).
5. Listen to all the ways I’m trying to communicate.
It isn’t that I don’t listen to instructions. It’s that I can’t understand you. When you call to me from across the room, I hear “*&^%$#@, Jordan. #$%^*&^%$&*.” Instead, come over to me, get my attention, and speak in plain words: “Jordan, put your book in your desk. It’s time to go to lunch.” This tells me what you want me to do and what is going to happen next. Now it’s much easier for me to comply.
It’s hard for me to tell you what I need when I don’t have a way to describe my feelings. I may be hungry, frustrated, frightened, or confused but right now I can’t find those words. Be alert for body language, withdrawal, agitation or other signs that tell you something is wrong. They’re there.
Or you may hear me compensate for not having all the words I need by sounding like a little professor or 4. I’m a concrete thinker. I interpret movie star, rattling off words or whole language literally. scripts well beyond my developmental age. I’ve memorized these messages You confuse me by saying, “Hold from the world around me because your horses, cowboy!” when what you I know I am expected to speak when mean is, “Stop running.” Don’t tell me spoken to. They may come from books, something is “a piece of cake” when television, or the speech of other there’s no dessert in sight and what you people. Grown-ups call it echolalia. I mean is, “This will be easy for you to may not understand the context or the do.” When you say, “It’s pouring cats and terminology I’m using. I just know that dogs,” I see pets coming out of a pitcher. it gets me off the hook for coming up Tell me, “It’s raining hard.” with a reply. Idioms, puns, nuances, inferences, metaphors, allusions, and sarcasm are lost on me.
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6. Picture this! I’m visually oriented. Show me how to do something rather than just telling me. And be prepared to show me many times. Lots of patient practice helps me learn. Visual supports help me move through my day. They relieve me of the stress of having to remember what comes next, make for smooth transition between activities, and help me manage my time and meet your expectations. I need to see something to learn it, because spoken words are like steam to me; they evaporate in an instant, before I have a chance to make sense of them. I don’t have instant processing skills. Instructions and information presented to me visually can stay in front of me for as long as I need, and will be just the same when I come back to them later. Without this, I live the constant frustration of knowing that I’m missing big blocks of information and expectations, and am helpless to do anything about it.
7. Focus and build on what I can do rather than what I can’t do. Like any person, I can’t learn in an environment where I’m constantly made to feel that I’m not good enough and that I need fixing. I avoid trying anything new when I’m sure all I’ll get is criticism, no matter how “constructive” you think you’re being. Look for my strengths and you will find them. There is more than one right way to do most things. 8. Help me with social interactions. It may look like I don’t want to play with the other kids on the playground, but it may be that I simply do not know how to start a conversation or join their play. Teach me how to play with others. Encourage other children to invite me to play along. I might be delighted to be included. I do best in structured play activities that have a clear beginning and end. I don’t know how to read facial expressions, body language, or the emotions of others. Coach me. If I laugh when Emily falls off the slide, it’s not that I think it’s funny. It’s that I don’t know what to say. Talk to me about Emily’s feelings and teach me to ask, “Are you okay?”
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9. Identify what triggers my meltdowns.
10. Love me unconditionally.
Meltdowns and blow-ups are more horrid for me than they are for you. They occur because one or more of my senses has gone into overload, or because I’ve been pushed past the limit of my social abilities. If you can figure out why my meltdowns occur, they can be prevented. Keep a log noting times, settings, people, and activities. A pattern may emerge.
Throw away thoughts like, “If you would just” and “Why can’t you?” You didn’t fulfill every expectation your parents had for you and you wouldn’t like being constantly reminded of it. I didn’t choose to have autism. Remember that it’s happening to me, not you. Without your support, my chances of growing up to be successful and independent are slim. With your support and guidance, the possibilities are broader than you Remember that everything I do is a form might think. of communication. It tells you, when my words cannot, how I’m reacting Three words we both need to live by: to what is happening around me. My Patience. Patience. Patience. behavior may have a physical cause. Food allergies and sensitivities sleep View my autism as a different ability problems and gastrointestinal problems rather than a disability. Look past what can all affect my behavior. Look for you may see as limitations and see my signs, because I may not be able to tell strengths. I may not be good at eye you about these things. contact or conversation, but have you noticed that I don’t lie, cheat at games, or pass judgment on other people? I rely on you. All that I might become won’t happen without you as my foundation. Be my advocate, be my guide, love me for who I am, and we’ll see how far I can go. Information by Ellen Notbohm. (www.autismspeaks.org)
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Contact Information. Address:
393 City Road, London, EC1V 1NG, United Kingdom
Tel:
+44 (0)20 7833 2299
Email:
nas@nas.org.uk
Websites:
For more Information visit: • autism.org.uk • autismspeaks.org • nhs..com Credit to: autism.org.uk, autismspeaks.org, nhs.com.
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Mei Chan meish.c@hotmail.com meiyeechan.co.uk