El autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that affects social interaction, communication, interests and behavior of the person who suffers from it. Symptoms of ASD are usually present and detected in children between the ages of one and three, with a higher proportion of boys diagnosed than girls. In this article we are going to talk about myths about autistic disorder specifically (but it should be noted that in ASD we can find Asperger's Syndrome and PDD or Generalized Developmental Disorder, in addition to Autistic Disorder).
Although there is no 'cure' because it is not a disease, there are speech and language therapies, occupational therapy, educational support and interventions with parents, they will help a child with ASD to develop their full potential . Currently there are still some myths that are worth debunking so that people begin to understand a little better what autistic disorder is.
Autism only affects speech but not social skills
Most of the concerns parents have about their children having autism is that it may affect more areas than speech, and it certainly does. Autism affects language, communication, and social skills:
- Delay in speech development
- Poor eye contact with other people
- Little or no response to interaction with others
- Unusual patterns of behaviors such as strong adherence to routines, resistance to change, repetitive movements, obsessions, etc.
- Interest in objects with a certain texture, placing objects just to look at them, etc.
But in older and school-age children, there may also be other symptoms that worry their parents that are far beyond social skills:
- Difficulty making friends
- Poor social sense
- Appears rude or insensitive to others, lacking empathy
- They seem disobedient because they don't understand social norms
- Little interest in conversations with other people
- Rigid routines and resistance to change
It takes years to confirm an autism diagnosis
Children and families who can access an autism diagnosis at the Children's Mental Health Service will be able to find out whether or not their child has autism. The referral can be done by the doctor or pediatrician, and even by therapists. If the parents suspect that there may be development that is not normal or suspect that there may be strong chances of autism, andThen it will be necessary to go to the pediatrician to assess a referral to evaluate the child.
These referrals can wait months until the child is diagnosed, but if the parents want an early diagnosis, then they should go to the private sector. In this case, diagnostic tests and reports must be paid for in addition to the initial evaluations or interviews and are usually expensive. For all this, it is important that parents assess whether they prefer to be cared for by the public sector (with waiting but without financial costs) or by the public sector (without waiting but with a high economic cost).
Autism only affects children
There are people who think that autism only affects young children, But the reality is that autism is a lifelong developmental disorder. Children and youth with this condition will continue to have some difficulties with social skills and communication compared to people their age.
It is a developmental disorder that is detected in childhood but lasts a lifetime. There is no 'cure', there is no miracle treatment… It is simply necessary to work from detection to improve the quality of life of people with autism in the world in which we live.
There is nothing that can be done for people with autism
Although there is no 'cure' for autism, there is much that can be done for them, to help them and facilitate their progress and learning. Not only drugs are suitable for the treatment of autism. They also need speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, clinical psychology, psychotherapy, and improving their social skills through re-education. All of this can lead to great improvements in children with ASD. These treatments, provided they are sustained over time, will produce great results.
As soon as the diagnosis of autism of a child is known, it is very important to be able to invest enough time in their stimulation to ensure an improvement that will be seen with sustained work over time, both by professionals and by women. families.
You can't always tell if a person has autism
When it is possible that a child may be ASD because of the signs that his behavior shows, a general evaluation of development will be necessary. There are some conditions that can make it seem that a child has autism, but it is necessary to make a general, comprehensive evaluation and above all to rule out other possible causes of the signs of their behavior. Any evaluation is necessary.
Some characteristics that should be taken into account in addition to social skills are:
- Generalized learning difficulties or developmental delay, causing the child to have speech delay poor understanding of social interaction
- Specific speech and language disorder, making it difficult for the child to communicate and interact socially with other people
- Emotional difficulties, such as anxiety, insecure attachment, lack of self-esteem, etc. All this causes the child to behave in a dysfunctional way
Once a general developmental assessment has been performed and the results indicate autism, then a more specific diagnosis will need to be made.. Specific observation tests of the child should be carried out in order to obtain a good number of characteristics and be able to assess it. If the child is attending kindergarten or school, the information that educational professionals can provide about how the child behaves and the functions he performs in the school will also be very important. The diagnosis is based on the information gathered from all of the above and comparison with internationally agreed diagnostic criteria.
Children with ASD with good early intervention and throughout life can have a good quality of life, and although they have differences with their peers, they can also be very happy.