Living With Autism
Gregory K. Moffatt, Ph.D.
Eric stared at the sandbox in my office, but he made no attempt to play in it. The demure, little four-year-old looked normal in most ways. He was physically healthy, but something wasn't quite right. His parents brought him to me based on a referral from his preschool teacher. Eric didn't interact with other children, he seemed happiest sitting alone in the same spot in the floor of his classroom, but he never really seemed "happy." Teachers found it very difficult to draw him into any routine classroom activity.
"He never seems to really look at me," his mom said with the hint of tears in the corner of her eyes. "Even when he was a baby, he seemed different than his sisters."
They needed an assessment for the school and within five minutes of my observation, I was almost certain of the diagnosis. Autism. Honestly, I was surprised it had taken them this long to realize something was wrong. I suspect that they knew, but because he looked healthy, it was easy to pretend that everything was OK. This isn't unusual. Parents often dismiss autistic symptoms as simply variability in child behavior and they dismiss their fears as overreactions. Some may find denial easier than facing the truth.
Autism falls under what is termed "Autistic Spectrum Disorders" (ASD). ASD includes three separate diagnoses of which autism is the most serious. (The other two are Asperger's Syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder.) Anywhere from one to six children in 1,000 will be born with autism. Boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls.
Autistic children share a number of common characteristics. As was true with Eric, they make little or no eye contact with others - even caregivers. Most babies begin making eye contact by three months of age, but that behavior may never be fully realized in autistic children. Language is often either absent or limited. Certain phrases or words are repeated over and over and often the child will give the same answer to a variety of questions that logically require different answers.
Autistic children can be exceptionally sensitive to certain sounds, fabrics, or temperature - things that would not upset most other children. They may rock, sway, or move their body, hands, or arms in rhythmic ways. Often most distressing to parents, autistic children can become upset over the smallest variations in routines or expectations. When this happens, it is exceptionally difficult to console them.
No one is quite certain what causes autism, but it is almost certainly genetic. It may be related to a genetic disorder, exposure to toxins (such as some types of medications or possibly environmental toxins) in utero, or a combination of these or other factors. Autism is definitely not caused by trauma or abuse as once was believed.
There also was an unfortunate rumor several years ago that vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) caused autism in some children. Sadly, many parents reacted to this rumor by failing to have their children vaccinated. Even though their intentions were good, they unnecessarily put their children at high risk for these diseases. The study on which this belief was based was retracted and the researcher's medical license was revoked.
Autism is incurable, but especially with early intervention, some of the most troubling symptoms of autism can be addressed. Children can learn to interact with other people and they can improve their language skills - two things that make life difficult for parents and loved ones of autistic children. Equally important, parents can learn behaviors and routines that will reduce tantrums and stabilize behavior in autistic children. Early intervention is important. If you have a child that has been diagnosed with autism, intervention by age five is helpful. Language development, behavior management and control, and social skills are all part of routine treatments for children with all three forms of ASD.
Despite their limitations, families can learn to work with
autistic children and they are as much a part of the family as
any other child. While they will be limited in how they communicate
love and empathy, an autistic child can be a loving child. Patience,
understanding, and training can help families balance the challenges
presented by autism.