Is Recovery From Autism Spectrum Disorder Possible
All parents experience stress related to the usual worries and tasks associated with raising a child. Unfortunately, along with the usual struggles with childhood illnesses, the rigors of school work, and the drama of childhood friendships, parents with children on the autism spectrum experience extra levels of stress and concern.
Parents with children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder experience all of the stresses associated with having a child who struggles with special challenges.
However, research indicates that parents with a child diagnosed with ASD experience a special level of stress that is more than the stress experienced by parents of children diagnosed with Downs Syndrome.
The added stress experienced by parents of children on the autism spectrum comes from:
As with any diagnosis that results in increased stress levels, financial challenges, and endless commitments to meetings and appointments, parents of children diagnosed with ASD often hope for a cure.
A cure implies that the continuous work of complying with treatments and interventions can be ended once and for all. Although this may seem like a good goal for any issue that limits a child, it is seen as offensive to many people who work with, live with, and love those who are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.
He Will Never Run For Political Office
Shapiro has stated repeatedly that he will not run for public office because the media cavity search that will be conducted will result in false accusations and claims that simply do not have any basis in fact. Defending against the plethora of baseless personal and political attacks is simply not worth it to him. He also cites his family and the corresponding responsibilities as another reason to avoid the political arena. His supporters have been clamoring for him to run for president or any office but they will never live to see that happen.
What If My Child Has A Fear Of Flushing The Toilet
Children with autism are often afraid of flushing the toilet because the loud sound is overwhelming to their sensory system. Always tell your child in advance that you are going to flush the toilet. At first, wait until the child has left the bathroom to flush. Gradually, when he/she is more comfortable, let him/her stand in the bathroom when you flush the toilet. Once they get used to the sound, they can try flushing on their own.
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When A Bsp Isnt Working
- Make sure the chosen interventions provide an alternative way to accomplish the function of the problematic behavior.
- If the proposed plan is not working and the behavior doesnt improve, there may have been a misunderstanding of the reason or function behind the targeted behavior. In this case, the implemented strategies wont be effective.
- Some behaviors have been present for a long time and changing them may take a lot of reinforcement and encouragement.
- If a behavior support plan is not working, the team should document the interventions that are ineffective and look for other alternatives.
Atypical Autism And Autism Spectrum Disorder
With the publication of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in 2013, all former categories of autism were merged into a single diagnosis known as autism spectrum disorder.
The pervasive developmental disorders, along with atypical autism, were removed from the official classification.Studies show that around half of the children who would be diagnosed with atypical autism in the past meet the diagnostic criteria for autistic spectrum disorder.
Today, autism spectrum disorder is the only diagnostic category used for autism, regardless of where on the spectrum your child is. The autism severity assessment scale is based on the extent of support needed for daily function. However, the term atypical autism is still occasionally used to describe children and adults who have only some symptoms of autism, but lack some of the other defining characteristics.
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Teach Through Game Play:
Research has found that technology is a great way to support learning for your child regardless of his/her abilities. This is partly due to the fact that using technology as a teaching tool engages many of your childs senses. Learning apps use bright colors and lights for visual stimulation. They use sounds and words for auditory learning. Your child will push buttons, drag tiles, or slide objects engaging his/her sense of touch. The other wonderful thing about apps is that they can be repeated over and over again. So, if your child requires repetition to learn new skills, technology is a consistent teacher that will never get tired of the same lesson.
What to look for in an app for your autistic child:
Regardless of whether or not you have good technology skills you will most likely want to look for:
Apps that Offer Some Customizability:
You will find many apps that allow you to add your own photographs to visual displays to help engage your child. Other apps will offer you the opportunity to choose the speed or the accent that verbal information is provided in. Although it isnt necessary that an app be customizable, you may find that having pictures of favorite toys and people is very engaging for your child.
Apps With Pop Up Reminders:
If you are using an app to help your child maintain a schedule, you will want to look for an app that will provide pop-up reminders for special tasks.
Apps That Are Easy to Use:
What Its Like To Have Autism
You cannot truly understand and relate to a person with Autism unless you live with it yourself! However, attempting to do so can be beneficial for your development and allow you to better support the autistic individuals in your life.
1) Have you ever felt shy or uncomfortable around people? Know that an autistic child can feel that way all of the time. This is not due to a lack of effort it is simply a result of the communication differences associated with Autism.
2) Do you prefer that things be a certain way? Or even feel anxious when they are not. For example, is a spice not in the rack, or is a book left on top of a bookshelf when there is an intended space for it? This is a discomfort that autistic individuals often grapple with in every aspect of their lives. The way they process is often not forgiving to change or disorder, and this may cause them to feel emotional and act out in a way they may not be able to control.
3) When you become angry or upset, do you sometimes find it hard to calm down and look at things logically? Imagine your brain working against you, inhibiting your ability to do so. This is a common struggle for autistic children and even adults.
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What Are Social Skills
Social skills are essential tools. Everyone needs to have them and use them in their everyday lives. They are what make it possible to have successful communication. Without them, there would be misinterpretations during each social interaction with another person.
Social skills can be characterized one of the following:
Verbal social skills: Let the other person know about certain information through talking and voice how youre feeling to the people around you.
: Exchanging information, feelings, thoughts, and opinions through writing. Newsletters, lists, emails, and notes are all used for written social skills.
Non-verbal social skills: Using appropriate gestures to communicate during social interactions and knowing how to use facial expressions and body language in practical ways.
Empathetic social skills: Empathy as a social skill consists of three key components. how to recognize the emotions of others. Understanding what they are feeling and thinkingknowing and feeling the same way that they do to give a sincere response.
Some of the common characteristics of social skills include:
- They are often goal-oriented.
- The social skills used depend on the situation, who it involves, and where it occurs. For example, a scenario taking place at home may produce a very different reaction than the same scenario taking place at work. Personal and professional social skills tend to be quite different from person to person.
What Is A Functional Behavior Assessment
A functional behavior assessment is a process of identifying the behavior that interferes with a childs educational progress and impacts their ability to learn. For example, a child may refuse to work on difficult tasks, respond angrily, or act in an inappropriate way to gain attention. An FBA is used when typical school interventions are not effective in controlling the behavior.
This type of assessment is based on the belief that problematic behavior serves a specific purpose. An FBA attempts to look beyond labeling an unwanted behavior as simply being bad and determine what functions that behavior may be serving. Understanding why a child behaves a certain way is the starting point for developing strategies for improvement.
A functional behavior assessment is typically used in a classroom setting, but it can also be applied at home if this is where your child is receiving mental health services. An FBA usually takes about 30 days to complete and requires parental consent.
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Hippotherapy Vs Therapeutic Riding
Hippotherapy is a form of equine-assisted therapy. Equine-assisted therapies encompass a range of treatments involving horses and other equine animals and can be classified as:
- Interactive vaulting where children perform movements on and around a horse
- Therapeutic carriage driving for anyone who is not able or willing to ride
- Equine-assisted activities like horse grooming and stable management.
Hippotherapy is not to be confused with therapeutic riding which consists of recreational horseback riding lessons adapted to individuals with disabilities. Hippotherapy, on the contrary, focuses on the rhythmic and repetitive walk of the horse which serves as a foundation for improving the sensory processing and skills of a child with autism.
Tips For Brushing An Autistic Childs Hair
- Determine the cause of your childs aversion to hair brushing. Once you understand what your childs main sensory issues are, you will be able to eliminate the causes of stress.
- Accept that your childs resistance to hair brushing doesnt mean theyre being difficult. There might be a real sensory issue that is causing them pain or discomfort.
- Give your child more control, for example, allow them to choose hair products and let them brush and style their own hair.
- Dont expect your child to sit still while you brush and style their hair. Let them play with a fidget, stress ball, or watch TV as a distraction.
- Let your child look at the mirror while youre brushing their hair to give them a greater sense of control.
- Choose a low-maintenance hairstyle for your child that will require less brushing.
- Children with a sensory processing disorder depend on a reliable routine. Try to brush your childs hair at the same time each day. Its usually a good idea to do this after physical activity later in the day as children are often more sensitive in the morning.
- Make a visual schedule to break down hair brushing into smaller steps. This will also help your child understand what is expected from them.
- Use a visual timer to let your child know how long brushing their hair will take.
Keep on reading to find out what are the best brushes and hair detanglers for children with autism.
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Challenges Of An Autistic Child
Children who struggle with Autism Spectrum Disorders experience varying amounts of difficulty mainly in two specific areas.
These children may experience difficulties in social interaction and communication. Additionally, they often have difficulty:
- Performing tasks associated with eating and maintaining hygiene
The challenges of raising a child on the autism spectrum can cause parents to feel anxious, depressed, angry, and isolated.
Luckily, research indicates that early diagnosis and the use of technology can help children diagnosed with ASD overcome the challenges that they face.
Technology also provides a great resource for parents. Research indicates that the use of technology helps children identified as existing on the autism spectrum to improve literacy, social-communicative skills, adaptive skills, and to accurately detect the emotions of others.
In 2019 Valencia, Ruser, Quinonas, and Janet reviewed 94 studies and found that the use of technology with children diagnosed with autism is very promising.
How Technology Can Help Children With Autism
In 2020 the Center for Disease Control reported that about 1 in every 54 US children is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder . The prevalence of this disorder makes it essential that parents, family members, and educators understand how to best support children struggling with ASD.
We are going to spend some time here exploring the challenges that children on the spectrum and their parents may experience as well as how technology can be used to help these kids.
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Set Up A Bedtime Routine
Having a specific bedtime routine for your child to follow every night has been proven to promote positive sleep cycles. According to one peer-reviewed study, a stable bedtime routine is important not only for healthy sleep, but also for broad development and wellbeing in early childhood.
There are different ways to set up a bedtime routine for your child. For example, taking a bath, brushing teeth, and reading a fun book with your child every night before they go to sleep may help promote restful sleep. By repeating these activities consistently, your child will begin to associate them with bedtime, making the transition to sleep easier.
As part of a daily routine for your child before going to sleep. It is equally important to maintain consistency for the routine to work and help your child sleep. Another effective tool to add to a sleep routine is to remind your child at different intervals how close to bedtime they are, such as 30 minutes, 15 minutes, 5 minutes, and the like.
Technology That Can Help Autistic Children With Modeling Behaviors:
Children on the autism spectrum often have more difficulty with novel activities that other children do. They often dont pick up on the unwritten rules that accompany new situations. Parents will find that using technology to model the steps for a new activity can help their child build confidence and reduce feelings of anxiety. Whether your child is preparing for a first trip to the library or an airplane ride, technology can help them develop a better understanding of the process.
Model Me Going Places:
This app provided illustrations and instructions to help autistic children understand the unwritten rules that accompany many everyday situations.
Social Adventures:
This app teaches relationship behaviors in an 8-week social skills awareness program. Designed by parents for children with ASD this app helps your child learn much needed skills like how to initiate a conversation.
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Are Sleep Disorders Common With Autism
Sleep problems are twice as common in children with autism than among neurotypical children and those with other developmental disabilities. It is estimated that anywhere between 50% and 80% of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder have some type of sleep difficulty, for example:
- Waking early and not being able to fall back to sleep
- Waking frequently during the night.
There are many factors that can cause autistic children to experience sleep problems. Read on to learn more.
Prepare The Bath In Advance
If your child is sensitive to sounds, fill the bathtub without them in the room. You may also keep in mind the height at which they prefer the water. Some children do not like to be submerged more than is necessary.
You can also perform a temperature check so you know the bath water will not be too hot or too cold for the child and cause them extra discomfort.
In addition, if you prepare a childs bath ahead of time, you will have the chance to remove any items that might cause them anxiety.
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Is Mild Autism Reversible
As stated previously, there is currently no known cure for ASD. However, research indicates that symptoms of the disorder can be reduced through the use of behavioral therapy and other treatments. For individuals who exhibit mild symptoms, it is possible to control the symptoms that create difficulty for them.
Interventions for issues associated with speech and behavior like speech therapy, occupational therapy, and behavioral therapy can help individuals with mild symptoms of ASD develop skills that allow them to improve their functioning to the point where they may no longer meet clinical criteria for the diagnosis of ASD. Older children may be able to control some of their symptoms through the use of medication.
Likewise, medical treatment for many of the symptoms associated with ASD can be medically treated in adolescents. Adolescents who exhibit symptoms similar to those of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , obsessive-compulsive disorder , and oppositional defiance disorder may be prescribed medication that can help them control these symptoms.
Parents Role In Developing And Implementing A Bsp
As a parent, you should be involved in each step of developing a behavior support plan for your child. In order for the plan to be effective, it is necessary to monitor the childs behavior not only at school but also at home. At the same time, the school should keep you updated on your childs progress and provide you with the necessary tools to reinforce the BSP at home.
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Is Music Therapy Effective For Children With Autism
Research shows that various aspects of music such as melody, pitch, and rhythm are all processed by different areas in the brain. Since music stimulates both hemispheres of the brain, it can be effective in improving cognitive functioning in a child with autism. Several studies have also shown thatmusic therapy works to rewire the brains of children with autism, helping them to reduce undesirable behaviors and improve social interactions with family and friends.