April 2 was World Autism Awareness Day. In our country, the number of registered children with such developmental disabilities is growing every year. Life cites six little-known facts about autism.
Autism was first described in 1943. Many decades have passed since that moment, and ideas about the nature of its occurrence, about people living with it, about their needs and opportunities have changed a lot. Autism is a behavioral diagnosis that includes a range of characteristics. According to international data, today autism is diagnosed in every 68th child in the world, and this is, of course, a very high rate.
Autism in a child cannot be determined until he is one year old
Early childhood autism is a general developmental disorder that begins at birth. However, in the first months of a child's life, there are usually no clear, specific signs of autism.
This diagnosis can be established only at the age of one to five years, when in the process of development of various mental spheres disturbances (unevenness) arise, primarily in the emotional sphere.
Roman Yukhimenko, Head of the Doctor Shorin Medical Center, Specialist of the Department of Addiction and Psychiatry, FMBA of Russia
To date, there is no objective study (blood test, ultrasound, CT, MRI) or any other examination that can confirm or exclude ASD.
Promotional video:
- Autism is considered a behavioral diagnosis. When staging it, the specialist observes the features of behavior, how the child addresses people, communicates (both verbally and non-verbally), how he plays, what behavioral features are there. There are the described criteria, thanks to which it is set, - says the expert of the Naked Heart Foundation, clinical psychologist Tatyana Morozova.
Unfortunately, the issue of making this diagnosis in Russia is still problematic.
Clinical psychologist Tatiana Morozova
In some cases, the diagnosis of autism is misdiagnosed
The mother of the boy, who was previously diagnosed with autism, Regina M. said that this year the child is planning to withdraw the diagnosis, as the autistic traits go away.
The mother of the boy, who was previously diagnosed with autism, Regina M. said that this year the child is planning to withdraw the diagnosis, as the autistic traits go away.
- The diagnosis was made according to our words after examining the child for 10 minutes in the doctor's office. We had selectivity in food, lack of interest in toys, stereotypical hand waving. The child attends a correctional kindergarten, deals with defectologists, speech therapists, psychologists. Removes the commission in the PND. We use all the methods of treatment and correction and seem to have won. The child became active, outgoing, cheerful. Perhaps we were initially misdiagnosed, she noted.
Arken Iskalkin, who wrote a blog on autism, was diagnosed with autistic personality disorder at the age of 14. However, when transferred to an adult neuropsychiatric dispensary, the medical board changed it to "schizotypal personality disorder."
“In November 2016, in Israel, taking into account the conclusion from an Israeli psychologist and psychiatrist on autism, I was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome (also a developmental disorder, but it differs from childhood autism primarily in that speech and cognitive abilities generally remain intact),” says he.
The symptoms of autism are very diverse
Behavioral therapist Lilia Rakshenko is convinced that the triad of autism symptoms can accommodate an infinite variety of characters, habits and skills.
There is a stereotype that people with autism are extremely withdrawn. But there are also people who love to communicate, speak several languages, make eye contact, joke - and they also have autism
Lilia Rakshenko, behavioral therapist
The theory that vaccines cause autism spectrum disorders is one of the most popular misconceptions
- Autism is a disorder of neurological development. It is necessary to understand that after the birth of a child, it may not be noticeable at all and manifest itself only gradually, during growing up,”says Svyatoslav Dovbnya, an expert of the Naked Heart Foundation, children's neurologist.
The common myth that autism spectrum disorders can be “made sick” or acquired through vaccinations is a fiction, not supported by scientific evidence. A large number of studies have been carried out in different countries on large samples, the results of which have confirmed that this theory is incorrect.
Svyatoslav Dovbnya, pediatric neurologist
Medication to alleviate the condition of autists is used only in the presence of other psychopathologies
The psychological state of autistic children is successfully mitigated with the help of hippotherapy (therapeutic riding), canistherapy (using specially trained dogs), dolphin therapy and art therapy (based on art and creativity).
According to hippotherapist Anna Kudryavtseva, some mothers transferred their autistic children to a special diet and were successful.
- The diet consists of avoiding products made from white flour, glucose and milk. Children instantly change for the better, she says.
Because many children with autism have problems with body sensing and balance, adaptive exercise is often used in treatment.
The applied method of behavior analysis is also successfully applied. Its goal is to correct behavior so that it will improve the quality of a person's life.
Lilia Rakshenko, a behavioral therapist, clarified that this method involves constant monitoring of what influences behavior in the external environment, as well as continuous analysis of the effectiveness of the intervention.
I saw how, as a result of behavioral intervention, non-speaking children began to speak, their auto-aggression (self-harm) disappeared, children learned to eat, dress themselves, and be calm in noisy rooms
Lilia Rakshenko, behavioral therapist
However, there is still no method that guarantees one hundred percent "removal" of autism symptoms.
Autism cannot be cured, but you can live with it
Modern research shows that if babies are diagnosed at a very early age (up to two years old), and a suitable and effective assistance program begins on time, then families can overcome many of the problems and difficulties that a person may have in the future.
If we are talking about kids, then when working with them you can come to the conclusion that, as teenagers, they will practically not differ from other people
Teacher, correctional psychologist Svetlana Ovcharova
Behavioral therapist Lilia Rakshenko confirmed that speechless children can sometimes be taught to speak. Children with communication difficulties - teach communication. You can correct behavior problems, teach you how to manage your reaction to unpleasant stimuli (for example, to loud sounds), you can show a person how to cope with a situation when the usual order of actions is violated, you can learn to look the other person in the eyes.
She noted that the earlier work starts, the higher the effectiveness of the training. It is important that parents know what key points in the child's development should be paid attention to, and would turn to specialists in time.
At the same time, in some cases, the symptoms of autism are significantly leveled over time, the patient's condition improves significantly, and by adulthood he reaches a high level of social functioning.
- This can happen against the background of treatment and rehabilitation measures or spontaneously, - a psychiatrist, candidate of medical sciences, specialist of the Medical Center of Doctor Shorin Veronika Somova.
Favorable factors for smoothing out the symptoms of autism are relaxed conditions of upbringing and education, high intelligence, the presence of creativity
Veronika Somova, psychiatrist, candidate of medical sciences
Tatyana Morozova, clinical psychologist and expert of the Naked Heart Foundation, stressed that people with developmental disabilities are, first of all, people. Each of them is an individual with its own character, hobbies and interests.
They are all very different. But you need to understand that, like all of us, they have equal needs and rights. They also live with a family, go to school, make friends and enjoy life.
Tatiana Morozova, clinical psychologist, expert of the Naked Heart Foundation
Anastasia Smirdova