A five-year-old was brought to the clinic by his parents who were concerned about his speech delay and unusual behaviour.
The parents explained that he has limited eye contact and rarely responds to his name being called.
He frequently engages in repetitive behaviours such as hand-flapping and spinning objects. He prefers playing alone and has difficulty understanding social cues, often appearing indifferent to others’ emotions.
He received speech therapy and occupational therapy, but his progress has been slow.
April 2 is World Autism Day which is used to spread awareness about this condition which affects the life of the person and his whole family.
Autism was first described by the scientist Leo Kranner in 1943, but the earliest description of a child known to have had autism dates back to 1799.
People with autism have different degrees of severity, intensity, and frequency. This is why the term autistic spectrum disorder is used.
Several myths about autism persist, starting with the misconception that ‘All individuals with autism have mental disabilities.’
In reality, individuals with autism exhibit a diverse range of intellectual abilities.
While they may encounter challenges in language and interpersonal skills, which can obscure their intelligence, many have achieved college degrees and pursue careers across various fields.
Conversely, another misconception arises when people assume that individuals with autism possess a higher level of understanding solely based on their behaviour, language proficiency, or expertise in a specific domain.
When I was a trainee in the UK I encountered a few individuals who had autism and special skills, a man in his forties was able to tell you the train times from cities, you just say, for example, ‘London to Manchester’ and he will recite the train time table from the first to the last train in the day.
Another patient was an older woman who can tell you the exact day of the week if you tell her the date, so if I say August 8, 1970 she will repay in a few seconds “That was a Friday”.
Despite being gifted with such special abilities both were living in a care home because they were unable to live independently. A second myth is that autism is caused by poor parenting known as the ‘refrigerator mothers.’
This myth causes parents to feel unnecessary guiltily and some may become overprotective. While modern science proved that the development of autism has nothing to do with parenting style.
The third myth is that individuals with autism cannot form meaningful social relationships, when the truth is that while many individuals with autism have difficulty with social interaction, they can still have close relationships and express their loving feelings in less obvious ways, but this does not mean they are incapable of experiencing or expressing love.
Children with autism spectrum disorder usually have delayed development before age the age of two. If you know anyone who has a child with autism, please encourage them to seek professional help as early as possible.
There are behavioural programmes that can be introduced which will enable the child to lean the required skills to live a happy and independent life.
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