A Dialogue With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism is a developmental disorder, which is characterized by a dyad of difficulties in a) communication and social interaction and b) restricted interests and imagination (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Individuals on the Autism Spectrum might find it challenging to understand what other people think or what the reasons for their behaviours are, as their ‘theory of mind’ may not be well developed (Schuwerk, Vuori & Sodian, 2015). It is possible that this is why they might behave in socially inappropriate ways, being unable to differentiate between different contexts, while they might also find it difficult to make friends. Moreover, it is likely that they are fond of routines, repetition and structure (Carnahan, Musti-Rao, & Bailey, 2009), as they might be nervous with unknown, new situations. In addition, some of them might not do eye contact with other people, whereas some others might not endure to be touched and might have a difficulty developing speech (Jordan, 2005). Individuals on the Autism Spectrum might sometimes be prohibited to initiate conversations and might struggle with finding different ways to play and behave, due to the possible deficit of imagination, which in some cases might result in them having a narrow sphere of interests. Nevertheless, it should be noted that this group of people is rather heterogeneous, as characteristics of autism may differ from one individual to another (Gwynette, 2013). Another point is that people with Autism

Autism is a form of neurodevelopment disorder in the autism spectrum disorders. It is characterized by impaired development in social interactions and communication, both verbal and non-verbal. There is an observed lack of spontaneous acts of communication; both receptive and expressed, as well as speech impairments. A person diagnosed with Autism will also show a limited range of activities and interests, as well as forming and maintain peer relationships. The individuals will display limited interests, which are often very focused and repetitive. He or she is likely to be very routine oriented and may show behavioral symptoms such as hyperactivity, impulsivity, aggressiveness, and self-injurious behaviors.

Originally, I was drawn to speech pathology after my sister’s diagnosis of Autism at the age of three. Watching Diane struggle with language development and acquisition while other children seemed to grasp these skills naturally is what initially sparked my interest in helping families like my own. At the start of my junior year, I set out to obtain experiences working with different populations. Toward the latter half of junior year, I became involved as a clerical volunteer at the Sacramento Scottish Rite Childhood Language Center. By senior year, I was balancing a full course load alongside three volunteer experiences. In addition to Scottish Rite Childhood Language Center, I divided my time between tutoring at a neighboring elementary school in the Twin Rivers School District and serving as an intern at the Autism Center for Excellence (ACE). During my undergraduate experience, I welcomed the opportunity to work with students that struggled with literacy, language, and pragmatic skills. After graduation, it was my goal to obtain additional experience in the field as a speech-language pathology assistant.

Autism spectrum disorder has become the most common neurological and developmental disorder diagnosed in children today. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2012) estimate that 1 out of every 88 American children have been properly diagnosed. There is no known cure for autism, and the inconsistencies of the symptoms of autism in each case make it difficult to target a particular set of effective treatments. However some behavior management therapies, specifically physical therapy, may help to significantly control the unwanted symptoms in young children with autism spectrum disorder.

The way information is processed can be described as hypersensitive or hyposensitive. The sensory system can be viewed as having seven components:

Autism is a brain disorder that is characterized by slow and difficult comprehension of spoken and non-verbal communication and repetition of behaviors. Autism is normally noticed in the first two years of a child (Myers & Johnson, 2007). Asperger syndrome is an autistic disorder that has almost the same similarities with autism. People with Asperger syndrome have little comprehension of the world and its surroundings and poor communication with other people. People with Asperger syndrome are hard to recognize, as they do not show on their outward appearances. They are average or above average intellectually and have fewer problems in terms of speech and specific learning disabilities unlike in autism. These difficulties include dyslexia, epilepsy, and attention

Autism Spectrum Disorder. ASD. Autism. When people hear any of these, it’s either “avoid that person at all costs”, “be super sympathetic”, “pretend to be their friend” or “I have no idea what that is”. My best friend and illustrator of my second book, has no idea what autism is. I tried explaining it to her. It’s very hard to explain how you feel, first of all. To put the fact that you are autistic makes it even more difficult. It doesn’t bother me too much that she doesn’t know. As long as she knows that I truly am a good person, we’re good.

Autism Spectrum Disorder affects various aspects of an autistic child’s life. Many children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder every year, while others go undiagnosed for an extended time, or even for their whole life. A child exhibiting delays in language benchmarks or showing little interest in the surroundings should be examined for possible ASD. Language is often impaired and although the level of impairment can range from severe too unnoticeable in each child, a child is likely to have a delay in another area, like coordination of motor skills, if not in language. Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disorder that causes impairments in various aspects of language development.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a range of complex neurodevelopment disorders, characterized by social impairments, communication difficulties, and restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior. There is more classification of Autism that is based on the severity of symptom. Childhood disintegrative disorder, also known as Heller 's syndrome is a rare condition characterized by a late onset of developmental delays in language, social function, and motor skills. Asperger Syndrome is a developmental disorder related to autism and characterized by higher than average intellectual ability coupled with impaired social skills and restrictive, repetitive patterns of interest and activities. Atypical Autism is the term used when the person has symptoms but don’t have all the symptoms to diagnose Autism. Atypical autism usually differs from autism in terms either of age of onset or of failure to fulfill all three sets of autism diagnostic criteria.

Steve Silberman, also the author of "NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity," illuminates in his article "Autism speaks needs to do a lot more listening" that the organization raises millions of dollars to fund autism research yet fails to prioritize the people on the autistic spectrum. Instead of Autism Speaks devoting their efforts towards bettering the lives of people on the spectrum, he claims the organization invests more time into research which does not greatly impact the lives of Autistic people. Silberman elaborates on this assertion by first appealing to the reader's emotions by detailing the dehumanizing methods the organization has adopted, outlining corroborative facts

The story “let me hear your voice” is told from the perspective of Catherine Maurice and the challenges she faced to help her children overcome autism. Catherine has three children, her first child was Daniel who was nurotypical and is considered a “normal” child. Her second and third children were Anne-Marie and Michel respectively, and they were both born with autism. Anne-Marie is described as having a “delicate face, with porcelain skin and faint roses in the cheeks and framed by wispy brown curls” (Maurice, 1993). Anne-Marie was reported as shy and introverted when she was about 13 months but ahead of other children her age. She would play in one spot for hours and never really crawled around but could say simple sentences like “hi daddy” when she was only 15 months. She would cry a lot and did not like unexpected events or to be away from her mother for too long. Anne-Marie began to regress a little later in the story; she didn’t really speak as much anymore but could repeat things that Catherine said like “car” and “cookie”. Anne-Maries tantrums grew worse as well and would sometimes bang her head on the floor when she was particularly moody. She was cared for by her mother Catherine, her father Marc, and her nanny Patsy. Michel developed a little differently than Anne-Marie. At one year old Michel was walking, talking, eating with a fork, and can say the word “no”. Michel was also friendlier than his more withdrawn sister at that age. His language skills were delayed

Scientifically, autism and autism spectrum disorder, also known as ASD, are commonly used names for difficult disorders that have to do with brain development. Disorders like these are grouped by someone’s difficulty in social interaction, repetitive behaviors, and nonverbal communication. To the people who are diagnosed with this disorder and the families it affects; it is so much more than just science.

The spectrum for autism disorders can be depicted as a scale, with end points ranging from mild to severe. Picturing an umbrella shaped scale that portrays the severity of symptoms, whether their deficits are cognitive, social, or of language; individuals diagnosed with autism or similar disorders fall into a comprehensive term of autism spectrum disorders (Hallahan et. al, 2015, p. 211).

Autism is on the rise. Many researchers feel the reasons isn’t because there are more kids being afflicted with it, but the increased public awareness has allowed this disorder to be more easily recognized and diagnosed at a earlier age.

After completing my graduate training I plan to continue researching these areas while performing neuropsychological assessments in order to help families and educators identify appropriate programs for the child. The experiences I have accumulated and my passion for the field have allowed me to develop into a highly suitable candidate for the program and I am very excited to get started working on these core areas of autism