By Penelope A. Domogo, MD
“As they mature, some people with ASD can learn and eventually lead normal lives. Timely psychosocial intervention can improve the ability of children with autism to communicate effectively and interact socially. Others continue to have difficulty with language and social skills and will need lifelong care.“
Autism was unheard of when I was in medical school- that was fifty years ago. Well, in the Philippines, that is, as far as I can remember. The World Health Organization also says “autism is unknown in many low and middle income countries.” It is recognized that the number of children being diagnosed with autism is rising. If you have watched the Kdrama series, “Extraordinary Attorney Woo”, this is “very entertaining and very sympathetic” story about a brilliant, autistic lawyer.
Autism is known as a spectrum disorder (ASD) because there’s a wide variety in the type and severity of symptoms. It is a disorder in the development of the brain that affects how a person interacts with others, communicates, learns and behaves.
Below are common social behaviors in people diagnosed with autism:
1. Poor eye contact and lacks facial expression.
2. Lack of response to their name or appears not to hear you (the child has to have a hearing test also).
3. Resists cuddling and holding and prefers to play alone.
4. Doesn’t speak or has delayed speech, or loses previous ability to say words or sentences.
5. Speaks with an abnormal tone, singsong voice or robot-like speech.
6. Doesn’t express emotions and appear unaware of others’ feelings.
7. May have limited, repetitive patterns of behavior such as rocking, spinning or hand-flapping and activities that cause self-harm such as biting or head-banging.
8. Has odd movement patterns like walking on toes
9. Fixates on an object or activity like the spinning wheels of a toy care with abnormal intensity or focus.
10. Unusually sensitive to light, sound or touch.
As they mature, some people with ASD can learn and eventually lead normal lives. Timely psychosocial intervention can improve the ability of children with autism to communicate effectively and interact socially. Others continue to have difficulty with language and social skills and will need lifelong care.
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“Keep on doing what is right, and trust yourself to the God who made you, for he will never fail you.” 1Peter 4:19
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