- Joined
- Dec 13, 2006
- Messages
- 3,454
April 2nd is World Autism Awareness Day, and April is Autism Awareness Month. I hope you'll take a moment to read this post, for me and all of the Cafe members who love someone with autism.
Most people have heard of autism, but a lot of people don't recognize it when they see it. There are rarely any visual clues to tell you someone has autism, and unless you recognize the behaviors, you might assume a child with autism in the middle of a meltdown is just a brat, or a teen or adult with autism is just odd.
I've often found that people who would never harass a physically disabled person for not getting up and walking are unusually quick to jump to conclusions about behaviors my son can't control. They don't see anything physically wrong with him, so when something happens that upsets him and he has a meltdown, they assume he's just a brat. They make mean comments...but when I explain that he has autism, they suddenly regret their harsh words. It's situations like this and the need for research that brought about the autism awareness movement.
What is Autism?
Autism is a neurological disorder affecting mainly speech and social interaction. Some people with autism have little or no speech, others speak fluently but tend to have very one-sided discussions and miss social cues we take for granted. It's a spectrum disorder, which means severity and symptoms vary by case.
How can you recognize it?
Here are some things to look for:
Does people with autism have low IQs?
Not necessarily. Sir Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein both showed signs of having autism, but lived before the diagnosis existed. Being unable to communicate well doesn't mean there's nothing going on inside--it may just be difficult for them to express it.
For those of you who haven't dealt with autism before, I hope this helps you understand it a little bit better. I hope you'll be just a little more patient next time you run into someone who isn't behaving quite as you'd expect. You may be seeing someone with autism. :smile:
Here's my son, expressing some humor--this is a new thing for him! He put the strawberry on his nose and said, "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!" For anyone else, that might not be a big deal, but for us, it's huge. :biggrin: :Love:
Most people have heard of autism, but a lot of people don't recognize it when they see it. There are rarely any visual clues to tell you someone has autism, and unless you recognize the behaviors, you might assume a child with autism in the middle of a meltdown is just a brat, or a teen or adult with autism is just odd.
I've often found that people who would never harass a physically disabled person for not getting up and walking are unusually quick to jump to conclusions about behaviors my son can't control. They don't see anything physically wrong with him, so when something happens that upsets him and he has a meltdown, they assume he's just a brat. They make mean comments...but when I explain that he has autism, they suddenly regret their harsh words. It's situations like this and the need for research that brought about the autism awareness movement.
What is Autism?
Autism is a neurological disorder affecting mainly speech and social interaction. Some people with autism have little or no speech, others speak fluently but tend to have very one-sided discussions and miss social cues we take for granted. It's a spectrum disorder, which means severity and symptoms vary by case.
How can you recognize it?
Here are some things to look for:
- lack of eye contact
- slow development, or lack, of spoken language, with lack of gestures to communicate
- difficulty initiating or sustaining conversation
- not involving others in activities
- repetitive language and/or behaviors
- lack of imaginative play appropriate to developmental level, focus on parts of toys instead of normal use (like spinning a toy car’s wheels instead of playing with it)
- rigid need for routine
- hand flapping, rocking, or similar behaviors
- sensory issues, such as covering ears to avoid sounds or covering eyes to avoid light
Does people with autism have low IQs?
Not necessarily. Sir Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein both showed signs of having autism, but lived before the diagnosis existed. Being unable to communicate well doesn't mean there's nothing going on inside--it may just be difficult for them to express it.
For those of you who haven't dealt with autism before, I hope this helps you understand it a little bit better. I hope you'll be just a little more patient next time you run into someone who isn't behaving quite as you'd expect. You may be seeing someone with autism. :smile:
Here's my son, expressing some humor--this is a new thing for him! He put the strawberry on his nose and said, "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!" For anyone else, that might not be a big deal, but for us, it's huge. :biggrin: :Love:
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Happy World Autism Awareness Day!
:smile:
