A New Perspective on Autism and How a Parents Can Help

Autism, according to many experts, is commonly used too broadly. In a cruel turn, the term autism is now commonly used as a cruel gesture, which “other” families are dealing with, and where doctors and scientists must “fix”. However, autism is not a disease to be healed or “fixed.” And autism is not only autism.

According to Bunny Joaquin, founder and directress of Shine Intervention in the Philippines, autism is more commonly considered as a spectrum, which is why autism is now called as Autism Spectrum Disorder or ASD.

Basically, she explains how a person with autism can be anywhere within this spectrum. “You can be anywhere with really high (Asperger’s) or really low levels of function (Kanner’s), or you can be somewhere in the middle.”

According to her, ASD is not a disease to be treated or to be contained, but it is a type of neurological disorder. It is characterized by “social impairments, communication difficulties, and restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior,” according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Parts of the Spectrum As early as 18 months, parents may already notice a baby’s delayed speech, lack of interest and response in activities, peers and eye contact. Conversely, they may also show an intense fascination for one object or practice for an extended period of time.
According to new Parenting Philippines news, communication problems may be both verbal and nonverbal. Some have complete difficulty with speech. Others may be able to converse, but speech may be strained as some are unable to recognize speech patterns, expressions and non-literal meanings.
However, some people are able to successfully work around communication problems by turning to other mediums, such as text and sign language.

With this, social interaction is usually affected due to the fact the autism has its own culture and way of seeing the world. Some display a lack of empathy, which also hinders them from developing relationships with others. The key is for everyone to extend the necessary understanding to get things rolling for the children.

According to latest Philippines Lifestyle news, intervention is an important part of helping our children develops the deficits that ADS may cause. When she talks about her students who have “graduated” and integrated successfully into regular schools, she gives much credit to the individual person’s will.

However, when it comes to treating symptoms, she says the biggest and most important factor is the willingness of parents to first accept the situation. After that, it is vital that they learn to accept what their child does and can do, and that they remain motivated to continue supporting their children. Support must be consistent at home, not only in intervention and therapy centers.