Autistic child and how to communicate and deal with autism

Autistic child and how to communicate and deal with autism

Definition of autism

Autism is defined as a complex developmental disability, that a child suffers from in the first three years of his life, due to neurological disorders that affect brain functions, causing poor communication and social skills development for the child.

Symptoms of autism in children

Social interaction

A child with autism can be distinguished by knowing his social and personal interactions, whereas a child with autism suffers from his inability to communicate socially, due to his inability to develop non-verbal communication skills, such as eye squinting, or the ability to show facial expressions, in addition to the lack of His ability to make friends, share accomplishments, play with other children, and have trouble understanding other people's feelings, such as pain or sadness.

It is indicated that a child with autism can be identified, due to several symptoms that the child shows at an early age, and these symptoms include the lack of response when calling them by their names, the loss of language skills, and the emergence of autism spectrum disorders, where it is difficult for the child to learn, due to the low level of intelligence he has, compared to the child. Normal, and often the child appears autistic during the first year, but a few children grow normally during the first year, and then the symptoms of autism begin to appear at the age of 18-24 months.

Verbal and non-verbal communication

The child with autism shows symptoms of his inability to learn, as nearly 40% of people with autism show their inability to speak, in addition to their inability to start conversations, repeat words and phrases, and his inability to understand the speaker’s point of view, in addition to his failure to understand Word's meaning.

behavioral patterns

A child with autism exhibits many strange behaviors, including the following:

• Hypersensitivity to many external auditory, visual, and sensory stimuli.
• Extreme intolerance to loud sounds, noises, and visual stimuli.
• Useless repetition of many behaviors, such as constant rocking, grinding teeth, flapping hands, and walking on tiptoes.
• The occurrence of tantrums, or direct physical attacks.
• Opening and closing many rotating objects, such as an electric switch, and spinning a spinning toy for long hours.

Limited focus

The child with autism shows an unusual focus on small pieces and parts, as he focuses on playing parts, such as car wheels, instead of playing with the car as a whole, in addition to his preoccupation with certain topics, such as interest in a video game or others, and his desire for routine and meditation appears, and his insistence on crossing Same way to school.

Poor physical contact

Most autistic children suffer from physical contact problems so that they do not want to be hugged or touched by one of the others, but this does not apply to all individuals, as an autistic child may embrace one of his relatives or his family such as the mother or father, as it is often considered It is only a matter of practice and habituation, and if the child expects physical contact from one of his acquaintances, he will laugh and enjoy it, unlike the child who did not expect physical contact.

The causes of autism

There is no known cause for autism spectrum disorder, but due to the complexity of the disease and the difference in symptoms and severity from one person to another, there is likely more than one cause of the disease, and both the environment and genetics may play a role in that, and it should be noted that there are many disagreements about the fact that there is a link between Autism spectrum disorder and vaccinations given during childhood, but the extensive research that was conducted did not prove any relationship between them, so the original study that sparked controversy years ago was withdrawn due to poor design and questionable research methods used. It should be noted that refraining from taking vaccines may put children and others at risk of developing and spreading serious illnesses, including Whooping cough, Measles, or Mumps. Among the most important causes that may lead to autism spectrum disorder are the following:

Genetic reasons

Most researchers believe that some of the genes that a child inherits from his parents can put him at greater risk of developing autism spectrum disorder, and it is known that autism is one of the conditions that can be transmitted in the family, for example, younger siblings of an affected child With autism, they may also develop autism, just as it is common for identical twins to have autism. It is worth noting that no specific genes have been linked to autism spectrum disorder, but the affected genes can give characteristics of some rare genetic syndromes, such as (Fragile X syndrome) and (Williams syndrome) and (Angelman syndrome).

Brain abnormalities

It is believed that autism is related to brain development during pregnancy or after birth. Various studies have shown abnormal activity or structural defects in areas of the brain in some people with autism. Abnormal levels of some neurotransmitters such as serotonin have been identified in some people with autism. , and this may play a role in distorting the messages received and sent from the brain, however, more research must be done to determine the cause of the disease.

Environmental factors

Researchers are trying to discover if factors such as viral infections, medications, complications during pregnancy, or air pollutants play a role in triggering autism spectrum disorder.

Factors that increase the risk of autism

Autism spectrum disorder affects children of all races and nationalities, and it has been observed that the number of children diagnosed with autism has increased, but it has not been determined whether this increase is due to the improvement in the process of detecting and reporting cases due to a change in societal awareness regarding this disease, or due to the presence of A real increase in the number of infected people, or both causes together, and some factors that may increase the risk of a child with autism spectrum disorder can be mentioned, which may include the following:

• Family history: The risk of having a child with autism spectrum disorder increases in families with an autistic child, or if a parent or relative has minor problems with social or communication skills, or has some behaviors similar to autism.

• Very premature birth: Babies born before 26 weeks of gestation may have an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder.

• Gender: Autism spectrum disorder is more common in boys than in girls, and this is likely due to different genes linked to the X chromosome.

• The presence of some genetic conditions: People with conditions such as Down syndrome, fragile X syndrome, and Rett syndrome, are more likely to develop autism spectrum disorder.

• Undernutrition early in pregnancy, especially not getting enough folic acid.

• Complications occurring during or shortly after birth, including a low birth weight baby, anemia, or other birth difficulties lead to periods of oxygen deficiency in the baby's brain.

• Infection of the mother during pregnancy.

• The mother suffers from some metabolic conditions, such as diabetes and obesity.

• During pregnancy, the mother is exposed to some chemicals, such as alcohol, metals, and pesticides.

• The mother took some medications during pregnancy, such as antidepressants - especially in the first three months of pregnancy -, or antiseizure, valproic acid, or thalidomide; A relationship has been discovered between these medications and an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder.

• The mother's infection with German measles or untreated phenylketonuria, which is a metabolic disorder that occurs due to the absence of an enzyme, as researchers have found a relationship between this disease and an autism spectrum disorder.

• The age of the parents at conception

How to deal and communicate with an autistic child

Dealing with sleep disorders

Sleep disorders are among the common problems among children with autism, especially difficulty falling asleep, poor quality of sleep, frequent or early awakening, or irregular sleep schedules. Sleep can be improved by following the following tips:

• Refrain from stimuli before bedtime; Like drinking coffee and sugar.
• Avoid watching TV and playing video games before bedtime.
• Organizing sleep times, and keeping up with the routine that accompanies them, such as reading a story or taking a shower before bed.
• Help the child relax before bed by reading a story, massaging his back, or listening to calming music.
• Providing a suitable atmosphere for sleeping and moving away from things that may distract the child, such as car lights and sounds, it is recommended to put heavy curtains to block light, carpet brushes to reduce sound, and adjust the room temperature to suit the child’s needs.
• Take melatonin supplements before bedtime, as it may help adjust the sleep-wake cycle in children with autism.
• Bright light therapy, exposing the child to bright light during daylight hours helps regulate the body's secretion of melatonin.

Dealing with aggressive behavior

Aggressive behavior is one of the common behaviors of children with autism, which appears towards others or even themselves, and this behavior can be dealt with by following the following tips:

• Control the nerves and keep calm while the child behaves aggressively, as children with autism often act aggressively because they have difficulty expressing their feelings.
• Use short and useful sentences when talking to them, to make them easier to understand, especially when they feel stressed.
• Keep the child away from any sources that may cause him physical harm, such as glass panels and shelves, and keep him away from others, so that he does not cause harm to them.
• Identify visual aids to help calm the child, such as a picture of the child's favorite quiet place.
• Avoid restricting the child's movement, to prevent harm to him or the person responsible for him, to avoid increasing his tension, and a doctor and specialist should be consulted before using physical force with children with autism.
• Inform and alert the child before moving from one activity to another, for example, it is preferable to inform the child that he has to finish playing and prepare for dinner ten minutes before the time so that he is psychologically prepared for the transition between these two activities.
• Moving on to another activity, their self-harm may be a sign of boredom from performing a particular activity, or their need for attention, communication, or help.

Dealing with nervous breakdowns

Children with autism are sure to suffer from nervous breakdowns. As the child may go through a fit of anger or crying, because it is the only way for him to express what he feels at that moment, and parents must be able to deal with it and reduce its occurrence as much as possible, and the following methods can be used:

• Hearing the child and understanding his problem, without judging him, gives the child a sense of interest, and allow him to express his feelings.
• Staying close to them physically during a nervous breakdown attack, as appropriate for them, instead of talking to them and trying to persuade them to stop, as this behavior increases the child's feeling of love and safety.
• Avoid punishment, as children with autism, cannot control their feelings, and punishment may increase feelings of stress, shame, and fear. This exacerbates the problem, but the child must be given a safe space and freedom to express his feelings.
• Focus on the child and not get busy with others.
• Using toys or anything else might stop the child from collapsing, but be careful not to force them to use them.
• Teach the child strategies for dealing with nervous breakdowns before or during their occurrence.

General tips to deal with autism

In addition to the above, some daily practices can help in communicating with autistic children, as follows:

• Maintaining patience when dealing with children with autism, talking to them at the appropriate speed for them, and not feeling bad when they do not respond.
• Not losing hope in the child, and making him feel inferior because of his illness.
• Showing love and affection for them in the appropriate way for each child. Some children prefer being hugged while others refuse any physical contact.
• Encouraging the child, especially when performing positive actions, and rewarding them in appropriate ways.
• Spend some quality time with them, and it is preferable to spend it outside, by doing physical activities with them, such as running and playing.
• Use short sentences in addition to providing pictures or writings for the commands.
• Follow a set routine and continue to direct and interact with them.