AUTISM

The word autism comes from Greek and was first

used by the Swiss psychiatrist Eugene Bleuler in a
volume of the American Journal of Insanity, in
1912. In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) and in the
International Statistical Classification of Diseases
and Other Health Problems (ICD-10), autism
spectrum disorders are classified as pervasive
developmental disorders (PDD), as opposed to
specific developmental disorders such as dyslexia,
agraphia, dyscalculia or dyspraxia. On the other
hand, the Autistic Children's Society of America
defines it as a behavioral syndrome whose essential
features are manifested before the first 30 months of age. Autism is a profound and
permanent developmental disorder. It affects communication, imagination, planning and
emotional reciprocity. The autistic is not made, he is born. The autistic baby can go
unnoticed until the fourth month of life, after that the linguistic evolution remains stagnant,
there is no reciprocity with the interlocutor, the first behaviors of intentional
communication or looks, throwing the arms, pointing, etc. do not appear. There are many
hypotheses and lines of research about the origin of autism (genetic origin, environmental
factors, etc.), but it is still unknown.

CAUSES
The causes of autism are still an open question; however, there are some hypotheses: Harris
Coulter, historian and director of the Center For Empirical Medicine in Washington, DC,
pointed out that much of autism is caused by early childhood administration of the whole-
cell pertussis vaccine. In two recent books (DPT: A Shot in the Dark, Harris Coulter and
Barbara Fisher, published by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich in 1985, and Vaccination, Social
Violence and Criminality, published in 1990 by Nort Atlantic Books ) Coulter gathered
highly important circumstantial evidence against the pertussis vaccine and has emphasized
the conduct of study to clarify its relationship to cause encephalitis-induced autism, brain
damage and death by apnea (respiratory arrest) known as ''sudden infant death.'' He also
stated that the higher incidence of autism in boys than in girls is due to the fact that the
former develop more slowly so their brains are more vulnerable. On the other hand,
scientific studies have suggested that autism is caused, in the great majority of cases, by an
inheritable disorder, so it is genetic.
Research so far has concluded that people with autism have differences in some regions of
the brain, including the cerebellum, amygdala, hippocampus, septum and similar bodies.
Specifically, the amygdala and hippocampus tend to have more neurons than normal as well
as smaller size and underdeveloped nerve fibers, which can interfere with nerve signals. It
has also been corroborated that the brain of an autistic person is larger and heavier than
average. From this evidence it has been concluded that autism results from brain
atypicality during fetal growth. It should be noted that these studies are not conclusive. The
same case is the finding that the person with this problem has a difference in the production
of serotonin and other neurotransmitters in the brain. There is a thesis that there is a
possible connection between autism and a newly discovered class of mirror neurons that are
responsible for empathy and defection of other people's intentions.

CURE
For a long time, autism spectrum disorders were considered a genetic disorder that could
not be cured. Today it is known that in reality
autism is not a disease but a condition that
influences the way a person perceives and
relates to the world. Therefore, since it is not a
disease per se but rather a set of traits that
distinguish a person, it has no "cure". However,
the truth is that some children diagnosed with an
autism spectrum disorder have managed to
overcome the typical manifestations of this
disorder and leave the diagnosis behind.
In most cases, these are children diagnosed with
mild degrees of autism with whom we have
worked for years to achieve significant progress
both in their way of perceiving the world and
reacting to what happens in their environment and in the way they relate to others.

CRISIS
CAUSES:
1. Sensory overload: Some people are affected by noise, others by smells, textures or even
lights. It can be any number of things; too much input leads to meltdowns. Screaming,
raging and yelling in public: all can happen when the senses go into a kind of bottleneck.
2. Social challenges: people on the autism spectrum encounter stressful social encounters
on a regular basis. Of course, each person is unique, so they may experience more or less of
this social turmoil, but the stress can take its toll over the course of the day. Too much stress
and the boiling point can be reached.
3. Long-term stress: Combine long-term stressors of sensory overload and social
challenges, along with all the usual hassles that make up daily life, it's not surprising that
people on the spectrum can "lose it" in seemingly small situations
How to respond effectively to shorten the breakdown of an autistic
child?
How you handle each crisis an autistic child has depends largely on the child and the
surroundings. There are basic concepts that can help you defuse autistic seizures quickly
and much more calmly. The methods used to
calm an autistic child during a crisis can be
used in schools, day care centers, in the
community and at home.
1. Stay calm around the autistic child: This
autistic child may see YOU as a threat and
respond in kind. So speak softly and move
slowly toward the autistic child. Any kind of
assault on an autistic child is going to be a long
time for the child to trust you again.
2. Always say what you are going to do to the
autistic child: Never grab the autistic child for
any reason except to save his or her life from
being hit by a car, etc. Grabbing an autistic
child will not only cause distrust, but may also cause him to bang his head against the
ground trying to escape your grasp. Instead, walk slowly toward him and tell him that you
need to hold his hand for safety. If you need the autistic child to accompany you, tell him
where you are going and why.
3. Allow the meltdown to occur in a safe place: If a child with autism is in crisis mode
and is not harming himself or others, leave him alone. It is good to have a safe place for the
child with autism to vent and be loud.
4. Help an autistic child calm down: This information is especially helpful in crowded
malls and in the community. If your autistic child begins to have a meltdown, gently scoop
him into your arms. Face him away from your body, with his back to your stomach. This
way, when he is turning his body, he won't be able to scratch your face, kick your legs or hit
you. To help him calm down, give him a tight hug, but not too tight. Don't hurt him or it
will only prolong the meltdown.