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In the public consciousness, a child with autism is intellectually disabled, and Asperger’s syndrome is treated as a whim. When we think about the autism spectrum, we also have an image of Rainman in mind – a genius who is not good at dealing with relationships, but has an outstanding mind. Is that really the truth? Joanna Grochowska, a psychologist and vice-president of the SYNAPSIS Foundation, which helps children and adults with the autism spectrum, explains.
- The autism spectrum is diagnosed in both children and adults. There are more and more such people
- The term spectrum includes autism, atypical autism and Asperger’s syndrome
- April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
A person with autism is a genius, a person with Asperger is strange – MYTH
Agnieszka Mazur-Puchała, Medonet: What myth about the autism spectrum should we first deal with?
Joanna Grochowska, psychologist and vice-president of the SYNAPSIS Foundation: Let’s start with the fact that not every person on the spectrum is Rainman, a genius in some field. It’s a stereotype. There are few such people. We call them savants. We build our ideas about people in the spectrum from fragments that we see in TV series, read something in a newspaper or on a website. We watch the series “Good doctor”, we see the figure of Shaun Murphy and this shapes our perception of the autism spectrum. And yet there is only one, and there are millions of autistic people!
I have been working with people on the autism spectrum for many years, I explain to my friends what this means, and yet I keep hearing “my new colleague is weird, maybe he has Asperger”. It’s terrible! You can have Asperger’s Syndrome, be on the spectrum and not be weird at all. What does it mean “strange” that there is something wrong with such a person? This is not the point. Nothing is wrong with people on the spectrum. It is different.
The autism spectrum is only for boys – MYTH
Are girls also diagnosed towards the autism spectrum?
Yes. Today we know that the symptoms of the autism spectrum in girls and women (because we also diagnose adults) often look completely different than in boys. It is worth mentioning that the diagnostic criteria underlying the diagnosis are based mainly on the symptoms observed in boys. For many years it was thought that there was one girl with autism for every four boys, and for Asperger’s syndrome the ratio was 8: 1. We now know more about how peculiar the symptoms are in girls, how they can mask their difficulties, making them invisible.
This is partly due to the culturally different requirements for girls and boys, the emphasis on other games, behavior, etc. What draws the attention of the environment as unusual in a girl does not necessarily draw her attention in the case of a boy, and vice versa. Girls are taught to be quiet, polite and not cause problems. Consequently, they are diagnosed much later than boys. As a result, they incur huge emotional costs because they do not receive adequate support.
Autism is a treatable disease – MYTH
Is autism a disease? Can it be cured?
The autism spectrum is not a disease, but a different way of perceiving the world and thinking. Such a person’s brain works differently. Thinking about autism as a disease was based on a medical approach. For many years, people searched for a “cure for autism”. Meanwhile, autism cannot be cured. The spectrum is life-long, and only the symptoms may be more or less severe, they may change with age or due to the external situation. Adequate therapy and support of the environment are extremely important, which, in the case of both children and adults, allows them to better cope with difficulties and achieve minor and larger successes.
- As a support in the treatment of autism, you can use Weighted blankets, which can be found in various sizes at medonetmarket.pl.
The autism spectrum is a whim – MYTH
In Poland, there is a belief that there is an increasing percentage of children diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome and this is such a parents’ whim or a way to avoid school duties. What’s the truth?
Since autism was first described in 1943, diagnostic criteria have changed many times. It used to be thought that most people with autism were intellectually disabled. But at one point it was noticed that there was a group of people very similar to those with “classic” autism, most often coping better, having at first glance less difficulties. And in 1990, the concept of Asperger’s syndrome was introduced. But it was also once believed that a child with Down syndrome or a blind child cannot be in the spectrum. Today we know that children with very different problems can be on the spectrum – genetic syndromes, metabolic diseases, mental diseases, intellectually disabled, intellectually disabled or exceedingly capable. Spectrum means diversity. And various problems can coexist with each other. It is extremely important to remember this.
The number of people on the autism spectrum is growing all over the world, not only in Poland. Where does this increase come from? We diagnose better and more accurately, because we have more knowledge. There are more doctors and teachers who pay attention to details that were previously underestimated. We also know that as much as 25 percent. babies with a birth weight of 1500 g or less will be on the spectrum! And yet we can save babies weighing 500 g or less. The spectrum is not a fad. There are and will be more of these people. For people with a spectrum, this misunderstanding on the part of the environment is very difficult.
Vaccines cause autism – MYTH
Where does the autism spectrum come from? What causes them?
It’s important to be clear: vaccines do not cause autism. There are thousands of studies that show that there is no connection whatsoever. Andrew Wakefield’s research, which formed the basis of such thinking, was faked by him and he was disqualified from practicing in the UK. As for the causes of autism, despite years of research, we still don’t know them. The autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder with a genetic background. Such a child’s nervous system works differently to that of a typically developing peer. Although it has not been possible to isolate the gene or group of genes responsible for autism, the genetic factor is important because there are families in which there are several people on the spectrum, e.g. children, parents or grandparents.
Autistic child screams because he simply has autism – MYTH
How do non-speaking children with autism signal that they are in pain?
Most often – shouting. This is one of the worst stereotypes when it comes to people on the autism spectrum. He screams, is awake, refuses to eat, hits his head, behaves badly – because he has autism. It’s not true. Behavior is a message, especially important in the case of mute children who have no other way of showing us that something hurts them, they don’t like something, they are tired, it is too loud. It happens that even doctors say, “Well, he has autism, he screams”. And then it turns out we have a person with a perforation of the eardrum because she had otitis. Or kidney inflammation. The baby was screaming, crying desperately, but it never occurred to anyone that this could be anything more than autism. Therefore, let’s always look for causes, don’t blame everything on autism. People on the autism spectrum scream, cry and misbehave in the same situations as us – when the world around becomes too difficult and doesn’t try to understand us.
Also read:
- What is Autism?
- Can autistic people have other diseases, e.g. epilepsy?
- Are the genetic mutations responsible for autism known?
- Where to go for help if you suspect autism?
- What are the first symptoms of autism?