Do Persons with Autism Lack Empathy?

              A couple of weeks ago, the handle of our old broom broke as I was sweeping the yard. I tried fixing it while C (my eleven year old son with autism) was watching. My efforts failed and decided to dispose the broom instead. Frustrated, I spent almost an hour trying to mend it for nothing. 
The next day, I was surprised to see the broom all fixed up. The handle was neatly and sturdily connected to the broom. I thanked my husband for it. But he replied,"No, I did not fix it." There are only the four of us in the house- me, my hubby, C, and our youngest son who is five years old. If it's not me, nor my husband who fixed the broken broom, then who did? While trying to figure out who, we saw C giggling while staring at us. And so we asked him,"did you fix the broom, dear?" With that radiant smile on his face, he replied, "yes."
            That was not only about an old broken broom. What made us really happy was the fact that our son took the time to help us without being asked. He showed us he cares and we matter to him. 

Autism Parenting 101: Overcoming Frustration

         Most parents, if not all, begin to dream and aspire for their children as soon as they were born. It would begin to wanting their children to be healthy, to be good persons, to finish school, to be successful in whatever they would go into when they become adults. To sum it all up, parents simply want all the best for their children.

Conquering the Odds of Handwriting

        Most children with autism attend special education class with an individualized curriculum. They may eventually be transitioned to attend regular school depending on their cognitive abilities and developmental progress in terms of behavior. One huge determinant if a child is ready to be mainstreamed to a regular class is his handwriting. Would he be capable of  copying what is written on the board; or answer written examinations? This is one common problem faced by a special learner in the traditional school setting in the Philippines.
        Handwriting is a complex fine motor skill that requires eye and hand coordination.

Having an ID

        B is a 12 year old boy with autism. He was born to Filipino parents residing in London.  Last year, his family spent Christmas in the Philippines. 

        It was B's first time to visit his parents' homeland and meet their relatives. Christmas is a much celebrated occasion in the Philippines. Parties, family reunions happen in this joyous season.
      B and his family were invited to dinner with relatives and friends at a restaurant located in a mall in Quezon City three days before going back to London. Everyone was having a nice time feasting over a sumptuous meal and catching up with people whom they have not been with for quite a long time. Dinner was soon over. Everyone bids their goodbyes. Then they noticed B was not in his seat nor anywhere in the restaurant. The family reported B's loss to the mall security. Security camera footage was reviewed and showed B going out of the mall and headed towards E. Delos Santos Avenue (EDSA). That was the end of the footage. Nobody knew where B went. 

So Called "Right to Life"

        I learned from one of the autism blogs I follow, Juniper Hill Farms, the heart-breaking story of Paul Corby. 

        Paul Corby is a young man of 23 years from Pennsylvania, U.S.A., who suffers from a very rare congenital heart disorder, left ventricular non-compaction (LVN). This disorder primarily affects the muscles of the heart, most commonly the left ventricle, which unnaturally appears spongy. This defect renders the heart ineffective in performing its function of circulating blood thus the danger for life-threatening complications. Paul survived three strokes and has been maintained on 19 sorts of medications daily. This being the case, a heart transplant would be the best treatment option.

Fun Based Learning

Jigsaw Puzzle

         Special needs children when not attending school or therapy sessions should be provided with worthwhile activities at home. Activities that would keep them busy so as not to encourage emergence of self stimulatory behaviors. Or better yet, provide them with activities that would address different sensory issues or motor problems they may have. We can always improvise from whatever we have at home. Like for instance an old coin bank or box with small slit where your child can slip poker chips or coins for fine motor improvement; old plastic jars or containers with screw lid which your child can open and close to strengthen
his grip. Still there are many other ways to improvise therapy devices or toys with special purpose.

Believing He Can

          We were eating at a fast food restaurant when an ad on the wall caught my son's attention. The ad was aimed to recruit children for the summer kiddie crew workshop. The ad showed happy faces of children convincing enough and made my son wanting to join.
          I was a little worried he might not be accepted to join in typical summer programs. But I still tried to inquire about it. The restaurant manager enthusiastically stated all the requirements for joining. But I just had one question to ask her, "Do you accept children with special needs?" The manager paused and then replied " Yes, we do. It's the restaurant's policy to accept every child who wishes to be a kiddie crew." I told the manager a little something about my son. She reaffirmed that my son's condition won't be a problem although they have not experienced having someone like him in the previous years they have been doing the workshop. Upon hearing that, I had my son registered.  
         A few days before he started as a restaurant kiddie crew, I had a lot of  "what ifs" and worried thoughts. What if he could not understand what he would be asked to do? What if he becomes hyperactive, runs around and break something? What if  he could not get along with other kiddie crews?
       My boy is already 8 years old, able to write his name, a sight reader, with tendency to be echolalic sometimes and gets confused with multiple instructions but with very good work behavior.  I was worried to let him be in a place where people may not have a single idea of what Autism is and how people with Autism are. This would be the first time my son would be participating in an activity where the people he would be working with were not trained to deal with children with special needs. 
       My son's most awaited day came. He was excited to be in his kiddie crew uniform. The first day began with a short parent and kiddie crew orientation. The kids were asked to introduce themselves.  My son has speech and language delay but he managed to state his full name and age clearly as he stood up in front of everyone without a trace of  jitteriness. 

Saying Goodbye to Nappies

       Toilet training a child with autism is one hard feat for their parents. Sometimes, toilet training takes years before it could be learned. What makes it harder is the fact that most toilet training techniques known are ineffective  for children under the spectrum. Parents need to work hand in hand with their child's therapist to make the toilet training technique implemented work effectively.

       Toilet training is usually started in typical children at age 2-3 when good bladder control has been attained. This is evident when the nappy is dry when they wake up in the morning. But in the case of children with Autism, many things should be taken into consideration. The presence of gastrointestinal problems like constipation or the child's receptiveness may affect toilet training.

Visual Potty Chart

       My son C attained good bladder control at age 2 but was not ready to receive toilet training instructions since his attention span was short and fleeting with poor communication skills. He was afraid of the toilet bowl and gets startled when he heard the flush of the toilet.
       When he turned 4, he felt uncomfortable wearing pull up diapers and would remove it once he had peed or pooped on it. I took advantage of this and started bringing him to the toilet every hour and ask him to pee. His therapist did the same thing when C was in school and gave me visual potty cards to be used at home.

Brother's Keeper

      It was truly a trying time when the couple found out that J, their eldest son has autism.
     J  has severe autism. Though his parents knew about his disorder, no intervention was given to him until the age of 9 due to lack of knowledge in properly addressing his needs.  
       J is now 29 years old. Like most individuals with severe autism, he has very poor communication skills, not even capable of using non verbal gestures, depends on others even on his toileting needs, with aggressive and self-injurious behavior. 

Finding Toys with a Purpose

  All children love toys. Special needs kids are no exception.  Actually, playing with toys can be a great way for them to have fun while their different sensory issues and development of some skills are being dealt with all at the same time. You just have to find the right toy that can serve that purpose. Also,consider your child's interest to make play time truly enjoyable.

  To find a purposive toy, you may want to consider these pointers:

1. Toys that perk up the senses

• toys that light up  - good for visual stimulation
• picture books
• toys that make sounds 
• toy clay - for tactile stimulation

2. Toys that develop motor skills

• crayons and coloring books - for development of fine motor skill
• paints & water colors - develop fine motor skill, creativity and self expression
• building blocks
• sorting and matching toys
• bicycle - helps in achieving good sense of balance

Silent Worshiper

   D is a 36 year old , non- verbal person with autism. During his younger years, he had his special education (SPED) in a public school and never had any sort of therapy. Despite his condition, he cannot be considered a "burden" since he helps in the family owned poultry farm which is their source of livelihood. 
  Every Sunday, D never fails to fulfill his spiritual obligations. As he comes inside the prayer hall, he would quickly go to his favorite spot at the corner where he would sit in silence. When greeted, he would respond by waving a little and make a peculiar sound.

Preparing for Your Visit to the Doctor

  Making an appointment to see a Developmental Pediatrician is not as easy as one would think. Since there are only a few doctors within this sub-specialty, it may take months or even a year before  your child gets an evaluation. This is especially true if you would like your child to be seen by the illustrious doctors of this field. So when that day comes, make sure you are prepared and make the long wait all worthwhile.
  Here are some tips to help you prepare and hints of what your doctor might do to make the fullest out of that visit.

List down :

• all the observed changes in your child's behavior
• all the medications your child is taking
• your child's eating habits and food preference

Finding a Developmental Pediatrician

  A Developmental Pediatrician  is a doctor trained and gained expertise to evaluate and care for children with developmental, learning and behavioral problems. There are only a few doctors in this Pediatric sub-specialty so it may take sometime to make an appointment with them.  Their clinics may be found in a number of big hospitals in Metro Manila. It would cost PHP3,000 for a child to be evaluated.  
Ask about professional fees whenever you make an inquiry about the doctor as this may vary depending on the area or location of the clinic. This may not be affordable to some families making financial aspect a big factor why some children suspected having some form of developmental disorder are left undiagnosed hence being denied of intervention and treatment.
  There are two government hospitals in Metro Manila that offer developmental assessment at minimal to no fees at all:

Autism Tell Tale

* Updated June 5, 2012

  Being the first born and only grandchild, everyone in the family is so fond of  C. His parents have big dreams for him. 
  As he was growing, he was like any other child until he reached 10 months of age. He seemed not to look at people, nor responding to his name anymore. When someone tries to play with him, asking him to do "flying kiss", "close open", he did not mind as if no one was playing with him. 
  At 18 months, C was not saying any words yet. He was still incapable of doing communicative gestures like waving bye-bye or pointing. 
  By age 2, C had no vocabulary and still babbling like a 6 month old. He was hyperactive- running around aimlessly, mesmerized by spinning objects like the blades of the electric fan. His mother noticed all these alarming behavioral manifestations, but clinged  to the common belief that boys develop later than girls. And that C will soon catch up.

  The early behavioral manifestations of Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD) may show at 12 months of age but valid screening can be obtained when child reaches 16 months of age.[1].
  According to First Signs , the very early indicators, the so called RED FLAGS of Autism include:


1. failure to elicit social smile and other joyful expressions by 6 months of age and thereafter
2. no back and forth sharing of sounds and smiles by 9 months of age and thereafter
3. no babbling by 12 months
4. no gesturing (pointing, waving bye-bye) by 12 months
5. does not say single words by 16 months
6. does not say 2 word spontaneous phrases by 24 months (not just echoing)
7. losing language or social skills at any age