Some common symptoms of autism include - abnormal body postures or facial expressions, abnormal tone of voice, avoidance of poor eye contact or eye contact, behavioral disturbances, deficits in language comprehension, delayed learning to speak, flat or monotonous speech, inappropriate social interaction. Social Communication Challenges and Specialized Health Care Providers diagnose autism using a checklist of criteria in the two categories above. They also assess the severity of autism symptoms The autism severity scale reflects how much support a person needs for daily functioning. Many people with autism have sensory problems.
They usually involve excessive or insufficient sensitivity to sounds, lights, touch, tastes, smells, pain, and other stimuli. Autism is also associated with high rates of certain physical and mental health conditions. Is it autism and, if so, what is next? A guide for adults. What is autism spectrum disorder What are some of the common signs of ASD? What disorders are related to ASD? How is ASD diagnosed? What causes ASD? What role do genes play? Do the symptoms of autism change over time? How is autism treated? What research is being done? Where can I get more information? While there is no cure for autism spectrum disorder, intensive and early treatment can make a big difference in the lives of many children.
Both children and adults with autism benefit from behavioral interventions or therapies that can teach new skills to address major deficits of autism and reduce major symptoms. The perception that people with autism have unusual memory and memory powers, as is popularized in several media, is not representative of people with autism spectrum disorder as a whole. Autism is a spectrum disorder, which means that people can experience a wide range of symptoms of autism and of varying severity.
Natural Autism Support has an interesting take on the symptoms of autism. Instead of only using symptoms to make a diagnosis that opens the door to additional support, they encourage using the symptoms as signs that direct more targeted support. The signs may lead to support that is not traditionally used in standard autism treatment.
The Autism Society of America and other advocates have even proposed that April be designated as Autism Acceptance Month. While treatment may improve some external symptoms, people with autism always process sensations such as sound, sight, touch, and smell in different ways. Not all adults or children with autism will have all the symptoms, and some adults and children without autism may show some of the same behaviors and symptoms. Parents, caregivers, and people with autism should be careful before adopting any unproven treatment.
Autism spectrum disorder is a lifelong condition and some people with autism spectrum disorder are not diagnosed until they are adults.