Does anyone have information on Very mild Autism?

Question

My child may possibly have very mild autism and will be doing a lot of brain work in the next few weeks which include an EEG and MRI. The doctor feels he is at the very mild side of the Austism spectrum if not just a "late bloomer". Any advice or information would be great if you have experienced this. Thanks!

Answer 1

I am a special education teacher, and these are some of my favorite resources. I hope this helps!

Websites:

"The Discovery of "Aspie" Criteria" ~ What if Asperger’s Syndrome [a "mild" form of autism] was defined by its strengths? - http://www.thegraycenter.org/sectionsdetails.cfm?id=38

"Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew" by Ellen Notbohm - http://www.southflorida.com/sfparenting/sfe-sfp-autism,0,6196233.story

Website of Paula Kluth, Ph.D. - http://www.paulakluth.com/autism.html

Positively Autism (free online magazine, includes free lessons/activities) - http://www.positivelyautism.com

Teaching Tips for Children and Adults with Autism by Temple Grandin, Ph.D. - http://www.autism.org/temple/tips.html


Books:

"Your Life is Not a Label: A Guide to Living Fully with Autism and Asperger's Syndrome" by Jerry Newport

"You're Going to Love This Kid!: Teaching Students With Autism in the Inclusive Classroom" By Paula Kluth

"Not Even Wrong: Adventures in Autism" By Paul Collins

Any book by Temple Grandin

Answer 2

I have spent a lot of time with children as a nanny (2 kids like this) as well as homes for mentally challenged, and kids with other problems.

If your doc is saying mild autism, start reading up on Asperger syndrome. Maybe you have already heard this. It is characterized by a lot of awkward social behaviors. They think it has been around a long time, and that it is at least partially genetic...once they had a name to go by, they found dense pockets of Asperger kids in the Silicone Valley for instance, and guess what? They were children of undiagnosed computer nerdy parents who didn't have good social skills either...yesterday's Asperger kids that didn't have a label. They gravitated to computers because they could escape and succeed with them, and they were a consistent reinforcer for them just the way they were. So Silicone Valley, being a computer mecca, is where a lot of these people went, and raised families...with children...with the same problems as their parents.

Asperger is more common in boys. It is on the autism scale, I think due to physical proof that it is similar, though I don't know what that is. (blood tests, brain scans, etc). A way to recongize it in a lot of children, like more severe autism...is that the child will withdraw from social situations. In more serious autism, this is due to the whole overstimulation thing...physically and mentally experiencing things much more intense than us. They kind of go into their own world and they are content to stay there.

Overstim means a flooding of sensations. Overwhelm, extreme sensitivity. A pat on the back becomes a rubdown with sandpaper. A gentle hug is constrictive. A conversation with you in a restaurant is like trying to hear you whisper at a death metal concert. Who would really want any of this? So the kid withdraws. They do love, they want to please you like any other child, and they aren't stupid or hateful. They are just very protective of themselves...they will try to assimilate a hug for example to help you feel good...by leaning into you for a couple seconds. But their hearts won't be into it, and who can blame them?

OK so that is hard core autism. Add to that, that some stims which are totally inappropriate, like playing in feces, swinging things and flapping, repetitive noises, rocking, etc are great rewards. These strong self-stims actually block out other things so they become white noise equivalents of those sensations. This end of the spectrum of autism is so hard to reach. You just can't do much but love them and keep them safe.

Aspergers on the other hand, is more mild. These kids appear normal, "not retarded" (civilian term) just a little weird. Their main problem is not picking up social cues so they don't understand their mistakes in social situations...this leads to really low success with friends, low self-esteem, and pushing away from others in a very autistic way. I don't know if the initial inability to learn is because of the extreme sensitivity of autism or not...as in, can't process. These are subtle but critical lessons that other kids just learn naturally by being in those situations. Things like how to interact at a party. How to tell if something is funny. How far to take a joke. How to interrupt a conversation. How to tell if someone wants to be your friend. Etc. In these situations, the kid will recognize that they are in a pattern of failure but they don't know how to learn these skills. The result is a lot of times, the kid throws up his middle finger and plays video games instead with very hurt feelings. And all that frustration can go deep and turn to rage pretty easily which pulls the kid out of social circles even more.

A kid with Aspergers may seem like they have no concern for others. They do, many of these kids are so sweet. They just have backed up frustration, and they don't know HOW to show you that they care. They just keep "screwing up" their relationships with others.

The good news about Aspergers is that for whatever reasons, they are more reachable, and therefore more high functioning than a lot of autistic children. They can be taught. And that is a great secret to helping Asperger kids. If they can get around to deliberately learning social skills, by someone who is deliberately teaching them...like flash cards, they will eventually be able to master the information, they can start to fit in better and a lot of the problems decrease.

So...typically a therapy session with an Asperger child will be a direct exchange of the information, and then talking about how to apply it, and finally role playing to practice doing it.

This is how you ask a girl to dance. Eye contact, ask politely, take their hand to lead them onto the dance floor, don't touch her behind...and then offer to get her a cold drink or a snack...and thank her for the dance. (these are often canned ideals but at least it is somewhere to start where he may just be CLUELESS.)

When do you do this? In the school hallway? no. At the store? no. At the dance? Yes.

Let's practice.

The same lesson format might be...how to tell someone how you feel. How to give an apology. How to pay attention when you are bored. Other basic manners, and social mores that keep them from looking inept. These help get the confidence up, then they will see what else they can do, and maybe? get it right when they improvise. Asperger kids will probably not ever be Mr Popularity. But they can learn a lot and fit in better. This is good for self-image, and they can come out of their shell a little because their relationships start to work a little better.

This kind of therapy also gives the kid a non-blaming situation, a safe way to learn these things he knew he didn't know! And a support system of kids who have the same problems, talking about their feelings of dealing with this stuff.

So it is really exciting to be a part of this now. I hope you get good news at the doc.

Answer 3

www.nichcy.org
http://www.nichcy.org/resources/autism.asp

Hope this helps! I teach a student with asperger's and I use this site a lot.