Here I will talk about what is autism for people who aren’t quite familiar with it.
Autism is a life-long condition. It affects at least 700,000 children in the UK. Boys are three times more common to be diagnosed with autism than girls. Unfortunately, the precise cause of autism is still not known. However, it is known that autism is hereditary which means it runs in the family. Also, older parents can have higher rates of having autistic children.
Gerenal Symptoms
Autism involves difficulties in social interaction and communication, and the presence of restrictive or repetitive behavior and interests. Symptoms include:
Lack of eye contact
Delayed speech
Poor reasoning skills
Enjoying repetitive behavior e.g., clapping
Having trouble understanding other people’s feelings or difficulty talking about feelings
Getting upset by changes in routine
Being seriously obsessed with certain interests
Big reactions to sensory stimulus like smells, textures or lights
The functioning levels of autism can be from mild to severe. We should understand it as a spectrum where it could be less autistic or more autistic in a person with autism. Some of the autistic symptoms may be present and some of which may not be present in one individual. Everyone is different!
Additional conditions
It is very common that people with autism can have an additional condition for example, anxiety, depression, ADHD and learning difficulties such as dyslexia and delays in language development. They are 4 times more likely to have anxiety; two times likely to have depression. Self-harm behaviour, suicidal thoughts and suicidal behaviours are significantly elevated in autistic people compared to the general population and psychiatric groups.
If you’re a parent and you think your child might be autistic, you should talk to your GP, health visitor, school teachers or relevant healthcare professional. Always observe your child’s behaviour and habit and write it down in a diary which you can provide to health professionals for assessment.
Please feel free to comment down below to share your opinion or experience or anything about autism. You can also tell us what other issues around autism that you would like us to discuss. We want to hear your voice!