Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.
Asperger’s & Autism Anxiety
Students with Asperger’s or autism commonly experience anxiety. They can be overwhelmed by the world around them. Many have sensory problems in which they feel, hear, and see more sharply. For example a doorbell might sound like a cannon and a clothing label may feel like a porcupine. This can easily lead to stress.
Slowing down, limiting stimuli, and training to better handle sensory stimulation can make a big difference for people with these challenges research suggests. In future Y3K Tutor In Your Home Blog posts, we will offer advice on how to limit stimuli at home by creating a calming environment and how to better deal with situations traditionally over-stimulating such as at a theater. If you have suggestions of what did or did not work for your child, please share with us so that we may post to help thousands of parent readers.
New Autism Treatment – Early Start Denver Model Behavioral Therapy
Intensive early behavioral therapy may normalize the brain activity in children with autism when they look at faces and improve their social skills according to a recent study. This is on top of what was previously known that it could help develop language and thinking skills. Researchers looked at 48 autistic children between 18 and 30 months. Half of the children were treated with a new type of therapy called Early Start Denver Model for 20 hours per week for 2 years. After 2 years, researchers used electroencephalograms to measure the brain activity of the children with autism as well as of children without autism while they watched faces and toys. The majority of autistic children treated with the Early Start Denver Model showed greater brain activation when looking at faces rather than objects (a response common to children without autism). The opposite was found among the kids with autism who received other interventions.
The autistic children with increased brain activity at the sight of faces also had better social and behavioral skills. The study is the first to find underlying changes in brain function along with behavioral changes after early therapy. The full study can be found in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, November 2012.
Vaccinations and Autism
By now you have probably heard the rumor that childhood vaccines can cause autism. Lets take a closer look at how this idea came about. In 1998 a British gastroenterologist published a paper in a medical journal theorizing a link between the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine and autism. His research was based on interviews with parents based on TWELVE children!! The press ran away with the story that vaccines cause autism.
Since this global panic, a mercury-based preservative thimerosal has been removed from all vaccines. This was to just to be safe just in case the observed autism was in fact mercury poisoning. Throughout the past decade there have been dozens of studies that have collectively drawn on data from millions of children. These studies have consistently found no connection between vaccines and autism. In 2010 the original British medical journal retracted their original 1998 paper and the UK’s General Medical Council revoked the British gastroenterologist’s medical license.
Although we recommend all children get vaccines as scheduled there are still a few parents that swear that it was in fact vaccines that caused their child’s autism. What do you think? Please share your experiences and thoughts with us.
Tourette’s Syndrome: What It Really Is
Tourette’s syndrome is commonly misunderstood to be a behavioral or emotional condition. It really is a neurological condition.
Tourette’s Syndrome
Tourette’s syndrome is a disorder characterized by tics (involuntary, rapid, sudden movements) and/or vocal outbursts that occur repeatedly. It’s an inherited, neurological disorder that is first noticed in childhood, usually between the ages of 7 and 10. Kids with Tourette’s syndrome often face the embarrassment and struggle for suppression of having their tics/outbursts in public. This is especially difficult in school when other children may tease them over it.
Your Child’s Education
Your child’s education can be a challenge . . . meet it.
Your child’s education can be a gift . . . accept it.
Your child’s education can be an adventure . . . dare it.
Your child’s education can be a sorrow . . . overcome it.
Your child’s education can be a tragedy . . . face it.
Your child’s education can be a duty . . . perform it.
Your child’s education can be a game . . . play it.
Your child’s education can be a mystery . . . unfold it.
Your child’s education can be a song . . . sing it.
Your child’s education can be an opportunity . . . take it.
Your child’s education can be a journey . . . complete it.
Your child’s education can be a promise . . . fulfill it.
Your child’s education can be a beauty . . . praise it.
Your child’s education can be a struggle . . . fight it.
Your child’s education can be a goal . . . achieve it.
Your child’s education can be a puzzle . . . solve it.
Asperger’s Tip
Kids with Asperger’s and language based disabilities can be sensitive and take things the wrong way. You should use simple, direct, and brief language with them. Then clarify so they understand.
Physically Challenged
The physically challenged need the same chances as others. Accommodations must be given and payoff big dividends. This is for N in Brookline, MA.