autism spectrum disorders (ASD)? What is it exactly?

Could someone put it in ’slow-man’s-terms?’

Autism affects each person on an individual basis, so the symptoms are unique to each individual, they can be in any combination and range anywhere from mild to severe. You can have 2 people with the exact same characteristics and they will act completely different from each other. There are different forms of autism…. autistic disorder (aka classic autism-severist form), asperger’s disorder (some refer to it as high functioning autism), PDD-NOS (pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified, aka atypical autism-mildest form), rett’s disorder, and childhood disintegrative disorder (CDD). All of these disorders fall under the category of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), a category of neurological disorders characterized by “severe and pervasive impairment in several areas of development.” Each has it’s own criteria for a diagnosis and each form can also range anywhere from mild to severe.

Many with autism excel in math, music, art, and have excellent memorization skills. In many cases they can pick up on skills very easily, either on their own or with very little help. Those with asperger’s usually have higher than normal intelligence. Those with autism usually are very honest and straight to the point. Many can live very normal lives on their own, some may need a little assisstance and some will need help for the rest of their lives. Most are verbal but some will never speak. It really depends on each person. My son has autistic disorder and even though he has difficulty with expressive and recepetive language, sensory issues, feeding issues, oral & fine motor skills, my son has a superior memory and is very, very smart, I think it would really surprise you with what he does know for only being 5, and I consider it to be a gift and I find that I don’t think it would of been possible for him to have such a gift without his autism, a gift that I would never want to take away from him.

Here’s some basic/general things how autism may affect someone, which may give you a better understanding, but it depends on the individual and which form they have and if they have any other conditions that co-exist with it.

-Many have receptive and expressive language disorder so it is best to speak directly to them in plain words.
-They interpret language very literally, e.g. If you said ‘that’ll be a piece of cake’ in meaning it will be easy, they would look for an actual piece of cake. Idioms, puns, nuances, double entendres, inference, metaphors, allusions and sarcasm can and will confuse them.
-Many have limited vocabulary, sometimes they don’t know what words to use to let someone know they need something or the words in order to describe something which can lead to body language, withdrawal, agitation or other signs that something is wrong.
-Many have echolalia, which is saying words or phrases that come from books, people, tv, etc. over and over again..they may say it but they don’t necessarily understand what they are saying.
-Many are very visually oriented, sometimes it is best to show them as well as telling them, and to show them several times, they learn best by consistant repetition. Like for a child a visual schedule helps them through the transistions of their day.
-They have trouble with social interactions, most don’t know how to “read” facial expressions, body language or the emotions of others. Many can’t express their own emotions.
-Sometimes they don’t know how to start a conversation or enter a play situation.
-Many have sensory issues where any of their senses can be over or under sensitive.. everyday lights, sounds, odors, tastes, and textures can be very uncomfortable to them and give them a sensory overload; e.g. certain lights can hurt their eyes, everyday noises can hurt their ears, sweet odors to us can smell awful to them, sweet tasting stuff to us can taste awful to them, something soft to touch can be painful to them to touch; with all of these they can also experience the opposite such as a extremly loud noise they may not even notice, something that has a strong odor they may not be able to smell at all, a very bright light in which we would squint for may seem of a normal or a lesser brightness to them, etc. Many have self-injurous behavior where they inflict pain upon themselves but don’t realize it because they cannot feel the pain as we do.
-All their behavior is usually some form of communication.
-Some must be comfortable around you before they will socialize with you or have contact with you, in a sense, it’s like they have to learn to trust you first.

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