How autism behaviors affect communication skills

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How autism behaviors affect communication skills

Communication difficulties in autistic children can be so severe that it is

almost impossible for them to interact with their peers, or they can be milder

and less noticeable whilst still creating obstacles to acceptance within a

child’s friendship group. Early diagnosis is important in order to assess the

degree of help a child may need, due to the huge variety of difficulties.

Social interaction impairment in autistic children is more prevalent than in

unaffected sections of the population, but the scope of the autism spectrum as

it is now called is so comprehensive that is difficult to identify whether your

child is severely or mildly affected at a young age. Often, only time will tell,

but there are pointers to watch out for - even from babyhood.

For example, a potentially autistic baby may well be overly self-absorbed,

rarely making eye contact, almost as if they are in their own little world.

Indeed, the very word ‘autism’ itself comes from the Greek language where it

means ‘self’ from the term ‘autos.’ of course, this may be the opposite of what

we as parents and adults expect from our newly arrived bundle of joy. Most

babies and toddlers are into everything, curious about new people and new things

and over-enthusiastic to display, share and demonstrate their interest! After

all, it is all part of the high-speed manner in which young humans learn. Yet

potentially autistic babies and toddlers seem to progress down a different

route, and often new signs and pointers will highlight possible difficulties as

the baby grows into toddlerhood.

The toddler may appear unresponsive and hard to motivate or engage. An autistic

pre-schooler may avoid making eye contact, or modify it so that is appears

different or strange. This avoidance might include unusual forms of expression

or body language. Toddlers on the autism spectrum might display varying degrees

of antipathy to new experiences and may have difficulty expressing or sharing

fun without prompting.

At pre-school, these children may start to stand out more, as they seem like

loners who are unwilling to make friendships with other kids. In more severe

cases, early language skills may be lost, and speech could become laboured with

much repetition or strange words. They might find it difficult to break the ice

or to start to converse with others.

Interestingly, as autistic children withdraw more and more into themselves, they

may devote the extra time to solitary pursuits at which many become expert.

Examples include music, art or computer skills. However, there is a danger that

these hobbies may become obsessively narrow and exclusive. Yet other more

traditional childhood pursuits such as dress-up and imaginative play can be

alien to these children. Unable to put themselves in another person’s shoes or

even see themselves objectively, they just don’t get it and the concept of

dramatic play is sometimes lost on them. However, mechanics and engineering can

be of superficial interest as the children sometimes become transfixed by

mechanisms and gadgets.

Sometimes familiarity is more reassuring than change or variety for autistic

children, and for the worst affected, daily routines can become obsessive. They

can become slaves to routine, often becoming highly distressed if schedules or

procedures are not adhered to, to the letter.

Many autistic children can be helped by therapies, such as Art, Dance, Pet or

Music Therapy. It is important however to get a full appraisal carried out

first, as there are infinite variations on a theme with Autism Spectrum

Disorders.