Advantages Of High Functioning Autism
Autism was considered a general disorder for many years, but now with recent research, it has been discovered that there are many types of autism, among which is high functioning autism.
High functioning autism is a condition that falls within the autism category, but children who experience this type of condition, only experience mild symptoms of autism. Normally they can interact socially and only have small social impairments. People who experience high functioning autism can often be misdiagnosed with Aspergers syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder.
Children who suffer from high functioning autism will have only some problems when trying to communicate with others, you may also distinguish the disorder by small movements and kids will want a certain routine and feel lost without it.
When your child is diagnosed with autism it may seem as if the world has come to an end, but there are actually some advantages to high functioning autism, and many of the symptoms can be reversed, or minimized allowing your child to live a normal life. If you notice any of the symptoms, it is extremely important that you get help immediately. A pediatric neurologist and a child psychologist can give you the techniques that you can use to train and treat your child’s symptoms.
Research has shown that there are certain therapies that will allow your child to have a normal life. This therapy will teach them how to interact socially, learn communication skills, and control their motor behavior. Some Doctors may prescribe medications to control the child’s anxiety and hyperactivity while he is learning. This is why it is so important to seek help from specialists in the field.
A person is diagnosed with high functioning autism when the symptoms are not severe. These children are just as intelligent as others that are the same age and sometimes even more intelligent. They can use vocabulary to express themselves but their learning comprehension falls behind other children. They are not able to express emotional detail or interpret non verbal instructions or cues.
As a parent you need to be careful because high functioning autism is often confused with Asperger’s Syndrome. A lot of the information out there refers to both high functioning autism and Asperger’s as being the same. Although there are many symptoms that are similar, there is a difference and they need to be treated differently. Even doctors tend to differ in their definitions of the two.
Most physicians have a difficult time in defining high functioning autism. They usually use different methods of testing, and some doctors use IQ tests to determine the level of autism. But IQ tests may not be totally appropriate because there are questions that autistic children have a hard time answering. So other factors are also used like the language that the child uses, and what his behaviour is like. Be sure to find specialists that are very experienced with autistic children, and can therefore do a correct diagnosis.
