The Autism Diagnosis

You notice that your child is lagging behind in terms of speech. Come to think of it, she also has delayed motor skills. His teachers in school find it difficult to make him sit down and focus in class, as he is also prone to hand-flapping, humming, teeth grinding, and the occasional tantrums that seem to occur when the janitor passes by the corridors with his vacuum cleaner on. You notice that your child prefers to play alone, and that when he does, he turns over that monster truck toy you bought him and stares intently at the wheels as he makes them spin continuously with his fingers. She is small and thin for his age as she would only eat soft food items like eggs and pancit canton. He refuses to have his teeth brushed most of the time and this is ruining his pearly whites. You’ve heard, seen, or read about these symptoms before but you’ll have to find out for sure, so you seek medical help. After falling in line to get an appointment and then falling in line and waiting again to have your child seen by a developmental pediatrician, you were finally given an answer. “Autism spectrum disorder” as the DevPed wrote on her prescription pad, along with a referral for occupational and speech therapy. The doctor may also have written a recommendation for a school set up and a few behavior management strategies but you were too devastated to process it all. Too numb and hurt at the same time from all the shards that was your dreams and aspirations for your child as they come crashing down your feet after the diagnosis, like a baseball bat, shattered them into painful nothingness.

Except it doesn’t have to be like that.

So your child has been diagnosed with autism. The big A, as some people call it. It is big news, one that isn’t taken well by many. Some seek second opinion. Some undergo (or get stuck in one of) the stages of grief. Some, no matter how they feel about it, follow the doctor’s orders anyway and start looking for a speech therapist and an occupational therapist. If you are among the last example, consider your child lucky. Acting on the doctor’s (or teacher’s, or any qualified professional who noticed the problem) recommendations gives your child a head-start towards a more independent and meaningful life. Diagnosis or not, and as with most of life’s obstacles, actually doing something rather than moping is always better. We can tell you how we therapists see and treat a diagnosis given to our clients but before that, let us tell you where you, after finding out your child has autism, should focus instead:

1. Your child’s skills

Your child may have been diagnosed with autism but just where does he or she stand in the spectrum? How well can he or she communicate? Is he or she independent in terms of activities that are expected of him or her? How well does he or she do in terms of his or her developmental milestones?

2. Your child’s lifestyle as well as yours as a family

What kinds of activities does your child enjoy? What activities does he or she avoid? Do these avoided activities hinder his or her functioning and ability to communicate? Is he or she picky with food? Are there specific situations when a tantrum is almost sure to happen? How do all these affect the family’s lifestyle and vice versa? Are there certain things that happen or are done in the household that help or hinder the child’s performance? What lifestyle changes should be done to maximize the child’s abilities?

3. Discipline, activities and interactions with people across different contexts

How do you discipline the child? How does it differ from the way you discipline his or her siblings? How do these siblings interact with him or her? How do his or her classmates and teachers at school interact with him or her? How does the community in which he or she lives interact with him or her?

4. Your child’s strengths, preferences, and interests

You’ve noticed that your child actually has good visual skills. How can we make the most of this to teach him or her? To help him or her become independent? To get him or her to communicate more? So he or she also focuses a little too much on numbers, time and dates, but is this really so bad? How can we make it so that these interests benefit him or her?

5. Your usual child rearing, but more consistent

Going back to how your child is disciplined as compared to his or her other siblings, how different is raising this particular child from the others? Aside from the different skills, lifestyle demands and interests, how different or similar are the general principles of raising this child as compared to the others?

We all need to work hand in hand. 🙂

At the end of the day, we as therapists respect diagnoses given by doctors. They help and guide us with planning and making considerations in our therapeutic management. They provide us with a picture of the child so we will at least have an idea on what to do even before we meet them. But as much as diagnoses are acknowledged, they should not be dwelt on, especially if doing so leads to inaction. And in the case of child development, every action that we take or not has implications to our child’s future and well-being.

“The great aim of education is not knowledge but action.“

–Herbert Spencer