Diversity in all its forms and manifestations is widely accepted and celebrated across the globe but still there is a profound need to acknowledge and comprehend the spectrum of human experience. In the midst of this diverse tapestry one intricate neurological ailment that affects millions of people globally is autism spectrum disorder. World ASD is celebrated on 2nd April to raise awareness, promoting inclusivity and also dispelling misconception and embracing neurodiversity. Neurodiversity is based on the notion that autism is a distinction that should be accepted for what it is rather than seen as illness that need to treat and embraces it as a different way of thinking, processing, and behaving with respect to the normal population and is not a neurocircuitry fault.Autistic geniuses like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin to celebrities and fictional characters (Sheldon of Big Bang Theory) who accomplished amazing things in this world by nurturing this diversity rather than considering it a sickness. ASD involves two domains; socializing with others(communication and interactions) and repetitive behaviors. The former begins with the unresponsiveness to their names or at times behave as if they don’t hear, poor eye contact, delayed speech or abnormal speech tone, lack of facial expressions and doesn’t seem to understand others expressions too, prefer to remain alone, doesn’t show interest in activities, utters words or phrases repeatedly without understanding how to utilize them, fails to communicate with others and if do so, acts passive-aggressive or disruptive. The later domain of signs and symptoms include; repetition of movements like spinning, rocking and flapping, develops specific habits and feels upset or agitated even with a smallest change, engages in behaviors that have potential to inflict self-harm, like biting, hitting one’s own head, uncoordinated body movements, gets stuck on only one object or a thing which fascinates them without understanding the purpose of object, may have an IQ both below average or above average, possess extraordinary sensitivity to sound, light but may be insensitive to pain, heat or temperature. In order to see autism not as a disorder but just a different way of thinking, socializing and behavior it’s important to know the self-perception of autistic children and their understanding of others’ opinions regarding them. Let’s dive into the inner thoughts of an autistic child. At some stage of life, autistic children understands that they are different than normal children around them, and this realization is often negative and may lead them towards anxiety, loneliness, low self-esteem, frustration, experience intense emotional responses, perceiving themselves as a neurodivergent in context with societal norms and expectations which eventually make them struggle in accepting themselves as unique or different personalities. Many autistic children experience demeaning, humiliating and rejection from their peers or even get bullied, this increases the chance of false perceptions of being disable or flawed in such children. Even though they often have a high IQ level, they find it difficult to comprehend and articulate who they are to others and to themselves. The phrase “I don’t know” is how autistic mind works.
“Autistic child has a right to live happy, normal and productive life and it’s the responsibility of everyone healthcare professionals, parents, teachers to encourage and motivate them, treat them equally like their other peers, to make them feel proud of their uniqueness rather than considering them flawed or divergent. Autistic geniuses like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin to celebrities and fictional characters (Sheldon of Big Bang Theory) who accomplished amazing things in this world by nurturing this diversity rather than considering it illness.”
People with autism may live a happy and productive life by accepting their uniqueness rather than considering themselves as neuro divergent. Family, friends, teachers play an important role during their developmental stages, and they should make them realize that they don’t have any disorder and make them feel proud of their uniqueness. Although ASD is not preventable but early identification and intervention may improve behavior, speech and language development, communication skills. Early detection of autism can be facilitated by increasing awareness about the initial signs and symptoms in educational institutions, medical settings, communities. Once identified, interventions should be initiated by various health professionals which include speech therapy, applied behavior analysis, occupational therapy, developmental psychologists. A sustained collaboration between healthcare professionals and educators can help in breaking the stigmas and stereotype associated with autism by promoting education about autism among society by doing awareness programs. Autistic child has a right to live happy, normal and productive life and it’s the responsibility of everyone healthcare professionals, parents, teachers to encourage and motivate them, treat them equally like their other peers, to make them feel proud of their uniqueness rather than considering them flawed or divergent. Autistic geniuses like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin to celebrities and fictional characters (Sheldon of Big Bang Theory) who accomplished amazing things in this world by nurturing this diversity rather than considering it illness.
(The author is a Speech and Language Pathologist at Government Medical College Anantnag J&K. The views, opinions and conclusions expressed in this article are those of the author and aren’t necessarily in accord with the views of “Kashmir Horizon”.)
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