Autism

Journal entry #2   

      Kyle, my supervisor, informed me about the different disabilities that the residences in the ARC home in Alfred, New York experience. The majority of the residents have the diagnosis of autism. There are three types of autism mild, severe, and profound.  Autism is a developmental disorder that appears in the first 3 years of life and it affects the brain's normal development of social and communication skills. It is a physical condition linked to abnormal biology and chemistry in the brain, but the exact causes of these abnormalities are unknown. Most specialists agree that it caused by a combination of factors. Genetic factors are thought to probably have an impact. Other possible causes that have been suspected, but not proven are diet, digestive tract changes, mercury poisoning, vaccine sensitivity, and/or the body's inability to properly use vitamins and minerals.     

      Most parents of autistic children suspect that something is wrong by the time the child is at least 18 months old. Children with autism typically have difficulties in: pretend play, social interactions, verbal and nonverbal communication. They can be overly or experience low sensitivity in sight, hearing, touch, smell, or taste.  They have unusual distress when routines are changed.  Any disruption can cause repeated body movements, unusual attachments to objects, inability to start or maintain a social conversation, communication using gestures instead of words, and may develop language slowly or not at all. They cannot make friends easily, do not play interactive games, are withdrawn, may avoid direct eye contact or do not respond to eye contact or smiles. They may treat others as if they are objects, prefer to spend time alone, rather than with others, show a lack of empathy, may find normal noises painful and they may hold their hands over their ears.  They may withdraw from physical contact because it is overly stimulating, rubs surfaces, place objects in their mouths or licks objects, and seem to have a heightened or low response to pain. They do not imitate the actions of others, prefers solitary or ritualistic play, show little pretend or imaginative play, act out with intense tantrums, dwell on a single topic repetitively, have a short attention span, have very narrow interests, are overactive or very passive, can how aggression to others or self, indicate a strong need for sameness, and use repetitive body movements.

       The second most common diagnosis is intermittent explosive disorder.  This disorder is demonstrated by repeated episodes of impulsive, aggressive, violent behavior or even angry verbal outbursts. Road rage, domestic abuse, throwing or breaking objects, or other temper tantrums may be indicators of intermittent explosive disorder. When people experience this disorder the eruptions usually last less than 30 minutes and often result in verbal assaults, injuries and the deliberate destruction of property. These episodes may occur in clusters or be separate events. Episodes may include irritability, increased energy, rage, racing thoughts, tingling, tremors, palpitations, chest tightness, and feeling of pressure in the head.  Depression, fatigue or relief may occur after the episode. The cause of the disorder is unknown, but it may develop due to a number of environmental and biological factors. Most people with this disorder grew up in families where explosive behavior, verbal and physical abuse were role modeled and common. Being exposed to this type of violence at an early age makes it more likely that the children will exhibit these same explosive traits as they mature. Other theories are that there may be a genetic component or differences in the way that serotonin in the brain works in people with intermittent explosive disorder.

Staff, Mayo Clinic. "Welcome." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 09 June 2011. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.