The importance of understanding autism

Children with autism, which is also known as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), may face several daily challenges, which are often misunderstood.

As a developmental disorder, autism is often diagnosed in early life and is often recognised by a delay in social and communication skills.

But children with autism may experience other difficulties in everyday life that can be misinterpreted.

To provide children with the support that they need, you must understand how they experience the world, and the coping mechanisms they use.

What difficulties could be faced?

According to the National Autistic Society, individuals with autism may experience the following:

• Communication and social interaction challenges
• Anxiety
• Highly focused interests
• Repetitive and restrictive behaviour
• Hypersensitivity or under-sensitivity to light, sound, taste or touch

How can you provide the best support?

Each individual with autism will experience different challenges, so you must first get an understanding of the specific issues that they face.

For instance, a child may feel heightened anxiety in very specific scenarios, which then results in them displaying repetitive behaviour as a means to cope with this.

By being able to recognise the behaviour and have some insight into why this is occurring, you can work on putting healthy coping mechanisms in place.

At Almond Care Children’s Services, we identify the therapeutic needs of each child to ensure that they get the support that they need.

If your child is displaying some of the symptoms of autism, make sure to consult your GP and request the support you need.

Do you or a loved one need support? Get in touch.