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COMMUNICATION
I
screamed because it was the only way I could communicate.
When adults spoke directly to me, I could understand everything
they said. When adults talked among themselves, it sounded
like gibberish. I had the words I wanted to say in my mind,
but I just could not get them out; it was like a big stutter.
When my mother wanted me to do something, I often screamed.
If something bothered me, I screamed. This was the only way
I could express my displeasure. If I did not want to wear
a hat, the only way I could communicate my desire not to wear
the hat was to throw it on the floor and scream. Being unable
to talk was utter frustration. I screamed every time my teacher
pointed the pointer towards me. I was afraid because I had
been taught at home never to point a sharp object at a person.
I feared that the pointer would poke out my eye.
I screamed because it was the only way I could communicate.
Being unable to talk was utter frustration.
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The
speech therapist had to put me in a slight stress state so
I could get the words out. She would gently hold me by the
chin and make me look at her and then ask me to make certain
sounds. She knew just how much to intrude. If she pushed too
hard, I would have a tantrum; if she did not push enough,
there was no progress.
A
teaching and therapy program that worked well for me may be
painful and confusing to some nonverbal lower functioning,
regressive/epileptic people with autism. My speech therapist
forced me to look at her. I needed to be jerked out of my
autistic world and kept engaged. Some children with more severe
sensory problems may withdraw further because the intrusion
completely overloads their immature nervous system. They will
often respond best to gentler teaching methods such as whispering
softly to the child in a room free of florescent lights and
visual distractions.
CONCLUSIONS
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Intensive
therapy can help autistic children like Tariq relate to
their parents and others |
Teachers,
therapists and other professionals who work with autistic
people need to recognize and treat sensory processing problems
in autism. Treatment programs that are appropriate and beneficial
for one type of autism may be painful for other types. At
ages two to four, many autistic children will probably respond
well to gently intrusive programs where the child is required
to maintain eye contact with the teacher. As children get
older they tend to separate into two groups - children like
me who can be "jerked" out of the autistic world and asked
to pay attention, and individuals who require a gentler approach.
The prognosis of both types of children will be improved if
they receive a minimum of 20 hours a week of good educational
programming between the ages of two and five. Both types of
young autistic children MUST be prevented from shutting out
the world. They have to be kept engaged so that their brains
can develop more normally. For one type of child the teacher
can "jerk open the front door;" and for the other type, the
teacher must "sneak quietly through the back door."
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