Autism is a neurodevelopment disorder affecting communication, behaviours, and social interactions, primarily males, and due to each individuals being unique, they have different needs.  Autism does not discriminate in terms of cultures, ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic status.  According to a 2019 Canadian Health Survey of Children and Youth, it found that “1 in 50 Canadian children and youth aged 1 to 17 years were diagnosed with ASD”.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the DSM-5 is used to diagnose an individual with Autism Spectrum Disorder.  A diagnosis takes into account behaviour, communication and developmental challenges or delays with severity based on the degree of impairment in social communication patterns of behaviour that are repetitive and restricted.

1. Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, as manifested by the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive):
2. Deficits in social-emotional reciprocity, ranging, for example, from abnormal social approach and failure of normal back- and-forth conversation; to reduced sharing of interests, emotions, or affect; to failure to initiate or respond to social interactions.
3. Deficits in nonverbal communicative behaviours used for social interaction, ranging, for example, from poorly integrated verbal and nonverbal communication; to abnormalities in eye contact and body language or deficits in understanding and use of gestures; to a total lack of facial expressions and nonverbal communication.
4. Deficits in developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships, ranging, for example, from difficulties adjusting behaviour to suit various social contexts; to difficulties in sharing imaginative play or in making friends; to absence of interest in peers.
5. Restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests, or activities, as manifested by at least two of the following, currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive):
6. Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, use of objects, or speech (e.g., simple motor stereotypies, lining up toys or flipping objects, echolalia, idiosyncratic phrases).
7. Insistence on sameness, inflexible adherence to routines, or ritualized patterns or verbal nonverbal behaviour (e.g., extreme distress at small changes, difficulties with transitions, rigid thinking patterns, greeting rituals, need to take same route or eat food every day).
8. Highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g, strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative interest).
9. Hyper- or hyporeactivity to sensory input or unusual interests in sensory aspects of the environment (e.g., apparent indifference to pain/temperature, adverse response to specific sounds or textures, excessive smelling or touching of objects, visual fascination with lights or movement).
10. Symptoms must be present in the early developmental period (but may not become fully manifest until social demands exceed limited capacities, or may be masked by learned strategies in later life).
11. Symptoms cause clinically significant impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of current functioning.
12. These disturbances are not better explained by intellectual disability (intellectual developmental disorder) or global developmental delay. Intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder frequently co-occur; to make comorbid diagnoses of autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability, social communication should be below that expected for general developmental level.

Autistic people have an increased risk of having mental health issues which may not be given the appropriate attention.  It is important to note that approximately 70% of people with autism have a co-occurring mental health illness such as ADHD, anxiety, depression.  Psychotherapy treatments for autism can include, but are not limited to, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for challenging unhelpful thoughts, deal with emotions such as anxiety, as well as behavioural changes; Sensory Strategies for calmness and self-regulation; Mindfulness for awareness of feelings, sensations, thoughts and being in the present/here and now, and Art Therapy to help reduce stress, develop coping skills, and improve self-esteem.

Autistic children need a lot of support, and their parents are usually their primary caregiver.  Caring for a child with autism can be overwhelming, physically tiring, stressful, and sometimes lead to burnout.  Therefore, it is important for parents to take care of themselves (i.e., healthy diet, physical exercise, a good night sleep, self-compassion, develop strategies for coping with stress, utilize support network).

References

1. American Psychiatric Association (2013). Desk reference to the diagnostic criteria from DSM-5.  American Psychiatric Publishing.
2. Autism Canada. https://www.autismcanada.org/
3. Autism Ontario. https://www.autismontario.com/
4. Government of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/diseases-conditions/autism-spectrum-disorder-canadian-health-survey-children-youth-2019.html