Children are becoming diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorders more commonly now than in the past. This is a trend that is currently affecting 1 in every 110 children, and 1 in every 70 boys. While there are theories of why this may be happening, there is currently no single definitive cause.

If you are seeing some signs that your child may fall into the Autism Spectrum category, I encourage you to do your research as there are many websites, support groups and networks available through the internet and most likely in your area. The sure way to determine if your child’s symptoms and behaviors fit within this category is to have your child seen by a pediatric developmental specialist. This is often times a developmental pediatrician, behavioral pediatrician, pediatric neurologist, psychologist or a neuropsychologist. You will have to see what practitioners or physicians are available in your area.

Early diagnosis for your child is key, whether you feel comfortable with this or not, because you need to know what you are dealing with, in order to find every opportunity to make the most progress with your child. There are stories of children no longer having Autism, because parents have worked so hard to find the right resources to help their children at a young age, so let’s get you on this band wagon!  This is the opportunity you will want to have, if your son or daughter needs it.

The diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Disorder is very hard to swallow, and it may be very difficult for some of you to believe this or want to share this information with others.  Just know that it is completely your choice of who you want to share this information with.  It’s usually best to tell your child’s child care providers and your family, or it may be in your child’s best interest to keep this on the quiet side for the time being.  This is sometimes the case when your child is unfortunately stuck in an unsupportive environment.  This is a personal decision that you will have to consider, and decide if sharing this information will help your child, or hurt your child.  Most times sharing this news is going to be helpful, so you can get services and accommodations for your child, and understanding from others when your child may do things that appear out of the ordinary.

Once you get past this initial stage, you need to get moving!  Your child is going to need a lot of interventions to try to beat this diagnosis!  The most common treatments children seem to receive now are sensory-based occupational therapy which I will talk about mostly, speech and language therapy, behavioral therapy, and nutritional modifications from an alternative health care specialist or a DAN! Doctor.  DAN! is the acronym for Defeat Autism Now.

Now when it comes to the world of therapy and interventions, it doesn’t matter whether your child has a diagnosis of any specific condition or not, it’s just important that your child gets help!  Therapists do not work with your child’s diagnosis per say; they work with their specific symptoms and areas of difficulty, as every child is unique.  I encourage you to do your internet research on the types of interventions I mentioned, to help you decide where you may want to start.  Once you receive an evaluation from a physician or any specialty therapists, they should be able to direct you to the other services that would be helpful and complimentary.

I am going to share some of the benefits of Occupational Therapy services for these children with you, while emphasizing the need to work with a therapist or clinic that specializes in treating sensory processing disorders.  The most common symptoms I expect to see with young children who may be on the border of being diagnosed are:

• Speech delays
• Echolalia (parroting what others say, or repeating themselves)
• Less eye contact
• Decreased sensation awareness

(i.e.- unaware of touch; unaware of safety hazards; wandering off; stepping into a pool or off a ledge without realizing; needing constant pressure from hugs or tight clothes; not being aware of drooling or food in the mouth- causing them to stuff their cheeks or gag; not realizing when their diaper is wet or dirty due to not feeling it or smelling it; constantly seeking movement with swinging, spinning or jumping on furniture; not being able to sit still and tune in to group activities or show the same level of sustained interest; being a risk seeker like wanting to climb on top of play sets or furniture; not being as emotionally connected with family members as one would expect; or constantly seeking visual stimulation through fast moving TV shows, or rolling or flapping objects close to their eyes).  These are only a handful of sensory symptoms that are often reported.

Then you have a group of symptoms related to when children are hypersensitive or hyper-reactive to sensations, such as- screaming, tantrumming, running off or possibly showing aggression toward others with self-care or play times; refusing hair washing, tooth brushing, being tilted back in the bathtub, the feel of a diaper, or certain clothes, or refusing certain foods; having digestive issues with strong gas, constipation or frequent diarrhea; not being able to tolerate loud or busy environments, being taken out in public without tantrumming, running off or melting down; not being tolerant of touch from others, being held, and having excessive difficulty tolerating any changes in their home routine, or anyone messing up their agenda.  Again, this is not an all-inclusive list, I am just trying to give you a general idea of what is commonly seen.

Your child’s symptoms should be looked at from a non-biased eye to help you determine if the frequency and severity of symptoms (like the ones I have mentioned) are a big enough problem to affect the success of your day or your child’s day.  If the intensity of your challenges are affecting normal routines and expectations and someone’s overall stress level (which means you, your child, or your child’s caretakers), then it’s time to get an evaluation from a sensory trained occupational therapist.

The testing completed by an occupational therapist will look at developmental skills and abilities that are expected for your child’s age, as well as your child’s ability to function and perform in his or her everyday environment.  The therapist will focus on family stressors and sensory symptoms that may warrant intervention.  The great part about starting this type of therapy is that sensory symptoms can be highly reduced if not eliminated in most children, and the intervention is done in a play-based way.  Most children enjoy their therapy sessions, as they get the stimulation or calming strategies that their body so badly craves, and then you as the parent will be taught how to continue these activities at home, and how to incorporate them into your daycare or school environments.

Auditory integration training programs are also an integral part of helping your child’s sensory processing difficulties.  These programs can help decrease their hypersensitivity to sound; improve their attention, eye contact, initiation of language, and overall coordination skills, as well as improve their mood stability for those high stress kids and frequent tantrummers!  You can refer back to previous episodes to learn more about these types of programs. They can be just short of working miracles, when you have the right combination of therapies for your child!

I encourage you to find a local occupational therapist that you feel comfortable with, in terms of being able to communicate with them openly, getting your questions answered to your satisfaction, and most importantly seeing progress in your child!  You will also want the therapist you choose to be willing to collaborate with other professionals as needed, so your time and money is not being spent receiving conflicting information from different professionals and then trying to figure out which way to go!

Here are some websites to get you started with some other research, if you haven’t scoured them already! Best of luck to you and your family!

http://www.defeatautismnow.org/

www.centerforautism.com

www.NationalAutismAssociation.org

http://www.autismspeaks.org/

www.autismnetwork.org

http://www.ianproject.org/

http://www.autreat.com/

www.autism-pdd.net

www.Icare4autism.org

http://www.theautspot.com/

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Today I had the pleasure of interviewing Jessica Ralli, the founder and director of “Soft” which is a new online clothing store dedicated to providing clothes for children who have tactile hypersensitivies. She shared with us her background of being a special education teacher in the New York City area, and having students who needed clothing accommodations that just didn’t seem to be available. She conducted three years of research, connecting with 5,000 parents or individuals, and has a super knack for fashion that inspired her to start the “Soft” clothing line. Her business partner Suzy Kogen Friedman has been a life long advocate for people with developmental disabilities, and has a family member who also struggles with clothing issues. This provides her with great first-hand experience of what it’s like to shop for clothes for the pickiest of children. Together these dynamic women launched their clothing line which can be accessed through www.softsensoryworld.com.

They have a great self-explanatory website that I encourage you to check out. They are currently offering “clothing basics”, which include casual/dressy clothing that mix and match well with many outfits, ranging in sizes from 4-12. They use a super silky cotton that never pills, that even the pickiest of children have raved about, along with flat seams, waistbands with elastic encased in cotton, water-based printed labels versus tags (with printing from vegetable dyes to not be irritating or distracting), wide/flat collars to not disturb the sensitive neck line, and designer prints on the clothes that are not rough, crackly or annoying. Upcoming in April 2010 are their seamless socks, soft jeans, shorts and collared shirts, and they are working on some super cool underwear that will be available in 2011! Oh boy, I can’t wait!

Jessica shared with us that she always has some type of offer or sale going on that you can find out about, or you can sign up to receive information on new product releases on her website. They may have anything from free shipping, to 20% off, or free shirt offers!

In addition to offering this great starter line of clothes, Jessica has put together an extensive website to offer support services to teachers and parents on the overall topic of tactile hypersensitivity. You can find these additional resources at www.softclothing.net. There is a section on this website she calls “therapy corner” where she posts the best resources she has found over her years of research. Some of these resources are checklists for teachers and parents to determine if a child may have sensory processing difficulties.

For more information on Jessica’s “Soft” products, I recommend you listen to this podcast as she is fun and informative. If time doesn’t permit, then you should be able to get your all your questions answered between her two websites above, and you should be able to order some clothing basics quickly online from her e-store.

Thank you Jessica for your time and great innovations! I can’t wait to share your information with some of my current clients as well as a good handful of past clients!

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