Stephen Shore

As you're learning more about autism, this Cheat Sheet can serve as a handy reference to the related acronyms and helpful websites. It also provides tips on how to communicate with a person who has autism, make sure they get the most from their education, and ensure they are properly prepared for emergencies.Questions to ask about autism interventionsMany “entrepreneurs” are only too happy to accept your money for their “miracle cures” or interventions for your loved one with autism.

Because doctors can’t definitively, precisely diagnose autism, they encounter several other conditions and symptoms that tend to enter the diagnostic mix. This mixture makes awareness of conditions with related or similar symptoms important. Read on to see a rundown of conditions and symptoms and appear to be like autism.

Professionals diagnose autism based upon symptoms shown in the categories of social interaction, communication, and behavior. Early diagnosis and intervention, with characteristics present before the age of 3, are very important, because research shows that many features of autism respond better when you deal with them early.

You can help most autistic children think conceptually by guiding them to put details together to form ideas — preferably with visual symbols. You can demonstrate abstract concepts like “more” or “less” with objects instead of explaining them in words.To teach an autistic child fractions, for example, you can use a piece of paper or a piece of fruit that you can cut up to show quarters, thirds, and halves.

Researchers are able to identify symptoms of autism at younger ages than ever before, as young as 18 months. This development leads toward more emphasis on early treatment, simply because that time frame is where children can usually make the greatest gains. Pediatricians are now looking for potential markers, such as a larger head during exams, and they are encouraging parents to look for other early symptoms, such as unusual eye contact and inability to follow a point.

Regrettably, bullying in school, on the playground, and beyond is a fact of life for people with differences. Most people on the autism spectrum report bullying experiences in school. Some research indicates that 94 percent of children with Asperger Syndrome are bullied in school. Bullying is characterized by four key components: A power imbalance.

One of the hardest things to understand about an autism spectrum disorder is the great importance many people with autism place on structure and routine. Your autistic child may shriek if she can’t watch her favorite video all the way through each time, even though she’s seen it countless times. Or he may have to put on his shoes immediately after he puts on his socks, and if his parents can’t locate the shoes he likes best immediately, he asks for them repeatedly, sounding like a broken record, until he gets them.

Language and communication deficits are usually the most serious and stressful aspects of autism. Communicating successfully is a major challenge many people with autism face. Their ability to communicate dramatically affects how well they interact socially in a non-autistic world. Many people with autism lack the skill to even request a glass of water or to ask that the volume of a television set be turned down.

Some people classify autism spectrum disorders into subtypes by their presumed causes, but because science hasn't yet resolved the causes, this practice is controversial and not widely accepted. But you can look at autism as a spectrum ranging from severe to light. People with severe autism might be greatly disabled, whereas those with high-functioning autism (HFA) and Asperger Syndrome may be affected so slightly that their autism doesn't play a major role in their lives.