How is autism actually treated? You hear people saying the diagnosis changed their kids life or it’s important to be diagnosed early, but how?
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Autism encompasses a large spectrum of symptoms and behaviors. Children with autism struggle in school and later in academia and diagnosing early makes a world of difference in their overall academic performance, if the schools are actually equipped to deal with autistic children. In the standard educational system most autistic students struggle to perform and integrate, even if their autism does not prevent them from actually grasping the contents of the classes. The difference can be immense since in the case of early diagnosis and proper adjusted curicculums the student can get good grades, enroll in university and have more career opportunities afforded to them. In the case where it goes undiagnosed, not only will their grades be bad which effectively destroys any hope of higher education but they’re also on the receiving end of very shitty behaviors from their teachers and often parents, who assume the child is simply spoiled, lazy, dumb or useless and the child has to hear a lot of those comments from a very early age. These people think they’re “disciplining” bad behavior and giving the kid a lesson but all they do is destroy the kid’s confidence.
Treatment on the other hand involves working with therapists and professionals who can help an autistic child better adjust to their condition and function with it. Not all cases are the same. Some autistic people have zero communication abilities while others experience difficulties but are not completely unable to communicate. Milder cases may appear as simply shy or awkward people but from their perspective they’re struggling and this causes a lot of anxiety. It’s not universal but for many cases there is room for improvement for an autistic person’s communication skills and anxiety management and this helps them immensely in adulthood and their professional lives.
Of course autism cannot be cured outright, but a supporting environment in an autistic child’s formative years is essential.
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