Read more “Autistic children ‘hearing voices’”A client with a child with autism reports that her son says that when he kicks and hits it is the voices in his brain telling him to do so. Is the hearing voices connected to autism?
Can a child with autism manage using more than one language?
At OTARC, we are very interested in exactly this question: Can Autistic children learn more than one language? If so, what can we reasonably expect for how well they will develop each language? If not, what is the best advice we can give to families where English is not the home language, or to families who use both English and another language (e.g., mum prefers to speak one language and dad prefers another)? And what is the impact on bilingual parents of attempting to use their non-native language when interacting with their Autistic child?
Read more “Bilingual children”
I have a 6-year-old daughter who has been diagnosed with ASD. I have received many recommendations from other parents regarding the use of melatonin to aid my daughter’s sleep. She is a typical ASD kid, who can be in bed by 8pm after the shower, reading, drink routine, but still active 3 hours later. Any advice you have would be appreciated.
Problems settling to sleep are very common in Autistic children. Each case is individual and needs individual assessment. Some recent research suggests that trouble getting to sleep may be related to anxiety or that children may have trouble stopping thoughts racing round their minds. That is, some Autistic children might be very anxious or simply highly aroused at bedtime.
Read more “Ask a Researcher – Should I use Melatonin to aid my daughter’s sleep?”
Read more “Fever & behaviour changes”My daughter has just turned 8 and is severely affected by classic autism. She is non-verbal. Recently she had a fever and her behaviour changed dramatically. She wanted to be held, maintained eye contact for lengthy periods and most incredibly – spoke words very clearly! She said her brother’s name and repeatedly said “Mum”. I have to repeat how incredible this is as she is completely non-verbal. Please somebody research this phenomenon!
What can be done to help a school refuser?
The situation that you describe sounds very difficult, and we wish we were in a position to provide specific practical advice. Our team at OTARC includes psychologists, speech pathologists, and parents who are familiar with the type of difficulties your son is experiencing. The problem, however, is that in our experience and as I am sure you would agree, there is rarely a simple fix in these situations. To be in a position to offer specific advice in your situation, we would need to learn a lot more about all of the factors that might be at play and also have capacity to help implement any suggestions or recommendations we might make. Our primary role here at the Centre is to conduct research aimed at improving the supports provided to Autistic children, adolescents, and adults, and our clinical work currently focuses on early diagnosis and supports in the early years.
Read more “School refusal”