How to Treat Autism

Getting Help

Seek professional help. Health care providers rely on behavioral symptoms and/or written questionnaires during routine checkups. There are screening tests that can also be done during these visits. If your doctor does not regularly screen for autism, ask for them to do so.

Understand that every autistic person is different. There is no one-size-fits-all approach for autism. Tailor treatment to the individual's needs. Stop asking "What do autistic people need?” and instead ask “What does this specific person need?” For example, one autistic person may have excellent self-care skills and above-average school performance, but need sensory integration therapy and social skills training. Another might be highly social but unable to care for herself and in need of counseling for depression.

Consider medications. While there is no cure for autism, some of its challenging aspects and comorbid conditions can be helped through medication. Anxiety Elevated energy level Self-injurious behavior Inability to concentrate Depression Seizures Severe outburst of anger or aggression

Consult with your health care provider to ensure your loved one is receiving the proper treatments for their individual needs.

Consider comorbid conditions. Many autistic people also experience comorbid disabilities/health conditions, such as anxiety disorders, epilepsy, digestive issues, depression, ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder, schizophrenia, and more. These are all treatable.

Choosing Therapies

Try the Rapid Prompting Method (RPM) for developing communication skills, especially for nonverbal autistic people. Rapid prompting involves continuously asking questions to the autistic person, and letting them answer using writing, pointing to a letter board, speaking, or whatever works best. It encourages the autistic person to communicate and engage with the world more.

Consider Relationship Development Intervention (RDI) to teach social skills. RDI focuses on developing skills such as theory of mind, independent thinking, consideration of others, and more. It is a long-term therapy.

Consider behavioral therapies such as ABA, with caution. Behavioral therapy can teach rote tasks using extrinsic rewards, and can be useful for concrete skills such as hand-washing, listening to the word "stop," and tying shoes. Unfortunately, there are many stories of goals that involve compliance, forced normalization, and abuse. Choose therapists carefully and make sure the focus is on teaching your loved one skills, not on forcing them to conform.

Try Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help with anxiety and depression, which often accompany autism. CBT is a form of talk therapy that can help identify distorted thoughts, such as "Everybody will laugh at me if I flap my hands" or "I am a burden to my family," and evaluate their accuracy.

Try Sensory Integration Therapy and a sensory diet to help with sensory issues. An occupational therapist can work with you and/or your loved one to provide strategies to meet the autistic person's needs. A sensory diet is a set of activities to do at home, like climbing trees, finger painting, swinging, and blowing bubbles. It can help meet the autistic person's sensory needs and acclimate them to various stimuli. It can also be a lot of fun. The therapist can also help redirect harmful stims (e.g. hitting one's head) towards ones that fulfill the same need without causing harm (e.g. hitting a pillow, applying deep pressure to the head).

Try Augmentative Alternative Communication. AAC is not a therapy so much as a way for autistic people to communicate. This method uses technology and can help people who have trouble verbalizing their needs. The autistic person may use a device like an iPad to pull up pictures and symbols. They then use these images to communicate their wants and needs.

Consider complementary and alternative treatments. There is no scientific evidence that any of them are helpful at all, some involve specific risks, but certain people find them useful. The following is a list of treatments that fit this category and examples of what they may involve: Energy therapy - reiki, acupuncture, Therapeutic Touch Alternative medical systems - aromatherapy, homeopathy Manipulative and body-based method - deep pressure, acupressure, hydro massage Mind-body intervention - auditory integration, meditation, dance therapy Biologically based therapy - using herbs, special diet, and vitamins Always consult a doctor before making a major change to your own or a loved one's diet or lifestyle. Some alternative therapies, such as chelation therapy or MMS, are potentially deadly. If the autistic person is upset by the therapy, or fails to improve, find a new therapy.

Watch for fake therapies and false claims. From common snake oil peddlers to certified BCBAs, there are people who will distort truths and support ideas that can harm you or your loved one. Trust your instincts, don't let fearmongering make you panic, and don't continue a therapy if you think it is upsetting you or your loved one too much. Therapy should not be extremely painful or distressing. A therapist should take the patient's unhappiness seriously. 40 hours per week of therapy is as intense as a full-time job. This can be overwhelming. Small children do not have adult attention spans. Your child will be fine with 1-2 hours per day or less, and there's no rush. Transparency is a reasonable request. Therapists should not prevent you from witnessing a situation, or dodge your questions. People who claim to cure autism are not being honest. Autism is probably genetic, not caused by vaccines or parasites. Your instincts matter. If a therapist is telling you to ignore your gut feeling, that you're being irrational, or that you would intervene if you saw what they were doing to your loved one, this is a problem.

Creating a Positive Environment

Treat your loved one with kindness and respect. Autistic people can undergo tremendous amounts of pressure to perform "normally," and the best way to help them is to respect them. Make it clear that you will listen to them. If they feel supported at home, they will communicate and adapt better, and feel happy.

Talk to your loved one often to encourage communication. Children learn to understand speech by hearing others speak, and talking to an uncommunicative person will encourage them to open up (even if the conversations are fairly one-sided for now). If you know what their special interests are, start conversations about them. Read their body language as you talk to them. For example, if you ask your daughter "Did you play with your friends today?" and she squeals happily and waves her arms, this is her answer. This communication is a stepping stone and should be encouraged.

Presume competence. Act with the assumption that your loved one can hear and understand you, even if it doesn't look like it. Treat them like they are fundamentally good and intelligent. Positive expectations can help them bloom. If your loved one is in the room, assume they can hear what you're saying. If you talk about how hard it is to live with an autistic child, they'll worry that they make your life worse by existing. Save your adult fears for when the children are out of the room.

Be transparent about what's going on. Let them know that they're autistic. This can help them have words for their experiences, and dispel any confusion that they're "broken" or "bad." Let them know that they're just different, that this is okay, and you love them for who they are.