Autism Spectrum Disorders in Children

There are a number of disorders that children are afflicted with all around the world, but one of the hardest disorders to deal with is autism. There are a few different degrees of autism and asperger's syndrome is a disorder that affects more that 400,000 families in the United States. For parents, raising a child with an autism disorder is difficult especially since asperger's syndrome is very difficult to diagnose due to symptoms being different depending on the person.

When most people hear of a child who has autism, they think of a child that is unable to function without some form of assistance, but asperger's syndrome is know as a “high functioning” form of autism. With asperger's syndrome, a child will exhibit behaviors and symptoms similar to Attention Deficit Disorder as well as other disorders, which can lead to doctors diagnosing a child with the wrong disorder.

Most children who have an autism spectrum disorders do not show symptoms until they are older, but many people are not diagnosed at all. Due to the fact that there are a number of milder forms of asperger's syndrome, there are many more cases of the disorder appearing which makes it look like there are more people with the disorder.

Signs of Asperger's Syndrome In Children

• Social Interactions – Children with asperger's syndrome will likely have inappropriate behavior in social interactions or choose to have very few social interactions.

• Conversations – When a child who has this disorder has a conversation, they are going to only be comfortable talking about a subject that interests them. Also, the conversation is going to be one-sided and not about anyone else.

• Many children who have this disorder lack the common sense that other children have.

• They have fairly odd behaviors and mannerisms that many people may or may not notice depending on the severity.

One of the biggest differences between children with autism and children with asperger's syndrome is that children who have a form of asperger's is that they have good grammar skills and a great vocabulary early in their life. Depending on the severity of the disorder, the child is likely to have a problems with their language.

Diagnosing a Child With Asperger's Syndrome

Asperger's syndrome is one of the hardest disorders to diagnose, especially in children, because most people with the disorder are able to function relatively normal with the exception of just a few aspects of their lives. Most people who know or have a child with asperger's would normally attribute their behavior as “different” if they did not know about the disorder.

Treatment Options

• Teaching the Parent – One of the best ways to care for a child that has a disorder is for the parent to learn everything that can about that disorder. With aspergers, it is important that you are able to recognize the specific signs in your children to help them better cope with the disorder.

• Social Training – There are a number of groups that are available so your child can receive specialized skills training in social situations. This form of training is mostly required in the most serious cases because many children are fairly capable of social interaction, but they are just awkward interactions.

• Training for Sensory Problems – This type of treatment is useful for younger children who have a problem with certain stimuli. The training will help them become desensitized to those certain things.

During these training sessions, it is important for the parent to be involved because they will be the ones to take care of the child and continue teaching them at home. Family members should also be included because they need to know how to interact with the child. Most children who have this disorder are able to interact with family members easier but at an early age, they will still have some problems.

Looking Into The Future

As of now, there are not very many places that specialize in helping parents and children with dealing with asperger's syndrome, but there are some locations that may be able to help families cope with the disorder. One of the most important things for the future is that schools are not a very friendly place for children with aspergers, so it is important for them to have encouragement from family and friends because most children are capable of doing just fine academically.