You may have noticed a recent influx in the number of commercials about autism and autism statistics. Probably something about the odds of someone winning the Superbowl or winning the lottery and then ending with the odds of that same person having a child with autism. Autism statistics in 2012 show that as many as 1 in 110 in the United States is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), according to the CDC. These numbers are way up from just a few years ago when it was thought that about 1 in 500 had some form of autism. The question used to be: What is Autism? With all the media attention people are beginning to understand more about what autism is, but because it is a spectrum disorder and autism symptoms and the affect of the disorder vary greatly from one individual to another, understanding autism in teenagers, for example, can be difficult.
A common behavior one will often see in teen autism has to do with social ability and behavior. For many teens with autism, if it was diagnosed early on, they have had years of learn to recognize social cues and learn appropriate ways to display their own emotion, but this is not something that comes natural to them. Some mistakenly think that autistic teens don't feel emotion or understand emotion. This is not true, they simply display and understand emotion in a different way than someone that does not have autism. Because a teenager with autism behaves differently than other teens, bullying often becomes a problem for these teens. Sometimes this bullying becomes so severe that parents are forced to homeschool their autistic teen.
It is sometimes believe that autism is a type of mental retardation and that teens with autism all have learning disabilities, this is also not true. While autism in teenagers can include learning disabilities, most teens with autism are actually very intelligent. Because those with autism often have trouble communicating in the same way as others, people mistakenly think they are not intelligent. Don't underestimate the intelligence of a teen with autism, help find ways that will help the teen grow and progress in his/her studies by accommodating autism in teenagers with a proper learning environment. Autism statistics show that about 40% of those with ASD do not talk at all and between 30-50% has an intellectual disability.
When considering autism in teenagers, keep in mind that autism is very different in every individual. What helps with one autistic teen may be detrimental when working with another teen with autism. Usually the family can help the most in understanding how autism affects each individual. Whatever you do, be sensitive, and considerate. Do not allow bullying or other inappropriate behavior or treatment toward teens with autism. Whether you are a parent, teacher, or friend trying to understand autism in teenagers, some research can really help a lot in understanding some of the basics. There are also many blog resources, forums, and other websites that will allow you to connect with other parents and teachers who are closely associated with teens that have autism. Connecting with others can help give you support and a sense of community so that you don't feel like this is a battle that you are fighting all alone. Getting ideas from others can also help you find ways to deal with particular behaviors of situations that arise as a result of autism in teenagers.
Sources: cdc.gov
Friday, January 27, 2012
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
