Autism, depression and alcohol/drug problems

Autism, depression and alcohol/drug problems

Autism

Autism has existed in the province since a long time and has been the main cause of medical problems to families in the province. There are more than one million children and adults living with Autism in the States right now. Autism (ASD) is a “complex and pervasive development disorder” which has lifelong development and causes disabilities in the affected person. It affects the way a person communicates and relates to other people around him or her. USA is not safe from this disorder either. Sadly, the people of the country have little awareness about this disorder. Autism is one of a group of neurobiological disorders identified as pervasive developmental disorders by the American Psychiatric Association. Autism is defined as a condition that includes impairments in social interaction and communication with repetitive, stereotypical, or restricted patterns of behavior that interfere with interactions and learning (Rogers, 2000). Identification of this disorder usually occurs before age 3, often as a result of the child not developing language or losing communication skills previously evident. For children identified later in life, symptoms are found to have been evident before age 3, even if a diagnosis was not made during the early years. Autism not only affects the child but also the family and the people around the child. Family members have a difficult time coping with the affects of Autism, which are (prominently) depression and lack of confidence. This leads to depression in the entire family as it has already been identified that depression is more like a disease that can easily spread from one person to the other. It is a mental problem that not only affects the person but also his or her surroundings. Parents with children suffering from Autism have difficulty making their children cope with the class work, homework and assignments. Such children are not readily accepted by the other children and the parents also have to face embarrassing moments during social occasions. Hence, it does not affect the child but also the family and immediate connections.

According to a recent article published by Autism Associates the USA (2012), there is a strong need of speech pathologists in the country because they can help Autism patients recover and deal with the disorder. Autism is a growing concern in the US and other parts of the world and this is a bad scenario because there are an estimated 190000 children in each state who need therapy against Autism. There are hardly a few universities and institutes in the region offering specialized education regarding Autism or any form of awareness creation at a mass level. Guided by the DSM-IV and ICD-10 diagnostic criteria, investigators have used various techniques and study designs to determine early indicators of ASD. These include retrospective video observations and longitudinal designs that follow infants with higher genetic risk for developing autism (younger siblings of children with ASD). Symptoms associated with ASD can be divided into two categories: negative symptoms (the absence ...