Having autism is just a wrinkle in the makeup of human nature, and no one in this world is completely smooth.
- "Different Tones: The Story of Autism"
In life, I have never seen autistic children around me, nor have I paid special attention to them, so my understanding of them is limited to books. When brushing headlines, occasionally brushing up on the self-help of families with autistic children and their rescue. It can be said that the name of "Child of the Stars" is very beautiful, like the little stars that twinkle in the sky, but in reality, the family of the Star Child is a chicken feather, and you can never really know how difficult such a family is, how many days and nights are soaked in bitter water and tears. Parents are full of affectionate dedication, without complaint or regret, but they have not exchanged for a child's ability to "treat each other in the right eyes" and say a complete sentence.
In fact, Donald had little interest in anyone other than himself, even his parents. Of all his eccentricities, the most difficult thing for them to accept was that he never rushed over to meet his father who came home from work, and he never shed a tear for his mother..."
"Even if the surrounding environment has only changed very slightly, he can't tolerate it." Furniture cannot be moved; when walking outdoors, every step must be stepped on where it has been stepped before; toys must be put back in the same place as they are. Any deviation would cause him to lash out..." This kid, named Donald, was the first child in the world to be diagnosed with autism.
From an early age he was not as attached to his parents as any other child, and he was indifferent to everything around him, except his own world. No one could attract his attention to anything, and he didn't care at all. But if someone interrupts what he's doing, he gets very rude.
He is also extremely rigid, and any deviation will cause him to be furious. He has no sense of safety and often puts himself in danger without knowing it. He does not respond to his parents' love for him, nor does he make any intimate gestures, and this kind of not being loved and not being dependent has once plunged his parents into pain and disappointment.
This is the story of Donald told in Different Tones: The Story of Autism. The book is written by two American journalists, John Downeyn and Karen Zucker. They have been collaborating since 2000 to spread knowledge about autism. The ABC (ABC) pioneered the series "Echoes of Autism", which is the first permanent column in the online news media to cover the daily lives of autistic people and their families. Because each of them has relatives with autism, in the process of accompanying autistic relatives, they hope to inspire society to accept and support autistic people by telling the story of autistic people.
01 What is autism? Just recognizing this disease has used the power of the flood
Autism, also known as autism, is a widespread, severe developmental disorder from a professional point of view. Children with autism are characterized by social interaction and social communication disorders, as well as narrow interests and stereotyped repetitive patterns of behavior.
Now we want to understand what autism is, as long as we move our fingers, we can find a relatively accurate conceptual explanation on the Internet, but from the discovery of autism to now, it has only been a hundred years, but it has experienced "a journey against ignorance and uncertainty." ”
From the refrigerator mother theory to vaccines as the cause of disease, the process of understanding autism is like walking a mountain road, there are roadblocks, there are steep slopes, but in the end it is always moving forward, becoming clearer after penetrating many obstacles.
The so-called "refrigerator mother", at that time, experts believed that these patients were because of the indifferent control of their parents. They were "simply stuffed into a refrigerator that never thaws.". Over time, everyone put all the blame on the mother. Just like some of the current fraudulent parenting, usually ignore the child, do not ask questions, the oil bottle is poured and do not help, when the child is sick, complain that the mother did not bring a good child, if the test is not good, you will also complain that the mother did not teach well. In short, as long as the child has a big or small problem, it is the mother's fault. Similarly, mothers who do their best to care for children with autism are labeled as "refrigerators" – precisely because mothers are "cold and selfish, will not love" and so on. Attitudes towards their hardships have changed from sympathy to contempt.
For children suffering from autism, the most suffering is no different from the mother, acting as a 24-hour nanny, giving wholeheartedly, taking good care but not getting a response, but also enduring the indifferent and schadenfreude eyes projected by others, and taking full responsibility for the child's autism. It was tantamount to pouring another handful of salt on the bleeding wound of the mother, and finally kicking it hard. It wasn't until psychologist Muran presented a convincing case that proved the absurdity of the "refrigerator mother" theory that people finally changed their minds, and the mothers who had been criticized for it were able to let go and stop blaming themselves.
02 The Truth About Autism: It's not genius on the left, madman on the right
God has closed a door for you, and he will certainly open a window for you. As a way of self-consolation, this may give mothers a little light to illuminate the future, but in fact, except for a few geniuses, such as Einstein, Darwin, Newton, Van Gogh, etc., most autistic children not only have low emotional intelligence scores, can not establish normal emotional connections with people, and are also less than satisfactory in IQ. Some relevant professionals pointed out that if there is no intervention treatment, regardless of the severity of the case, most of the children will not be able to take care of themselves after adulthood, or will not have the ability to work independently.
In the face of autism, parents are the child's first line of defense, and it is very important to do early screening. Parents need to take their child to the hospital where the diagnosis is made by a professional doctor.
At present, there is no specific drug for the treatment of autism, but social training is used, and if there is no intervention, it may be difficult for these children to integrate into society and adapt to society. Be sure to detect early and intervene early. The best intervention time for autistic patients is 2-6 years old, as long as it is found in time, early scientific intervention, and formal treatment and rehabilitation training, autistic children can go to school normally.
03 Even if there is only one percent hope, it is worth one hundred percent of our efforts
Various experts have been working tirelessly to find effective ways to treat autism. From being admitted to a psychiatric hospital until later psychologist Iva Lovas began experimenting with severe autism using the ABA method, and in the process used electric shock therapy.
Later, relevant people started the FC method to try to communicate with patients. There are also various research institutions that have sprung up. Although there is no cure for autism, there is currently no optimal treatment regimen. However, from the existing treatment results, effective intervention can still help the children to achieve self-care for themselves, can simply express their own needs, and even find a job in society to support themselves.
As someone said, it's an imperfect world where not all people can communicate, not all interventions have an effect, and not all problems have a solution. But even one percent hope is worth one hundred percent of our efforts.
04 The love and companionship of parents, the full acceptance of those around them to illuminate the future The protagonist of the book, Donald, accompanied by his mother Mary and father Beamon, eventually lived a happy and dignified life, although he was once recommended by experts to send away, and really sent away for a while, but finally returned to his parents. With the love and companionship of his family, Donald eventually went to ordinary high school, went to college, and had a job as a bank teller, retiring to live a life of playing golf every day.
Donald is fortunate and happy, and his success lies in the fact that although he is an autistic person, he has no intellectual disability, so after special intervention and rehabilitation training, he can go to ordinary school and live with ordinary people.
There are also cases that show that autistic children with normal intelligence who only have social impairments have more contact with other normal children, communicate, encourage children to play with children, share food toys, etc., and take the initiative to talk to others, which is beneficial to the rehabilitation of autistic children.
Before brushing chengdu dad strong with autistic son Xuan Xuan selling toys in the park video, under the encouragement and guidance of his father, Xuan Xuan took the initiative to sell with the toy, and later learned that Xuan Xuan has learned to cook rice, play the piano, climb rock, swim, etc., when he wears a tuxedo, sits in front of the piano and plays selflessly, who can think that Xuan Xuan learned to brush his teeth for 8 years, learned to go to the toilet for 10 years, and simply took off his pants, squatted, wiped his ass, lifted his pants, the whole family taught thousands of times.
Children from the stars look beautiful, but for autistic families, it is an unbearable weight.
When we see that child, unable to communicate, and irritable, please do not throw discriminatory eyes and repulsive behavior.
For children from the stars and their parents, the pressure from public opinion is sometimes more frightening than the illness itself.
Although medical technology is changing rapidly, there are still many unsolved mysteries in the field of autism, and this war is far from over.
What we have to do is not just to sit by, let alone "ideologically I can tolerate and support autistic children to appear in ordinary schools", and "I can't accept the appearance of autistic children in my children's schools or classes in action".
There's nothing wrong with autism, it's just an integral part of this imperfect world, and I, accepting it all, from thought to action.
As Susan Kane, author of Competitiveness of introverts, said of the book:
Different Tones tells us that each of our brains is unique, and that the way we treat the most special groups determines who we are essentially.
This book not only tells the history of autism, but also allows us to see our own souls.