Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorder

Identifying behavioral indicators that may lead to an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis is key to understanding your child's behavior.

Because autism is diagnosed on a spectrum and each child presents symptoms differently, you want to get a professional involved as soon as you suspect the potential for the disorder to prevent an inaccurate diagnosis.

With each child, the signs and symptoms of autism can vary wildly. Some children will present with hints of autistic behavior as early as a few months old, while others won't show any apparent signs until three years old. As we mentioned earlier, many symptoms associated with autism spectrum disorder are closely aligned with communication deficits. These may include:

• Limited to no eye contact

• Limited to no communication through sound before developing speech

• Limited to no communication through gestures

• Limited to no response to name

• Delayed language development; loss of previously acquired speech

• Difficulty understanding and appropriately responding to others’ feelings

• Resistance to minor changes in routine or surroundings

• Repetitive behaviors, such as tapping or rocking

• Unusual and intense reactions to stimuli

There are plenty of checklists from reputable sources, such as Autism Speaks, that help parents understand what the symptoms of the autism spectrum disorder may entail and offer a starting point for parents of children displaying these types of behaviors. However, as you may have gathered from the list of behaviors above, these indicators are not as straightforward as a broken arm or a scraped knee. Children who are not on the autism spectrum may still display signs of these behaviors. If you have concerns, you can use one of these behavior checklists to determine whether or not you need an autism spectrum disorder test performed by a professional, so these checklists should not be the only tool used for diagnosis.

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ASD & Co-Existing Disorders

Behavior and the brain are complicated, especially for children who present with less severe symptoms. It is not uncommon for children with less severe autistic behavior to be misdiagnosed with another behavioral disorder due to the similarities in the presentations. Another critical reason that misdiagnosis can occur regarding autism spectrum disorder symptoms is the frequency in which symptoms of other behavioral disorders can occur in conjunction with ASD. Specifically, about 40 percent of autism spectrum disorder patients also experience symptoms of anxiety, while up to half of ASD patients struggle with one or more symptoms of ADHD.

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ASD & Co-Existing Disorders

There is no cure, per se, for autism spectrum disorder. Still, several therapy options directly treat behavior associated with co-existing conditions, like ADHD or anxiety, and can help alleviate autism spectrum disorder symptoms. The first step in developing autism therapies that can be effective for your child is to perform an advanced qEEG brain map to identify the neurological activity that occurs in relationship with the symptoms. The neurofeedback session or brain training is designed from the data collected from the map. Brain training helps regulate emotions to respond appropriately to stressors that cause maladaptive behaviors. Neurofeedback and other brain training activities work to understand and treat the fundamental causes of specific symptoms and behaviors associated with ASD. Let's talk about how this works.