Below
you will find a small list of therapies. If you
know of others not listed below, feel free to
share the info and/or a link and I will post it.
If
you see something with 5 red stars beside it, that
is one of my personal favorites regarding therapy.
And it would mean that my child has benefited
dramatically from that treatment.
Anti
Yeast Therapy
There is some
evidence that candida albicansmay cause or
exacerbate behavior and health problems in
autistic individuals. The only physical symptoms
are vaginal yeast infections and thrush (white
patches in mouth).
An overgrowth of
candida albicans causes toxins to be
released into the body which are known to impair
the central nervous system and the immune system.
Some of the behaviors related to this are,
confusion, hyperactivity, short attention span,
lethargy, irritability, and aggression. Reported
health problems can include headaches, intestinal
problems,(constipation, diarrhea, flatulence),
distended stomach, excessive genital touching in
infants and young children, cravings for
carbohydrates, fruits and sweets. Unpleasant odor
of hair and feet, acetone smell from mouth, and
skin rashes.
Candida
overgrowth is often attributed to long term
antibiotic treatments. It has been reported that
some children whose autistic tendencies surfaced
at 18- 24 months had been continuously treated
with antibiotics to control chronic ear
infections. The treatment doesn't cure autism,
but is helpful for some autistic children.
CONTACTS:
American Academy
of Environmental Medicine, PO Box 16106, Denver CO
80216
Great Smokies
Diagnostic Laboratory, Martin Lee & Stephen
Barrie, Associates, 18a Regent Park Boulevard,
Asheville, NC 28806 +(704) 253-0621 Can provide
kit for stool analysis used for determining yeast
overgrowth.
Allergy
induced Autism and Casein/Gluten
In allergy
induced Autism, the symptoms usually become
apparent during the first three years of life.
Some children have autism that appears to have
been triggered by intolerance to many foods and/or
chemicals, the main offenders being wheat, cow's
milk, corn, sugar and citrus fruits, although each
child may be affected by different substances. The
children also have many almost unnoticeable
physical problems, namely excessive thirst,
excessive sweating, especially at night, low blood
sugar, diarrhea, bloating, rhinitis, inability to
control temperature, red face and/or ears and dark
circles under the eyes.
It has been
reported that a high percentage of autistic
children had a "mutant" protein in their
urine that was created by eating gluten (found in
wheat, oats, barley and rye grains) and/or casein
(milk protein) containing food. The mutant protein
was the gluten and casein protein bound to a
morphine like substance. It's believed that this
was what was causing the kids to become spacey and
addicted to these foods. It won't cure autism,
but may help with some secondary problems
Sensory
Integration Therapy
A
person is trained to deal with sensory
sensitivities. The goal is to reduce that anxiety
through repeated exposure.
Lovaas
Method
Lovaas
therapy refers to the treatment model developed by
Ivar Lovaas, Ph.D., at the UCLA Clinic for the
Behavioral Treatment of Children, and is mostly
behavior modification program. Dr. Lovaas has
worked with autistic children for over 30 years,
and studies show it helped some kids, but requires
one-on-one with a trainer for 40 hours a week.
Picture
Exchange Communication System (PECS)
The Picture
Exchange Communication System (PECS) was
developed as augmentative/ alternative
training package that allows nonverbal children
and adults with autism and other communication
deficits to initiate communication. It was created
with educators, residential care providers
and families in mind, and so it is readily used in
a variety of settings. Verbal prompts are not
used, thus building immediate initiation and
avoiding prompt dependency.
The system
goes on to teach discrimination of symbols and
then puts them all together in simple
"sentences." Children are also
taught to comment and answer direct questions.
The PECS
Training Manual, is written by Lori Frost, MS, CCC/SLP
and Dr. Andrew Bondy. The manual
provides all of the necessary information to
implement PECS effectively. It guides readers
through the six phases of training and provides
examples, helpful hints, and templates for
data and progress reporting.
Speech-Language
Therapy
It is recognized
that autistic children have difficulties with
language, but it is clear that traditional
approaches emphasizing mastery of the formal
properties of language are largely
inappropriate: training children to speak is not
going to bring about a transformation of
their behavior. The autistic child needs to learn
not so much how to speak as how to use
language socially to communicate.
That
includes knowing how to hold a conversation,
thinking about what the other person in a
conversation understands and believes, and tuning
in to the meta-linguistic signals of the
other person, such as facial expression, tone of
voice and body language.
It is important
to remember that communication is as much
nonverbal as it is verbal, and autistic
people have great difficulty understanding
nonverbal language.
A speech
pathologist who specializes in the diagnosis and
treatment of language problems and speech
disorders can help a person learn how to more
effectively communicate.
Speech
therapists working with a nonverbal autistic
individuals, may consider alternatives to the
spoken word such as signing, typing, or a picture
board with words.
Occupational
Therapy
Commonly focuses
on improving fine motor skills, or sensory motor
skills that include balance (vestibular
system), awareness of body position (proprioceptive
system), and touch (tactile system).
After the
therapist identifies a specific problem, therapy
may include sensory integration activities
such as: massage, firm touch, swinging, and
bouncing.
*****Vitamin/Mineral
Therapy*****
Dimethylglycine
(DMG), is a food substance and is most often used Vitamin/Mineral
Therapy. DMG is found, in small amounts, in
brown rice and liver. Its chemical make-up
resembles that of water soluble vitamins,
specifically vitamin B15. DMG does not require a
prescription, and it can be purchased at many
health food stores. There are no apparent side
effects.
Use 1/2 of a 125
mg tablet at breakfast for a few days. May be
necessary to go up to one to four tablets a day if
the results are positive.
Reports from
parents giving their child DMG indicate
improvements in the areas of speech, eye contact,
social behavior, and attention span.
Two weeks after
starting on the DMG, B6 and magnesium can be
added. Studies have shown that vitamin B6 may help
control hyperactivity, and improve overall
behavior. Although improvements vary considerably
among individuals, other possible improvements
are: speech improvements, improved sleeping
patterns, lessened irritability, increased
attention span, decrease in self stimulation,
and overall improvement in general health.
