How Category Archives: Health Fitness

Mark Haddon wrote an amazing book that became a bestseller and won  the Whitebread Book of the Year and Whitebread Novel awards.  Mark Haddon himself is said to have exclaimed, "Who on earth wants to read about a crippled fifteen-year-old boy?" while writing this book. Little did he know that it was  the fifteen-year-old boy with a disability that made his book stand out, win awards, and become a bestseller. The book is called "The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night And The Boy Is Christopher". 
 
 Christopher is an autistic person from the past. He can name all the countries of the world and their capitals. He has a photographic memory and is a genius at math and science. Despite  his unusual intelligence, he is unable to imagine, understand images in speech, and relate to jokes. He also doesn't like crowded places  and people touching him. People with autism share both characteristics with people with autism and people with Savant syndrome. Autism is a developmental disorder in the group of autism spectrum disorders. This condition is mainly characterized by impaired socialization, imagination, and communication. Scholar syndrome is characterized by very low general intelligence but unusually narrow intelligence, often in the areas of math, music, art, and memory. 
 
 In the story, Christopher's parents are separated. His mother decided to leave Christopher and his father because she could no longer cope  with the need to have an autistic child. Parents who  care for special children such as autistic children may experience higher levels of stress than most parents. This is mainly because their children have special requirements, unusual behaviors and abilities that are different from other children of the same age. These children may have difficulty communicating, leading to unusual reactions. An example of this is when an autistic child cries for no apparent reason and starts hitting himself. Chances are there's something bothering him  but can't tell what it is because he doesn't know howSome autistic children with sensory integration problems may either be hypersensitive or hyposensitive to touch, pressure, movement and sound. They will show certain behaviors that are sometimes difficult to understand such as avoidance of certain types of food and drinks, pinching or hitting, repetitive movements and screaming. Some of them can also exhibit strong adherence to certain routines and fear of new places or people. To accommodate the needs and cope with the behaviors of these children is not easy and, therefore, can result to a lot of stress. 
 
 Autism can greatly limit a child’s world. They thrive on security and should avoid anything they deem a threat to their security. However, many factors, situations and demands of society make them insecure and having to deal with them makes them very anxious. Unconsciously and unknowingly, children with autism experience anxiety about anything  new or unfamiliar to their understanding. Just like in the book, when Christopher had to step out of his familiar neighborhood of town, he felt physically sick and scared. Unlike most children, people with autism cannot adapt easily  to new surroundings or new situations. The process of learning to understand and accept what is previously unknown to them results to a higher level of anxiety. 
 
 Despite what seems to be a difficult task of adapting and coping with autistic children, a lot has already been studied and published regarding proper management that will not only lessen the children’s anxiety but also their parents’ stress. Certain methods such as Cognitive Behavior Modification, Behavior Modification Techniques and Environmental Modification Techniques had been proven effective in changing the inappropriate behaviors and improving the learning skills of children with autism. Some, having compounding conditions other than autism, may need additional treatment as advised by the doctors. Autistic children who also have manic depression due to their unhappiness with being involuntarily trapped in their selfprotecting behaviors may need more therapy than what was mentioned earlier. In this situation, it is advisable to consult a psychiatrist  and possibly prescribe other drugs. 
 
 Christopher's story ends with his ability to overcome challenges that make him so anxious and his mother decides to return to  care for him. Just as in this fictional novel, the same can be achieved in real life about managing stress and anxiety in families dealing with illness. With appropriate counseling, medication or treatment, stress and anxiety in parents and  children with autism can be effectively treated.