The diagnosis of autism covers a wide range of behaviors and abilities. No two people with autism have exactly the same symptoms or disease intensity.
Autistic symptoms occur in various combinations; each can range from mild to severe. While a symptom might be mild in one person, in another it might be so severe that it overwhelms their personality or behavior.
The following are examples of the common types of problems and behaviors a person with an ASD might exhibit.
Social skills
People with autism might not interact with others the way most people do or they might not be interested in other people at all. Autistic children:
- May resist cuddling by their parents
- May appear indifferent to the goings-on in their environment
- Display a lack of interest in toys
- May be so unresponsive to others that they appear to be deaf
- Tend not make eye contact and may be content to be alone
- As they grow older, they might appear to lack empathy or have trouble understanding other people’s feelings such as pain or sorrow or talking about their own feelings
- May fail to establish friendships with children the same age
- May show a lack of interest in sharing enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people
Speech, language, and communication
An impaired ability to communicate is one of the hallmarks of autism.
The content of their speech may be limited to a few subjects or a just a few words. In fact, about 40 percent of children with autism do not speak at all.
Others have echolalia. Echolalia is the medical term for an involuntary and meaningless repetition of what has been said. People with echolalia may repeat a word, phrase, or entire sentences. For example, if somebody said to a person with echolalia, “It sure is a very nice day today.” They would respond, “It sure is a very nice day today.” An autistic child may repeat a television ad or part of a song heard sometime in the past. Their voices might sound flat, lacking inflection or tonal range. They may speak too loudly or too softly and it might seem like they cannot control the volume of their voice.
- Difficulties with conversation are another problem for the autistic. This might include having problems initiating a conversation. Also, people with autism have difficulties continuing a conversation once it has begun. While some people with autism may speak well and have a command of a certain subject matter, they may not understand the give-and-take nature of a conversation and will speak continuously.
- Nonverbal communication is another issue. People with autism might not understand gestures such as waving goodbye or extending a hand to shake. They tend to make poor use of body language, such as eye contact or facial expressions, as a means of nonverbal communication.
- Pronouns appear to present a difficulty. They might say “I” when they mean “you” or vice versa.
- Children with autism do not seem to understand social cues; therefore; social appropriateness can present a problem. They may stand too close to the people they are talking to, may hug or kiss strangers, or might stick with one topic of conversation for too long.
- Autistic children have difficulty understanding their listener’s perspective, thus creating a lack of insight into the conversation. For example, a person with autism may not understand that someone issuing humor or sarcasm. They may interpret they communication word for word and fail to catch the implied meaning.
Repeated behaviors
People with autism might have a fascination with repetitive movement such as spinning wheels, turning on and off lights, or slamming doors.
- Their play may consist of repeatedly spinning tops or watching the same video hundreds of times.
- They may also exhibit stereotyped physical behaviors. These include body rocking, hand flapping, and/or abnormal postures such as toe walking. Rigid adherence to routines. Autistic children enjoy a set routine. Variations from that routine may upset or frighten them. Even things that appear insignificant, such as taking a different route to school or having a different shape of chocolate chip cookie, will cause them anxiety.
Preoccupation with certain limited topics
Older children and adults are often fascinated by train schedules, weather patterns, dates/calendars, numbers, movie credits, or license plates. For example, they may read books about trains and collect railroad maps and train schedules, weather patterns, dates/calendars, numbers, movie credits, or license plates. For example, they may read books about trains and collect railroad maps and train schedules.
They may want to visit rail yards or ride on trains as entertainment. They may discuss trains obsessively.
Preoccupation with parts of objects
Those with autism often seem fascinated by part of an object rather than the whole object itself. This would include such things as the wheels of a car rather than the car itself.
Regression of development
In some children, the first signs of autism may appear during infancy and the disorder is usually diagnosed by the age of 3. In other children, their development appears normal until about 2 years old and then regresses rapidly.
Inconsistent neurologic development
Children with autism develop differently from other children. Typical children develop the full range of neurologic skills (such as language, motor coordination, cognitive ability, and social skills) at about the same rate. Autistic children have an uneven rate of development in these skill areas. Autistic children may have excellent cognitive skills and be able to solve complex math problems and have a wide-ranging vocabulary, but may have difficulty communicating their ideas, taking turns, or reading the emotional content of a person’s face or tone of voice.
William’s comment:
Our suspicions that Liam may have a problem came in small increments. We noticed when he was about 2 years old that certain noises seemed to bother him, irrespective of the volume level. He grabbed at his ears and cried. At first, we attributed this to a possible ear infection exacerbated by a recent plane trip. The pediatrician was called; he said Liam’s ears looked fine, but we should call back in 3 months. A month or two later, a family friend in
This friend could not point to anything specific, but mentioned that Liam didn’t seem to “pop” the way his peers did. Liam was curious about children his own age or about their toys or snacks, but he didn’t engage in reciprocal play. He seemed content to play alone. He did display certain rigidities and, to a slight extent, exhibited a few self stimulatory behaviors.
Note:
Even things that appear insignificant, such as taking a different route to school or having a different shape of chocolate chip cookie, will cause them anxiety
Terms:
Echolalia – Repetitive words or phrases that autistics may say sometimes hours after the event. Delayed echolalia can occur days or weeks after hearing the word or phrase. Sometimes this will just be an echoed word. Some autistics will mimic whole sentences or even conversations; they may even use convincing accents and the voices of other people.
