Autism treatment Dr. Osama Farouk Mustafa Dr. El-Sayed Kamel El-Sharby

Autism treatment Dr. Osama Farouk Mustafa Dr. Al-Sayed Kamel Al-Sharbin This is the third book in the autism books series, the first book in this series addressed the causes of autism, diagnosis, and treatment, and it was briefly written and published in 2011, the second book presented the features of autism (physical, linguistic, behavioral, social, cognitive, and psychological) and was published in 2011, and the third book is dedicated to autism treatment, as it discusses rehabilitation and treatment of autistic children in terms of internationally approved programs and other non-approved programs, which addressed various therapeutic intervention aspects. There are many different treatments available for autism, and new types of treatments emerge constantly through the diligent work of research centers in all activities. However, choosing the appropriate treatment for the autistic child remains not easy, and this may be due to the child's nature, parents' satisfaction with the effectiveness of the treatment, etc. Undoubtedly, therapeutic intervention depends on identifying the factor or factors causing the disorder. Since science, despite extensive research aimed at treating autism, has not yet reached an exact determination of the causes of autism, it is expected to be difficult to develop successful treatments for autism. The book consists of fifteen chapters, the first chapter defines autism, its prevalence rates, and causes, and the second chapter presents the most important available therapeutic interventions, including psychoanalytic therapy, behavioral therapy, play therapy, physical therapy, medical treatment, and biological treatments other than psychiatric drugs such as secretin, vitamin B6 with magnesium, melatonin, dimethylglycine. The third chapter discusses the most important educational programs, including applied behavioral analysis, Teach program, Lipp program, Douglas Center for developmental disorders, Fast Forward method, daily life therapy (Higashi School), while the fourth chapter covers dietary treatment. The fifth chapter discusses behavioral and emotional disorder treatment. The sixth chapter is dedicated to treating cognitive process deficiencies, including attention, memory, imagination ability, and thinking. The seventh chapter covers sensory and developmental therapies such as sensory integration therapy, auditory integration training, Erlin lens, hugging machine, dolphin therapy, music therapy, and developmental methods like hugging therapy and Doman-Dilato method. The eighth chapter discusses art therapy, its goals and importance, arts and individuals with special needs, characteristics of drawing among autistic children, the role of art teachers when presenting artistic activities to autistic children, principles to consider in designing and implementing artistic activity programs for autistic children, and the role of art teachers when providing artistic activities. The ninth chapter covers training to develop life skills, and the tenth chapter focuses on training to develop social skills: its importance, methods of choosing and developing social skills, problematic behaviors, teaching methods in the school curriculum, social stories, and the center-based play program ("Floortime"). The eleventh chapter discusses training to develop communication skills, emphasizing the most used methods such as facilitated communication, picture exchange communication system (PECS), and Miller method. The twelfth chapter is about training to develop academic skills, while the thirteenth chapter covers inclusion, its goals, requirements, pros and cons, difficulties, conditions, and strategies. The fourteenth chapter discusses vocational rehabilitation for autistic individuals, its definition, goals, steps, and the importance of early intervention in vocational rehabilitation. Finally, the fifteenth chapter covers family counseling, its concept and goals, family reactions to autism, main issues and pressures faced by families of autistic children, family counseling for autistic children, justifications for early counseling intervention, characteristics of the therapeutic program in the pre-school stage, potential benefits of parental participation in early intervention programs for autistic children, tips for parents and teachers of autistic individuals, ways for families to face autism problems, facilitating cooperative relationships, parent training programs, and the counseling team. Contents 1. Introduction to Autism Introduction Definition of Autism Prevalence rates of autism Causes of autism 2. Therapeutic interventions Introduction Searching for treatment Most important therapeutic interventions First: Psychoanalytic therapy Second: Behavioral therapy Third: Play therapy Fourth: Physical therapy Fifth: Medical treatment Factors to consider when administering psychiatric drugs for autistic individuals First: Antipsychotic drugs Second: Antidepressants Third: Anti-anxiety drugs Fourth: Anticonvulsants Fifth: Psychostimulants Sixth: Biological treatments other than psychiatric drugs Reasons for parents choosing medication Important steps when taking medication Effects of medication Ideas for medication placement Differences in treatment response 3. Educational programs Applied behavioral analysis Teach program Principles and methods of Teach program Role of the family in the Teach program Lipp program Douglas Center for developmental disorders Fast Forward method Daily life therapy (Higashi School) Facilitated communication Picture exchange communication system (PECS) Miller method 4. Dietary therapy Introduction Importance of good nutrition and autism Nutritional image in autistic individuals Steps to overcome eating disorders in autistic individuals Nutritional supplements that help autistic individuals Meals preferred by autistic individuals Treating immune system disorders Other methods to modify eating disorders in autistic individuals 5. Treatment of behavioral and emotional disorders Behavioral disorders Strategies for disruptive behavior Treatment of aggressive behavior Self-harm treatment Treatment of stubbornness Managing challenging behaviors Treatment of sexual disorders Hyperactivity treatment Anger management Sleep disorders treatment Elimination disorders treatment Repetitive behaviors Family therapy and its effect on reducing repetitive behaviors Emotional disorders Anxiety disorders in autistic individuals Treatment of anxiety disorders in autistic individuals Mood disorders in autistic individuals Treatment of mood disorders in autistic individuals 6. Treatment of cognitive process deficiencies Attention Attention training Memory Memory training Imagination ability Improving imagination ability Thinking Thinking deficiencies treatment 7. Sensory and developmental therapies Introduction Sensory integration therapy Auditory integration training Erlin lens Hugging machine Dolphin therapy Music therapy Developmental methods such as hugging therapy, Doman-Dilato method 8. Art therapy General goals of art education Art activities and play Importance of art therapy for children Arts and individuals with special needs Characteristics of drawing among autistic children Organizing the workspace Building relationships Flexibility Helping the child with self-control Respecting artistic choices Feeling comfortable through close communication Allow yourself to love them Be cautious of burnout or exhaustion Socialization and communication Be aware of the child's communication method and how to support it Reward appropriate social behavior whenever possible Observe body language Self-monitoring and setting good examples One artwork: "Friends' Boxes" Role of the art teacher when presenting artistic activities to the autistic child Principles to consider when designing and implementing artistic activity programs for autistic children Key values and goals children with autism gain from practicing and enjoying arts General educational guidelines for teachers during art education Autism and artistic innovation Arts professionals Art skills that the autistic child should learn 9. Training to develop life skills Concept of life skills Importance of life skills Classification of life skills Characteristics of life skills Factors influencing the development of life skills Principles of learning life skills Daily skills for autistic individuals 10. Training to develop social skills Importance of social skills Choosing social skills for training Developing social skills in young children Training methods for skills Aspects of developing social skills Strategies for socially inappropriate behaviors Friendship in autistic children Negative factors affecting the development of friendships in autistic children Strategies Social interaction skills in autistic children Social communication skills in autistic children Developing communication skills in autistic children Some useful games Social withdrawal and isolation Speaking skills Strategies Initiative and developing conversations Body language and gestures strategies Facial expressions and eye contact strategies Teaching social skills through the curriculum Social stories and the autistic child General notes on story preparation Center-based play program ("Floortime") 11. Training to develop communication skills Definition of communication Important points in communication Listening Strategies Literal understanding strategies Training the autistic child on pronunciation and expression Understanding language Language growth Developing receptive language in autistic children Linguistic concepts Facilitation or repetition as speech facilitators Steps to assist in facilitation 12. Training to develop academic skills Educational strategies for autistic children First: Stimulation Second: Attention and visual communication training Third: Teaching the autistic child communication through pictures Preparing the environment inside the classroom Educational approach and classroom management Organizing study materials Teaching methods Main educational obstacles faced when teaching autistic children Individual educational program Conditions for a good program Program components Program requirements Stages of the individual plan Evaluating the individual plan Parents' role in the individual educational program Developing a personal program plan Teaching mind-reading to autistic children Teaching language to autistic children Sequencing skills Teaching reading skills to autistic children Importance of writing skills Teaching mathematical concepts to autistic children 13. Inclusion Introduction Goals of inclusion Requirements of the inclusion process Recognizing educational needs of children Preparing educators Preparing teachers Preparing curricula and educational programs Preparing and orienting families Choosing the inclusion school Preparing and orienting students Selecting suitable children for inclusion Inclusion models Comprehensive inclusion model Partial inclusion model Permanent spatial and social inclusion model Temporary spatial and social inclusion model Reverse inclusion Targeted aspects in inclusion General benefits of inclusion Benefits of including autistic children Negative aspects of inclusion in general Difficulties in including autistic children Conditions for including autistic children General strategies for teaching and interacting with autistic children in regular classrooms Steps to include autistic children in regular schools 14. Vocational rehabilitation for autistic individuals Definition of vocational rehabilitation Goals of vocational rehabilitation for autistic individuals Steps of vocational rehabilitation for autistic individuals Goals of individualized guidance for the disabled Vocational training Employment principles Principles of employing autistic individuals Importance of early intervention in vocational rehabilitation for autistic individuals Therapeutic intervention before school enrollment 15. Family counseling Concept of family counseling Goals of family counseling Family reactions to autism First: Shock stage Second: Denial stage Third: Anger stage Fourth: Guilt stage Fifth: Depression Sixth: Fear and anxiety Seventh: Acceptance of reality Problems and pressures faced by families of autistic children Family counseling for families of autistic children Justifications for early counseling intervention Characteristics of the therapeutic program in the pre-school stage Potential benefits of parental participation in early intervention programs for autistic children For the child For parents For professionals Tips for parents and teachers of autistic individuals Ways for families to face autism issues Facilitating cooperative relationships Parent training programs Counseling team Is recovery possible? References