Out of his shell
Posted: 9/30/2009
By James Mulcahy
Statistics show that one in 150 children born in the United States will develop autism. Many parents of these children won't recognize the symptoms before an early age, while many will see the symptoms but won't seek treatment because they don't want to believe it.
Studies show that early diagnosis followed by intense treatment results in the best outcome for the child with autism. "Early intervention is the key," said Renea Sageser, owner of Associates in Pediatric Therapy, an outpatient therapy clinic that provides skilled speech therapy and occupational therapy to children with autism.
Specialized intervention including (ABA) Applied Behavior Analysis and sensory integration can be tailored to the child's specific needs. Three-year-old Teddy has been in therapy at Associates for nearly a year, and his mother, Denise, says his progress is remarkable.
"All of this therapy is helping him be able to process the world enough so he can start learning," she said.
A year ago, Teddy was like what most people think of when they hear the word autism -- a child staring blankly into space. Now, he's interacting with other people and communicating his wants and needs.
"When he was a baby, I was waiting for a toddler to show up, and he never did," Denise said. "Now we're seeing who this little guy is."
What is autism?
According to the Autism Society of America, "autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Both children and adults with autism typically show difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions and leisure or play activities. Autism is a spectrum disorder and it affects each individual differently and at varying degrees."
Sageser, a speech language pathologist, agrees that autism shows itself in different ways.
"Autism is a very broad diagnosis," she said. "There's low-functioning and high-functioning autism. Some autistic children will develop a savant type of ability -- like Dustin Hoffman in Rainman -- but that is not the norm."
Children with autism often experience difficulty with sensory processing, too. This means they have a hard time taking in all the sensations from the world around them and making sense of them. These sensations not only include everything we touch, see, feel and hear, but also the way we move and balance ourselves, Sageser said. When a child has trouble with sensory processing, they may not be able to stay focused on an activity because they are distracted by a particular kind of sensory input.
"I was in denial way before we got any help," she said. "I thought autistic children just sat there."
Early signs Teddy exhibited included toe walking, and "running a corn cob up and down his face."
Sageser said many parents believe the problem will fix itself.
"A lot of times, the parents don't come to grip with reality and they think this is just going to go away," she said. "They think their child is just going to wake up one day and start talking ... or they want you to give them that magic pill. A high percent of parents wait until it's too late. They come to us when the child is 6 or 7, and the recovery process is a lot longer and is not as effective. They need that early intervention -- before the behavior is set in."
Teddy, for example, would not be making progress had Denise not recognized that he had autism and acted on it.
"If Teddy didn't have the support and his mom wasn't doing what she is doing, he would eventually be recognized as a child with full-blown autism," Sageser said.
Denise not only brings Teddy to Associates for regular treatments, she spends hours every day providing the same type of therapy at home and was trained by Sageser to help cut down on her son's therapy cost.
"The more therapy we're doing with these children, we're finding out that they're capable of a whole lot more than we thought they were," Denise said. "We use all of our senses every day, we're just not aware of it. These kids are just more aware of certain senses that they have, so that's what they've got to go on. Teddy Joe loves to be touched. He loves the hugging. Some do not want to be touched at all. If he was like that, it would be very hard for me because I'm a very hands-on mother."
The treatments aren't cheap, but Denise can't let money get in the way.
"It's expensive, especially since insurance does not want to pay," she said. "You have to have basically nothing in the bank to get any help from Social Security. A lot of the help that they're willing to offer is not what you need -- I don't need $50 a month for Pull-Ups, I need money to pay for this."
Denise said it's hard on the family, too.
"A lot of marriages suffer over this; it's financially draining, it's emotionally draining."
"I believe that there are lots of approaches that work, and ABA is one of them," she said. "I personally believe that some children, after having ABA mixed with other treatments such as proper diets, can make so much progress that the signs and symptoms of autism have disappeared."
"If a child has full-blown autism, they really need ABA at least 20 hours a week, and they need it before they turn 5. Age 2 to 5 is critical."
Being in the middle of horse country, it only makes sense that Sagesar would explore hippotherapy as a treatment -- especially since it is offered at the Luci Center in rural Shelby County.
"Hippotherapy has shown a lot of great success in autism treatment," Sageser said. "It's a therapy tool — like a treadmill that we might use in physical therapy. The horse is actually the therapy tool."
Three therapists from the practice are being trained for or providing hippotherapy at the center.
"It also shows their support for autism," Sageser said.
A lighted walk will help increase awareness, and the money raised will go toward buying equipment needed for home ABA treatments.
"All the money we make -- 100% -- stays in Shelby County," she said. "We want to make a loan closet for parents so they can get supplies they need to do this treatment at home instead of buying it. It's like a library -- they borrow tools like puzzles, flash cards, listening programs, weighted vests, whatever they need to help them with therapy for their kids."
Sageser is sympathetic to the parents' struggles when dealing with autistic children.
"I don't have a child with autism, but if I did I wouldn't be able to do this. I'd have to quit my job and totally devote my life to that child. Parents with children with autism have a hard job and I am blessed daily by helping them."
Associates in Pediatric Therapy offers a free support group the third Thursday of every month for families with autism. For more information, visit http://www.kidtherapy.org.
Studies show that early diagnosis followed by intense treatment results in the best outcome for the child with autism. "Early intervention is the key," said Renea Sageser, owner of Associates in Pediatric Therapy, an outpatient therapy clinic that provides skilled speech therapy and occupational therapy to children with autism.
Specialized intervention including (ABA) Applied Behavior Analysis and sensory integration can be tailored to the child's specific needs. Three-year-old Teddy has been in therapy at Associates for nearly a year, and his mother, Denise, says his progress is remarkable.
"All of this therapy is helping him be able to process the world enough so he can start learning," she said.
A year ago, Teddy was like what most people think of when they hear the word autism -- a child staring blankly into space. Now, he's interacting with other people and communicating his wants and needs.
"When he was a baby, I was waiting for a toddler to show up, and he never did," Denise said. "Now we're seeing who this little guy is."
What is autism?
According to the Autism Society of America, "autism is a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Both children and adults with autism typically show difficulties in verbal and non-verbal communication, social interactions and leisure or play activities. Autism is a spectrum disorder and it affects each individual differently and at varying degrees."
Sageser, a speech language pathologist, agrees that autism shows itself in different ways.
"Autism is a very broad diagnosis," she said. "There's low-functioning and high-functioning autism. Some autistic children will develop a savant type of ability -- like Dustin Hoffman in Rainman -- but that is not the norm."
Children with autism often experience difficulty with sensory processing, too. This means they have a hard time taking in all the sensations from the world around them and making sense of them. These sensations not only include everything we touch, see, feel and hear, but also the way we move and balance ourselves, Sageser said. When a child has trouble with sensory processing, they may not be able to stay focused on an activity because they are distracted by a particular kind of sensory input.
Accept and treat
Before any progress can be made in treating autism, parents must first admit there is a problem that needs to be addressed. Denise says she is a prime example."I was in denial way before we got any help," she said. "I thought autistic children just sat there."
Early signs Teddy exhibited included toe walking, and "running a corn cob up and down his face."
Sageser said many parents believe the problem will fix itself.
"A lot of times, the parents don't come to grip with reality and they think this is just going to go away," she said. "They think their child is just going to wake up one day and start talking ... or they want you to give them that magic pill. A high percent of parents wait until it's too late. They come to us when the child is 6 or 7, and the recovery process is a lot longer and is not as effective. They need that early intervention -- before the behavior is set in."
Teddy, for example, would not be making progress had Denise not recognized that he had autism and acted on it.
"If Teddy didn't have the support and his mom wasn't doing what she is doing, he would eventually be recognized as a child with full-blown autism," Sageser said.
Denise not only brings Teddy to Associates for regular treatments, she spends hours every day providing the same type of therapy at home and was trained by Sageser to help cut down on her son's therapy cost.
"The more therapy we're doing with these children, we're finding out that they're capable of a whole lot more than we thought they were," Denise said. "We use all of our senses every day, we're just not aware of it. These kids are just more aware of certain senses that they have, so that's what they've got to go on. Teddy Joe loves to be touched. He loves the hugging. Some do not want to be touched at all. If he was like that, it would be very hard for me because I'm a very hands-on mother."
The treatments aren't cheap, but Denise can't let money get in the way.
"It's expensive, especially since insurance does not want to pay," she said. "You have to have basically nothing in the bank to get any help from Social Security. A lot of the help that they're willing to offer is not what you need -- I don't need $50 a month for Pull-Ups, I need money to pay for this."
Denise said it's hard on the family, too.
"A lot of marriages suffer over this; it's financially draining, it's emotionally draining."
Other avenues
Sageser said that behavioral intervention isn't the only treatment for autism."I believe that there are lots of approaches that work, and ABA is one of them," she said. "I personally believe that some children, after having ABA mixed with other treatments such as proper diets, can make so much progress that the signs and symptoms of autism have disappeared."
"If a child has full-blown autism, they really need ABA at least 20 hours a week, and they need it before they turn 5. Age 2 to 5 is critical."
Being in the middle of horse country, it only makes sense that Sagesar would explore hippotherapy as a treatment -- especially since it is offered at the Luci Center in rural Shelby County.
"Hippotherapy has shown a lot of great success in autism treatment," Sageser said. "It's a therapy tool — like a treadmill that we might use in physical therapy. The horse is actually the therapy tool."
Three therapists from the practice are being trained for or providing hippotherapy at the center.
Awareness
The practice is sponsoring a chili cookoff Oct. 2 at Shelby County High School's home football game against Eastern. The event will feature 20 booths made up of medical professionals going head to head in chili competition."It also shows their support for autism," Sageser said.
A lighted walk will help increase awareness, and the money raised will go toward buying equipment needed for home ABA treatments.
"All the money we make -- 100% -- stays in Shelby County," she said. "We want to make a loan closet for parents so they can get supplies they need to do this treatment at home instead of buying it. It's like a library -- they borrow tools like puzzles, flash cards, listening programs, weighted vests, whatever they need to help them with therapy for their kids."
Sageser is sympathetic to the parents' struggles when dealing with autistic children.
"I don't have a child with autism, but if I did I wouldn't be able to do this. I'd have to quit my job and totally devote my life to that child. Parents with children with autism have a hard job and I am blessed daily by helping them."
Associates in Pediatric Therapy offers a free support group the third Thursday of every month for families with autism. For more information, visit http://www.kidtherapy.org.
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