Autism Symptoms
Autism is a complex disorder, with a wide variety of possible symptoms. However, autism symptoms generally encompass three area of impairment: social interaction (difficulty understanding normal emotions, acting indifferent or 'closed' towards other people), communication (difficulty with spoken or written communication, inability to interpret facial expressions and common gestures), and imagination (difficulty with imaginative activities and normal play, not understanding abstract thought or 'make believe' vs. reality).
Common symptoms of autism include: "preservative" behavior (an insistence on routine and sameness - tantruming or catatonia may result when routines are changed), "self-stimulatory" behavior (repetitve actions such as rocking and hand flapping or wringing), sleeping and eating problems (refusal to sleep, extreme food sensitivites, other digestive problems), over-sensitivity to touch or sound, insensitivity to pain and lack of eye contact. These symptoms exist alongside severe disruption in social and communication skills. Many autistic individuals exhibit cognitive delays or difficulties, while others may have normal or near-normal mental ability (called "high functioning" autism).
In some cases, a child may begin to exhibit autism symptoms as an infant. Autistic infants may arch their back away from a caregiver's touch, or be constantly agitated and difficult to comfort. On the other hand, the child may be very quiet and withdrawn, showing little or no response to adult interaction. In other cases a seemingly normal child may develop autism later, known as "regressive" autism, generally between the ages of 3 and 5. These children reach early developmental milestones normally, in some cases even showing advanced development for their age, and then suddenly begin to lose social and communication skills.
Autism symptoms vary so widely from one case to the next, many experts are encouraging the adoption of the term "autism spectrum disorder" to describe the condition, highlighting the fact that autistic individuals do not fit into a clear-cut diagnostic description.
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