The Journey Through Autism Controversies: A Parent's Perspective

Welcome back to our second post!!

As promised, we are back with some additional helpful material to assist Indian parents in navigating the debates around the origin and treatment of their autistic children.

It will never be simple to receive an autism diagnosis for your child in India. If you are unsure of how your child's problems began or what kind of intervention they will have, it becomes even harder.

Like you, hundreds of other parents in India with autistic children have never regretted immunizing their children every year. Yet, after hearing rumors that vaccines may be to blame for illnesses like autism, you could be of a different opinion.

How do you remain composed and avoid reacting to autism controversy like the vaccination linkage argument as a worried parent of an autistic child in India? The first reliable source of information should be the expert you consult for your child's autism therapy in India. He or she is required by law to give you balanced information about the underlying cause, current state, and course of therapy for your child. You can feel weak at times for being overly protective of your child or ignorant of the unique illness known as autism. In the worst case, you can come to doubt the professional's ethics and methods.

In India, where knowledge about autism therapies and products is deficient and interventions must be decided with family and parents, it's normal to feel disoriented. The fact that other parent's experiences of autistic children differ from your personal experience further fuels your worry. It has an impact on your socio-behavioral general impressions of ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorders) in the educational context.

Parents in India begin to experience autism problems because they want their children to live independently with little assistance from the family. Your mind gets muddled by the idea of acting in your child's best interests while enhancing their development of fundamental intellectual abilities like managing everyday tasks, comprehending language and detection, or eating and grooming themselves.

We want to make it clear to everyone that when it comes to determining and securing what your autistic child in India needs, don't let disagreements upset you. Regarding the different debates around the cause and diagnosis of autism, you should be aware that none of them have been established as of yet. Hence, the best thing for you parents to do is to avoid obsessing about what caused your child's autism and starting to blame yourself in the process. Instead, you should take extra time to comprehend your autistic child's current needs and how to provide the greatest intervention as soon as possible to effect good improvements.

Whether it is the link between autism and vaccination, a developmental or genetic origin, or the accidental association between autism and intellectual handicap in India, they are all the results of current uncertainty and suspect evidence.

Before it's too late, you should go inside and investigate. After all, early intervention may help your child's condition improve. You must read and learn as much as you can about these issues, since it is worthwhile to invest in the development of your child. This time, we've made things a lot simpler.

Although scientific theory holds that immunizations do not cause autism, rumors in even a reputable scientific journal (source: The Lancet) have stated otherwise, worrying parents. Further investigations revealed the assertions to be untrue.

Why Autism Controversies are so common?

Keep in mind that everyone has a different understanding of the causes of autism, as well as the appropriate approaches and therapies. You'll hear a variety of opinions about what is right and wrong from different people. Understanding where and when the conflict begins can help you comprehend it and select the best therapy for your autistic child in India.

What are the main debates around the origins of autism?

• There is a connection between autism and vaccines in kids.
• Autism is due to genetic influence or in other terms hereditary.  
• There is a risk of autism in your child if you are conceiving at an advanced age and diabetic at the time of pregnancy.
• Ineffective parenting during the child's early years is the cause of autism. As a result of starting to hold themselves accountable for their child's illness, it makes parents depressed.

Why are messages regarding ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) therapies contradictory?

Regardless of who you speak with, you may anticipate receiving the same piece of guidance regarding a particular autism intervention or therapy. Yet the odds are very poor. You could frequently come across contradictory suggestions.

It might happen for the following reasons:

• There is no solid proof of an autism intervention to make the message clear to you.
• Misinterpretation of trustworthy data about an intervention's viability.
• There is disagreement over the validity of advice from various experts, including researchers, physicians, naturopaths, parents, etc. Each of them has a different take on what ought to be done in your child's situation.
• It's possible that professionals are out-of-date on current interventions and would rather continue with the tried-and-true ones they've been using for years.
•  Several sources of "proof" are taken into account. For instance, while some prefer to rely on individual tales or testimony, others prefer to rely on assertions made by scientific studies. Selling or advertising autism interventions may be supported by some. So, the information you ultimately receive might be impacted.

Why can’t all professionals agree on Autism interventions?

On occasion, it may be unclear what treatments autism care facilities, therapists, or services recommend for your youngster.

This might be just because they:

• They follow different approaches and have different meanings of success or effectiveness – for example, psychologists and speech therapists may try in diverse areas for improvements.
• They disagree with the theoretical idea of supporting a therapy, regardless of how effective it is.
• They conclude independently using various measures (research tools, methodologies, or approaches).
• Although they could use different language to express their counsel, they will nonetheless refer to what others have said.
• They have independent ideas on how to test or assess autism therapies. 

Why can’t you always have a list of the most effective interventions? 

One of the most trustworthy sources, GodsOwnChild offers autism interventions that have been thoroughly investigated and proven effective. However, it does not prevent us from stating, without consulting a licensed therapist, whether a certain solution will be effective or not in your child's circumstances.

As each child has a different level of autism, an intervention that is successful for one child may be unsuccessful for another. The speech therapies for a child who is unable to speak and a youngster who slurs between sentences, for example, will differ.

Comparing interventions is also challenging because "intervention works" can imply various things to different people. For instance, the phrase "it works" could be referring to an improvement brought about by an intervention, whereas the phrase "an intervention successfully treats ASD" suggests the opposite.

How do you end controversies on your own? 

You may deal with conflicts while understanding precisely which treatments can be helpful, according to scientific studies.

The more scientific research you read, the more effectively you can investigate interventions that have been labeled as:

• Proven to show a positive impact
• Promising as they appear to have mixed or positive impacts thus far but require further study
• Unknown at this time since there is insufficient data.

·        Ineffective or dangerous since it has an adverse or no effect at all and could harm your child.

Why are autism intervention tests not 100 percent accurate?

The strictest scientific criteria must be followed while testing autism therapies. Testing may only be risked when it is carried out carefully and the results are universally accepted. 

But due to the following, testing intervention criteria are frequently questioned:

• There is no financing for an in-depth study, which requires both money and effort.
• Until a controlled trial is conducted randomly, tests are not considered to be viable.
• It can be challenging to compare various intervention tests accurately. The same autistic condition may be described differently or measured using multiple standards.

In addition to debates, fresh intervention tests are run constantly. Before deciding on any, it is essential that you check reputable sources like GOC for the most recent developments and confirm them with a qualified professional.

If you are feeling overwhelmed by the debates around autism, hopefully, this piece has provided some respite. For more information about Autism Spectrum Disorder, be sure to read our forthcoming postings.

Stay tuned for our next topic, and leave your comments below!