What is autism?

Question

can someone who knows someone with autism please tell me what it actually is. i want to become more aware about this subject so i can start telling other people about it.

i saw jenny mccarty on chelsea lately going wild about it a few nights ago.

Answer 1

Autisim is a very strange Syndrome, its not a disease, it can not be inherited.

Usually children are born with autisim and it effects their behaviour in all sorts of ways, i myself know three people with autisim, they are all COMPLETLY different.

Everybody infact has some of the symptoms of being autistic such as not liking change that is one of the symptoms.

Some autistic people have no emotion at all, cannot feel pain, and completly ingnore others, while others care too much.

Resarch it on Wikipedia if you want, it is very hard to explain.

Answer 2

Autism is a brain development disorder that impairs social interaction and communication, and causes restricted and repetitive behavior, all starting before a child is three years old. This set of signs distinguishes autism from milder autism spectrum disorders (ASD) such as Asperger syndrome.

Autism is highly heritable, although the genetics of autism are complex and it is generally unclear which genes are responsible. In rare cases, autism is strongly associated with agents that cause birth defects. Other proposed causes, such as childhood vaccines, are controversial and the vaccine hypotheses lack convincing scientific evidence.Most recent reviews estimate a prevalence of one to two cases per 1,000 people for autism, and about six per 1,000 for ASD, with ASD averaging a 4.3:1 male-to-female ratio. The number of people known to have autism has increased dramatically since the 1980s, at least partly due to changes in diagnostic practice; the question of whether actual prevalence has increased is unresolved.

Autism affects many parts of the brain; how this occurs is poorly understood. Parents usually notice signs in the first two years of their child's life. Early behavioral or cognitive intervention can help children gain self-care, social, and communication skills. There is no cure.Few children with autism live independently after reaching adulthood, but some become successful,and an autistic culture has developed, with some seeking a cure and others believing that autism is a condition rather than a disorder.

Autism is a developmental disorder of the human brain that first gives signs during infancy or childhood and follows a steady course without remission or relapse.

Autism appears to result from developmental factors that affect many or all functional brain systems, and to disturb the course of brain development more than the final product.

The word autism first took its modern sense in 1938 when Hans Asperger of the Vienna University Hospital adopted Bleuler's terminology "autistic psychopaths" in a lecture in German about child psychology.

Autism (say: aw-tih-zum) causes kids to experience the world differently from the way most other kids do. It's hard for kids with autism to talk with other people and express themselves using words. Kids who have autism usually keep to themselves and many can't communicate without special help.

They also may react to what's going on around them in unusual ways. Normal sounds may really bother someone with autism — so much so that the person covers his or her ears. Being touched, even in a gentle way, may feel uncomfortable.

Kids with autism often can't make connections that other kids make easily. For example, when someone smiles, you know the smiling person is happy or being friendly. But a kid with autism may have trouble connecting that smile with the person's happy feelings.

A kid who has autism also has trouble linking words to their meanings. Imagine trying to understand what your mom is saying if you didn't know what her words really mean. It is doubly frustrating then if a kid can't come up with the right words to express his or her own thoughts.

Autism causes kids to act in unusual ways. They might flap their hands, say certain words over and over, have temper tantrums, or play only with one particular toy. Most kids with autism don't like changes in routines. They like to stay on a schedule that is always the same. They also may insist that their toys or other objects be arranged a certain way and get upset if these items are moved or disturbed.

If someone has autism, his or her brain has trouble with an important job: making sense of the world. Every day, your brain interprets the sights, sounds, smells, and other sensations that you experience. If your brain couldn't help you understand these things, you would have trouble functioning, talking, going to school, and doing other everyday stuff. Kids can be mildly affected by autism, so that they only have a little trouble in life, or they can be very affected, so that they need a lot of help.

Answer 3

there's a lot on information about this subject from the link below.

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/healt...

Answer 4

I was an autistic child, I know what it is to become one. I can't explain how I really feel. My parents during those time doesn't know what it is. I just figure it out how to manage to understand everything besides difficulties of doing so. My teachers didn't understand me but are always amazed how unattentive I may seem yet I can answer her questions quite well. Today I am a Special Education teacher. I still have the strain though. But I could manage my life like any person.

Answer 5

Autism (sometimes called “classical autism”) is the most common condition in a group of developmental disorders known as the autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).  

Autism is characterized by three distinctive behaviors.  Autistic children have difficulties with social interaction, display problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and exhibit repetitive behaviors or narrow, obsessive interests.  These behaviors can range in impact from mild to disabling.  Autism varies widely in its severity and symptoms and may go unrecognized, especially in mildly affected children or when more debilitating handicaps mask it.  Scientists aren’t certain what causes autism, but it’s likely that both genetics and environment play a role.