by Mary Starr

Created on: September 04, 2008   Last Updated: November 25, 2008

There is no known cure for autism or any of the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) but with early intervention and the proper treatment, individuals with this autism can live independent and productive lives. A combination of therapies must be used in order to provide the appropriate intervention for an individual. One must understand that all treatment therapies are life-long and may be altered to enhance the life of a person with autism.

Communication therapy is used to help someone with autism who is unable to communicate effectively or efficiently verbally and/or nonverbally. Picture Exchange Communication Systems (PECS) is a therapy used to help the patient communicate. By using pictures to represent ideas, activities and feelings an individual is able to convey their needs.

Occupational therapy helps improve the independence of someone. This therapy focuses on teaching the individual living skills such as dressing themselves, bathing and feeding themselves. Physical therapy focuses on using physical activities and exercises to help him/her control body movements. Deep massage, stretching exercises and/or relaxation methods are forms of physical therapies used.

Behavior modification can be broken down into several methods. The method of behavior modification called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) rewards positive behavior and ignores negative behavior. This type of therapy can be used to control inappropriate behaviors such as tantrums and/or the repetitive actions that an individual with autism may exhibit. Behavior modification is a one-on-one structured routine training session with a therapist and caregivers usually in a highly structured environment which concentrates on the skills and interest of the individual.

Sensory integration is a type of behavior modification used to help an individual with autism regulate and understand their sensory perception. This may be done by teaching individuals to tolerate different textures and visual and auditory stimuli.

Because individuals with autism tend to have limited emotional development their social skills are affected. Play therapy, which is a form of behavior modification, is used to improve the area of emotional development. Social and learning skills are increased by adult-child interaction. Social stories can be used as a form of behavior modification to support an individual with autism in learning how to understand other people's feelings and ideas as well as their own feelings and ideas.

It is important

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