Treatment

There are a wide variety of treatment options available for autism. Because Autism can manifest itself in many different ways there are many different treatments. Treatments are different for each individual and it is best to decide on a treatment that you and your medical professional are most comfortable with. Again, it is always smart to look into your options and talk to as many knowledgeable people as you can. What you decide as a treatment should be comfortable for you and for your family.

Some treatments are considered conventional, while others are a little less conventional. Below you will find a list of both conventional and less conventional treatments with short explanations of each.

Conventional:

Adaptive physical education therapy - is physical education which may be adapted or modified to address the individualized needs of children and youth who have gross motor developmental delays.

Occupational therapy - a form of therapy in which patients are encouraged to engage in vocational tasks or expressive activities, as art or dance, usually in a social setting.

Physical Therapy - the treatment or management of physical disability, malfunction, or pain by exercise, massage, hydrotherapy, etc., without the use of medicines, surgery, or radiation.

Special Education - education that is modified or particularized for those having singular needs or disabilities, as handicapped or maladjusted people, slow learners, or gifted children

Speech therapy - Treatment of speech defects and disorders, especially through use of exercises and audio-visual aids that develop new speech habits.

Less Conventional:

Auditory Integration Therapy - Treatment is based on the idea that some children with autism have hypersensitivity (sounds seem much louder than normal) and/or hyposensitivity (sounds seem much softer than normal) to certain sounds, and/or may not be able to hear other sounds well at all.

Behavioral Therapy - A form of psychotherapy that uses basic learning techniques to modify maladaptive behavior patterns by substituting new responses to given stimuli for undesirable ones.

Diet Therapy - a branch of dietetics concerned with therapeutic uses of food and diet in hopes that certain foods given or taken away can help with symptoms.

Drug Therapy – Using drugs to help in the treatment of unwanted symptoms, occasionally there are many drugs used and the dosages are regularly altered and even changed to find the best combination.

Enzyme Therapy - is a medical treatment replacing an enzyme in patients in whom that particular enzyme is deficient or absent.

Facilitated Communication Therapy - is a technique which allegedly allows communication by those who were previously unable to communicate by speech or signs

Herbal Therapy - the use of plants or plant extracts for medicinal purposes (especially plants that are not part of the normal diet)

Holistic - identifying with principles of holism in a system of therapeutics, esp. one considered outside the mainstream of scientific medicine, as naturopathy or chiropractic, and usually involving nutritional measures.

Hormone Therapy - the use of hormones in medical treatment to alleviate unwanted symptoms of certain conditions.

Music Therapy - is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship

Psychotherapy - the treatment of psychological disorders or maladjustments by a professional technique, as psychoanalysis, group therapy, or behavioral therapy.

Sensory Integration Therapy - involves occupational therapy with the child placed in a room specifically designed to stimulate and challenge all of the senses.

Vision Therapy - is a method attempting to correct or improve presumed ocular, visual processing, and perceptual disorders