I was touched with the article entitled "My child is not a weirdo, he is living in his own world, that's all" in Sin Chew Plus last Saturday (25 Feb 2012).
In the article, it shared about a touching movie starred by Jet Li "Ocean Heaven". Sam Wong (played by Jet Li) works in an aquarium and he struggles to look after his 21 year old autistic son Dafu (played by Wen Zhang). Sam has single handedly brought up his son since his wife passed away 14 years ago and looks after him day and night attempting to help him learn basic skills such as cooking, mopping, shopping, taking public transport in order to get Dafu ready for himself if he were to pass away one day. Sam Wong went through tough time and feeling helpless many a times.
I must say that I am fortunate that my children are healthy. But there was a moment where we suspected that our older child may have mild autism as she does not communicate as well as the other kids of her age. It was rather helpless when we couldn't find much information on how to deal with this question marks in our head. I am sure that we are not alone. I thought it would be nice for me to condense what I have read for the reference of those who are in need of assistance.
Based on KKM's data in 2010, there bound to be 1 autistic kid in every 600 Malaysian kids. If you have one, let me tell you that....autistic kids are children to the stars. They speak to the stars and only stars understand their language. To help these "children of the stars", we shouldn't attempt to bring them into our life, but we should try getting to know "their world" and getting to know them with passion and love by entering into "their world".
Understanding Autism
Autism often comes with mentally disability, hyperactive issue and emotionally unstable. The chances of autism to appear in the first boy is higher compared to the first girl by 3 to 4 times. Till date, there is not medication to cure autism. However, over the years, there have been numerous combination of language and emotional coaches have helped to stabilize the problem. The unstableness in the child can sometimes be soothed through physical, music activities.
The Causes of Autism
Over the years of research, it is proven that Autism does not cause by the background of the parents nor the way how the child was brought up. It is an inborn problem which occurred due to the development of nerve system or brain damage before he or she was born. If one of the twins is autistic, the chances of the other twin gets mild autism is between 10 to 20%.
If the mother got infected by measles during pregnancy, it increases the chances of autism in the unborn child. Other pregnancy complications such as incomplete brain growth (in the unborn child), early birth, etc will also increase the chances of an autistic case.
Ultimately, it takes lots of patience and love to learn how to love an autistic child. I am no expert in this area but I think the experts in Malaysia can help you to understand your child better. My advise is every child is unique in their own way. Never believe one professional even though he or she is good. Who else know your child better than you do? Their advices are merely reference and you should follow your heart.
Good luck and endure the process... it is all worth it.
Associations / Schools References
NASOM
www.nasom.com.my
Malaysian Care
www.malaysiancare.org
Persatuan Kanner Melaka (formally known as Persatuan Autisma Melaka Tengah)
Tel: 606. 286 2926
Kits4Kids Special School
www.kits4kids.org
Pusat Harian Kanak-kanak Istimewa Negeri Sembilan, PHKINS
Tel: 603. 8736 6385 or 606 761 6538
Hua Ming Autism Society
autism.org.my
IMPIAN Institute (Institut Masalah Pembelajaran & Autism Malaysia)
www.impianautism.com
Special Children Society of Ampang
www.scsoa.org.my
Parent's Resources for Autism
www.pr4a.org.my
MAJoseph Special Needs
www.myautisticmalaysia.com
Dignity and Services
dignityandservices.blogspot.com
United Voice
www.unitedvoice.com.my
EIP Autism
epiautism.com
Lion's REACH, Resource and Education for Autistic Children Centre
lionsreach.net
SPS Special Children Association
Tel: 604 593 1137
Glory Learning Centre
6012 773 5357, 6012 382 5591, 6012 704 4266
Kuching Autistic Association, KAA
www.saa.org.my
Sibu Autistic Association
sibuautisticassociation@gmail.com
Good sharing, Special Children Society of Ampang (SCSOA) is a centre that cares for children with special needs to equip them with the skills necessary to be a part of society, see detail at:
ReplyDeletehttp://kidbuxblog.com/ronald-mcdonald-sensory-room-heightens-the-senses-of-the-developmentally-challenged/
Best Regards,
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