Two Sides in a Story: Autism and Deafness

It is natural for any human beings to desire to express self and be heard. It doesn't matter what will be expressed. The important thing is that there is someone who will listen, someone who will reciprocate and someone who will affirm.

But there are cases when the person may not really be able to express the self.

Two instances that impair this free communication and dialog between people are autism and deafness. These two are often confused with the other. Autism may be misdiagnosed as deafness and vice versa. Sometimes though, a child can actually turn out to be both autistic and deaf.

Autism

Autistic children are regarded as children who live in their own world. The condition displays lack of proper communication skills and repetitive behavioral patterns. Some may think that they are stuck to being such but actually these children are capable of observing and learning too, only in their own way. There is a need for the people around the kid, the family, to understand the world of the child.

Deafness

This condition manifests in the inability of a person to hear and understand speech. The problem may stem from birth defects or diseases like ear infections. As a result of the disability, the child will have a difficulty of learning to speak and comprehend.

Autism and Deafness

The lack of capability to communicate and relate in both cases actually poses the difficulty of diagnosing the condition. They often get mixed up! Most parents might think that the unresponsiveness of their kids are due to hearing defects.

It was found by recent studies that 30% to 50% of autistic people turn out to be deaf too. There could actually be more out there, we just happen to treat them as one that we ignore already the symptoms that point to the other condition.

What basically are the differences?

Deafness may be fixed by operation or hearing aids, while autism can not be. Autism will have to be addressed properly to give way to a brighter future to the child.

Deaf kids can still comprehend through their eyes. They can perceive through their sight, the only problem is that they can't hear. An autistic child on the other hand may actually be able to see and hear, but they act like they are deaf because they do not respond. They simply cannot respond.

Kids with hearing disorder can still express themselves in many ways. They can watch other people. They can signify their feelings through gestures. They sometimes are able to make sounds if they are happy or if they are hurt. An autistic child may not be able to do this.

Moving on

Address the situation properly. Instead of ignoring the symptoms and delaying the confrontation of the dilemma at hand, the situation of the child should be prioritized.

Seek for the help and assistance of experts. Once you saw the symptoms, do consult the experts right away, whether you suspect it as deafness or autism or both.

Send your child to special institutions. There are many institutions out there that cater to providing special education to autistic and deaf children. Make sure also that you yourself are able to attend seminars and consultations so you will understand better the situation.

Do not despair. There are many success stories out there of children who do well in school despite their different abilities.

Maintain a support group that will constantly give you strength and courage when things get rough. There are known associations and committees that actually help parents and family members of children who are both deaf and autistic.

Dealing with deafness and autism may really pose great challenges to the family. There may be pains and frustrations as your child struggle to express, to communicate or to learn. What matters though is that you are there as someone who will listen, someone who will reciprocate and someone who will affirm.