There are many who say that there are two sub-types of autism, one which is present from birth (congenital) or the rare cases in which language and other skills develop normally up to a point and then regress into autistic symptomology, but others say this is just part of the spectrum and that these 'regressive' children were never developing normally…

Any thoughts, especially from parents/people with autism?

Thanks!

Yes, a child with Autism can regress. when I was younger, I regressed…but with lots of therapies, I improved dramatically. I had to have 8 years of ST; speech therapy and 3 years of OT; occupational therapy and PT; physical therapy..

Best wishes,

Michelle

PS… My account name is Luvs2Write15@aol.com, if you'd like to sponsor the Autism Awareness Pizza party, that I'm hosting. Let me know if this is the information you need to know or not. My email address is Luvs2Write16@aol.com, if you have any questions. thanks again…and please email me your email address, so I can email you pictures after the event.

There is also environmental autism. That is where the child did not/is not receiving proper mental stimulation and 'closes off', to the rest of the world. mostly seen in overseas orphanages, but becoming a problem here in U.S. It is my personal belief that with lots of attention and one on one activities and learning, autism can get slightly to greatly better,depending on the situation. Diet is also a factor. Sugary snacks and juices and sodas are bad for any diet, but even worse for hyperactivity associated with autism. T.V. is a bad thing, too. You don't want an autistic child to turn to t.v. for stimulation, there is no opportunity for interaction. If this is a personal issue with which you are dealing, I would say to discuss your concerns, issues with physician and look into occupational therapy for the autistic person. good Luck!!

I HAVE 3 CHILDREN WHO HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISTIC SPECTRUM DISORDER.THEY WERE FINE WHEN THEY WERE BABIES,APART FROM ELDEST WHO THREW TANTRUMS AT FOUR MONTHS OLD.ALL 3 MANAGED TO REACH NORMAL DEVELOPMENTAL MILESTONES UNTIL THEY WERE 13-14 MONTHS OLD WHEN SPEECH WENT DOWNHILL AND BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS STARTED TO EMERGE.FREQUENT TEMPER TANTRUMS AND HEAD-BANGING.ALSO THEY HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH CHROMOSOMAL ABNORMALITIES,WHICH MY FOURTH CHILD ALSO HAS,SHE HAS NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED FOR ASD BUT FOR a LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION DISORDER.FROM MY EXPERIENCE OF SEEING MY CHILDREN DEVELOP NORMALLY WITH a BUILDING VOCABULARY ONE MINUTE TO THESE WITHDRAWN AND FRUSTRATED CHILDREN THE NEXT.
I THINK THAT THEY DID REGRESS IF IT WAS CONGENITAL.