Facts About Autism

Facts about Autism

1 - Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them.

2- It is a spectrum condition, which means that, while all people with autism share certain difficulties, their condition will affect them in different ways.

3 - Some people with autism are able to live relatively independent lives but others may have accompanying learning disabilities and need a lifetime of specialist support. People with autism may also experience over- or under-sensitivity to sounds, touch, tastes, smells, light or colours.

4- Asperger syndrome is a form of autism. People with Asperger syndrome are often of average or above average intelligence. They have fewer problems with speech but may still have difficulties with understanding and processing language.

5- Autism is a lifelong developmental disability. It is part of the autism spectrum and is sometimes referred to as an autism spectrum disorder, or an ASD. The word 'spectrum' is used because, while all people with autism share three main areas of difficulty.

-     Difficulty with social communication

-     Difficulty with social interaction

-     Difficulty with social imagination.

People with autism have difficulties with both verbal and non-verbal language. Many have a very literal understanding of language, and think people always mean exactly what they say. They can find it difficult to use or understand:

-     Facial expressions or tone of voice

-     Jokes and sarcasm

-   common phrases and sayings; an example might be the phrase 'It's cool', which people often say when they think that something is good, but strictly speaking, means that it's a bit cold.

6- Over half a million people in the UK with autism - that's around 1 in 100 people.

7- It is a lifelong condition: children with autism grow up to become adults with autism.