When therapy comes in the guise of fun

Lakshmi was having a difficult time. Between ferrying her 8-year-old child to therapy at several places, managing home and her other child, she thought she had her hands full and now her son with autism was throwing a tantrum every time she laughed.

“We initially thought it was a sensory issue. Perhaps Rahul found it difficult to tolerate the sound of laughter but it was frustrating every time he threw a tantrum and ran to me, saying  ‘cry’ when I laughed.”

Rahul is a ‘verbal’ child and could express his displeasure, but there are several children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) who are ‘non- verbal’ and unable to express what they want to.

Another mother had to wear a dupatta every day, without fail, or else her daughter would throw a massive tantrum and bang her head against the wall.

Mahesh (4) wouldn’t tolerate any change in therapy schedule or therapist. If things were not as anticipated, he would refuse to enter the room, says his mother.

Repetitive movements, insistence on sameness and difficulty in socialisation and communication are some of the features of autism, a developmental condition that is being increasingly seen in children, especially in the last decade. 

 Behaviour analysis, followed by a behaviour plan and systematic therapy, has brought about improvement in all the above children.

Radhika Poovayya, Director, Samvaad Institute of Speech and Hearing, who is also studying for Certification in Behaviour Analysis from the Florida Institute of Technology, was responsible for implementing this therapy.

 Radhika is a speech pathologist with 23 years of experience and has been using Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) for children with ASD for almost five years now.
“By providing 25-40 hours of intensive behaviour therapy we can get very good results in communication and other behaviour with children having ASD,” she says.

Mahil (5) had a vocabulary of about 50 words when he first came to Samvaad. He used it to name objects, but couldn’t communicate his needs. The child is now in a regular school and communicates well. He continues to get ABA therapy at Samvaad. “He is very good at Maths,” declares his proud mother.

So inspired was Radhika by ABA’s success that she hopes to expand services in both her centres at Hebbal and at Domlur in Bangalore to provide ABA therapy to a greater number of children with ASD.

Since therapists are in severe shortage, Radhika also trains graduates from different backgrounds, who will work as therapists under her supervision. So far 12 therapists have been trained and nearly 60 children have benefited from ABA therapy. 

Even older children with ASD benefit significantly from ABA. Take Raman (10), for instance. 

He was diagnosed with ASD when he was two years old, and his mother Viji Rajmohan has used Picture Exchange communication systems and signs to help him communicate. She has also tried diet management, alternative forms of medicine and equestrian therapy with her son. 

“What works for one child with ASD may not work for another. We need to keep an open mind.

But having said that, I want to add that ABA is concrete. My son likes the system of stars that are being used here to encourage desirable behaviours. He looks at ABA therapy as fun,” she says. Viji blogs about the several issues concerning ASD, including Education, at http://care4 autism.blogspot.com