Why Your Child Is Autistic #1

[KarinOll]

... because of the toxic overload ... starting with mercury. Dr. Klinghardt, Dr. Chris Shade (Mercury Test - quicksilverscientific), Dr. Boyd Haley.

[DVideoPro]

your teh best phil

[1988rogers]

Denis Leary..."I'll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out. That's what autism is. What do you mean they scream and they're silent? They don't have a father around to tell them, 'Don't act like a moron. You'll get nowhere in life. Stop acting like a putz. Straighten up. Act like a man. Don't sit there crying and screaming, idiot.' ".....

[TheZoneZone]

I've been on the path of trying to understanding my son's autistic behavior for four years. He is now five. I believe that he has greatly benefited from being brought down this path of understanding. I hope more parents choose this path.

[wattaaa]

I understand what you're saying about adapting yourself to understand your child's behavior instead of wishing he was behaving differently, which I think is definitely something that needs to be addressed.

However, the parents who are saying that autism is something beautiful that we need to accept and move on with are simply intellectually slothful. Your child is suffering from intracranial pressure, severe diarrhea, memory impairment, and you're so lazy you'd rather say "eh, that's how it is

[PhilCommander2]

I agree that some parents are doing that...but a lot of parents who say to 'accept' autism are saying that you need to deal with the medical issues (some of which you mentioned) but there are some traits that are labeled 'autistic behaviours' that are actually just part of the kids personality.

These need to be left alone and celebrated. Not enough parents are trying to discern the two though.

Thanks for your comment!

[toorare2die]

i'm infuriated by the way this man repeats everything so many times. Aren't the parents watching this insulted? Who wants to learn from that?

[KimberlyMahurin]

An autistic mind is a beautiful thing. We dont want to get rid of it. Autism is who they are. Phil I recognize the efforts you have put forth on youtube and its not easy. Thank you for sharing all your realizations for it is not easily understood for most.

[KimberlyMahurin]

Understanding autism is complex, but over time it gets easier with your knowledge. So autism and behavior is separate. Then you have acceptable behavior and bad behaviors. Bad behaviors are often due to the imbalance in the system. Once understood those behaviors can be helped making the child happy and comfortable in life.

[thehillroom302]

Thank you so much for this information. Love Sonia.

[bopplayer]

Also ABAScience, explain how you transition from motivating a child to behave in a manipulated environment (meaning therapists in home or center) to wanting to behave on his/her own. How does ABA train them to be concerned with what other people think about them and their behavior? that is the $65,000.00 question to be asked to you.

[ABAisSCIENCE]

Teaching a child to say, "Mommy" sells it to a mother.

Teach a child to mand for things such that they see control sells talking to a child.

I don't know who comes first in behavioral programs, but selling the product of talking to someone is critical, no doubt about it.

I believe parental involvement is critical as Bijou & Lovaas who are behaviorists first focused on parental involvement.

Read up on Multiple Cue Responsivity & Joint Attention for remediation of overselectivity.

[bopplayer]

Any particular articles or books you recommend? what are your qualifications? care to tackle my $65,000 question?

[ABAisSCIENCE]

Why do they behave this way? Motivation due to extrinsic reinforcers from experiences of the past causing conditioning for such motivations to be established.

[bopplayer]

Wow not surprised at your comment coming from user name like your's. ABA is very effective, so are other treatments, but most behaviorists only see behavior. You probably don't believe in the need for SI, but it's very real.

Why do they behave this way? Motivation due to extrinsic reinforcers from experiences of the past causing conditioning for such motivations to be established.

[ABAisSCIENCE]

bopplayer, take heart a baby with autism wiggles its' hands and puts them it their mouth just like another baby without autism.

The difference is that a child with autism is overselective in focus of stimulus; thus, the reinforcement schedule will be weaker for social engagement. Also, language will be experimented with getting a weaker reinforcement schedule too. This means that the baby finds more control of reinforcement with sensory play.

Care to explain what you think about SI?

[bopplayer]

I agree with you in that they over select stimulus. All autistics are either Hypo sensitive (seeking sensory) or Hyper (receiving too much) these issues must be dealt with by an OT and also use of Audio Integration. AI doesn't work with everyone, but i've met many parents that said their child startd speaking clearer and in longer sentences. I'm not an OT, i'm a parent that doesn't have the luxury of subscribing to one method because it is my career. However I know ABA is a science that works.

[ABAisSCIENCE]

ABA is a science with 600 articles on the effectiveness for remediating autism and fourteen replication articles on Ole Ivar Lovaas' work.

Look it up on the internet relative to finding this comment on 600 articles.

It seems stimulus overselectivity was found as the problem of autism by Koegel, Lovaas, and Schreibman and all three of them have their names on a grant that made Lovaas the most famous professional in the field.

[ABAisSCIENCE]

My nephew would look to me & answer each question to professionals my name at ending & looking to me.

Not for approval, but because I was only person talked to 1st few months when he learned to speak.

He also would run to a mirror if I was hurt to see if he was hurt too. So Freudian, but not really.

When his mother would ask, "Who loves you?" he would answer with my name.

Autism is diagnosed by behavior due to having too many mutations in their genes or deletions. Their parents do not have.

[PhilCommander2]

"Autism is diagnosed by behavior due to having too many mutations in their genes or deletions"

This is actually just your opinion. Im not saying that you are wrong or right...I'm just saying that there is no clear cause of autism and whenever anyone says that "autism is caused by" they then go on to state an opinion because there is no accepted cause of autsim.

[ABAisSCIENCE]

James Watson Double Helix & DNA video here on You Tube is not conclusive at this time, but keep in mind best known genetic autism is Fragile X which is a spectrum disorder, that guess what?, if it comes with more mutations & deletions, a dual diagnosis of autism.

Mainly because Fragile X is autism that's why some don't get the autism diagnosis label as their behavior isn't so bad due to less mutations or deletions helping them either escape labels completely or get PDD or aspergers.

[springrobin]

Just a BTW comment..I think it funny that seeing that it is the aut.s that have the 'problem' of maintaining focus(!) that you give N.T.'s so much help with maintaining their focus to get the point and stay with you, in all your vid.'s. I've found aut. have no trouble maintaining focus on the things that interest them...that would be kinda like all of us would it not? or am I dense? So why teachers rip away their objects of focus(usually with scolding) ...cont

[springrobin]

) instead of building the math lesson etc around those objects and incorporating them I don't know...ok I do it takes more effort? I am teacher of aut.

[springrobin]

Love your thinking Phil. What did you wish Teachers of your child were more like? or would have told you? or helped you with? Or do for you"? "etc

[PhilCommander2]

Actually I just wanted the teachers to not mess up what I was doing. His early teachers were very honest about not being educated in autism and would ask me advice in many cases. Then he got teachers who were trained in autism and they have helped tremendously. They did their things and I did mine.

[springrobin]

geez but what better a united front of both parent and teacher working together makes & I'm not dreaming cuz it does happen, alot if ur willing to put out the effort. I run & join forces with parents like you & I try new ways all the time to help the others not yet as involved as you.

[Happyautism]

Hey phil thats why i make videos, when my eldest was diagnosed i knew no one.

And the videos that i came up against were all like ''war on autism iradicate it''. I wish i had seen the kind of videos like ours sooner.

[SaladFingersCindy]

Autism is a spectrum disorder. High functioning autism, unfortunately, is hard to diagnose sometimes. The spectrum is so wide, & no two autistic kids are alike. It is a neurological disorder. My high-functioning autistic son sees the world entirely different than we (non-autistic people) do. Their brains are not wired the same way ours are. They do not even process the senses the way our brains do.

[mysteryroad]

Great video. :)

[bopplayer]

Great video!! seems about a year ago here on the tube you were going after autism as a whole as I was too. I was also echanted by odd stories throughout history like Peter the Wolf boy.

[bopplayer]

I don't spend any time on that any more, now i'm studying effective teaching, and behaviorism based methods of teaching like discrete trial. Also sensory processing etc time is ticking. One comment I would say is the behaviors are what are identified in a diagnosis yes, but the true core of the disorder lies in the different areas of the brain that are wired differently. You know like Temple Grandin talks about...anyway, great stuff now on to your next vid.

[drmaier]

phil, I agree that according to diagnostic criteria - autism is a set of specific behaviors. But those behaviors are not autism. The cause of these behaviors is a difference in perception. People who have autism can be taught alternate perceptions and they can be given ways to fulfill their different sensory needs. But the behaviors are not the disorder.

That would be like saying that sneezing was a cold. Sneezing is not the cold itself. You can stop sneezing with medicine but the cold remains.

[PhilCommander2]

But I stand by my statement that you are not autistic if you do not have autistic behaviors...if you have enough autistic behaviors then you are labeled autistic.

[PhilCommander2]

as far as the behaviors being the disorder...my point in this video is that without the behaviors there is no disorder.

[drmaier]

And we all know that being labeled autistic and being autistic are two seperate things. Before my son was labeled autistic - he was still autistic. If some day, he doesn't meet diagnostic criteria, he won't be labeled autistic - but he will still be autistic.

[PhilCommander2]

If your child had no autistic behavior would he be autistic?

[drmaier]

Yes, he would still be autistic.

He would probably fail to qualify for services, and he would need less help, but he will always have autism.

[PhilCommander2]

So are you really saying that if your child had NO autistic behavior he would still be autistic???

You can't seriously think you can defend that statement.

Unless...you have personally redefined what autism is.

We cant go around redefining things and expect people to just go along with our new definition.

If a person has NO autistic symptoms then they are not autistic...plain and simple.

[drmaier]

These behaviors are symptoms of autism. The behaviors have a cause and the cause in autism.

What is autism?

Autism is a difference in the way the brain processes information. If you teach a child to "act" normally, the cause of those "symptoms" is still there, thus, the autism is still there. The child still processes differently, but he has been shown to react to it in an NT way. The child still has autism.

[PhilCommander2]

Then what would be your opinion of a child who has an autistic behavior that goes away when a diet is implemented?

Or how about several autistic behaviors that go away when a diet is implemented?

It was those behaviors (in part) that got the child the label "autistic" and now they are gone due to a diet.

[PhilCommander2]

see, my point is that when people say that autism is a difference in the way the brain processes information they are limiting their view of their childs behavior in the same way as someone who says its all metal toxicity or vaccinations.

If autism was simply the way a child processes information then not letting them drink milk should have no effect on the way that childs behavior.

But MANY childrens autistic behaviors are diminished when taken off of Casien.

[PhilCommander2]

So as long as we approach our children believing we already know why they behave the way they do, we will limit our approaches in our attempts to help them.

I believe in all of my heart that the reason why many children have certain autistic behaviors is far more involved than it just being the way they process information or the amount of vaccines they received.

[drmaier]

Well, there are a lot of other indicators to let parents know which avenue is best. Kids who don't feel good lack energy, they often have other illnesses and a look at the diet can always indicate that a change needs to be made.

But there are many "autistic" behaviors that have nothing to do with diet. If you change the diet for a kid with gluten allergies, he will feel better, function better.

But he is still autistic.

[PhilCommander2]

Yes, there are MANY autistic behaviors that have nothing to do with diet. NO DOUBT! that is the point of the video in many ways. You need to understand why your children behave the way they do and not chalk up all of their behavior to one thing.

But is that child still autistic if the behaviors that got him or her the label are now gone or diminished enough where they would not meet the criteria for the label?

[drmaier]

Right, I agree. Many children on the spectrum do much better without certain foods in their diet. people who are diabetic can't eat too much sugar. If you take the sugar out of the diet, the person functions better - but they still have diabetes.

[PhilCommander2]

Would a child who had some autistic behavior, but not enough to be classified autistic, still be autistic?

If so, then the label is meaningless. There needs to be criteria met in order to be classified autistic...and if you feel that children that dont meet that criteria are still autistic, then who's to say who is and isnt autistic. We could all say we are.

No, certain criteria needs to be met...and if you dont meet it, youre not autistic, even if you did meet it at one time.

[drmaier]

Absolutely. In fact, it sucks for some kids who don't meet enough of the criteria for an educational diagnosis. The result is that they don't receive the services he needs. There is a cut off, Phil. It is very present in public school systems.

Take, for instance, two people with down's syndrome. One is considerably less affected and lives independantly. Is one more "downsy" than the other? NO. They both have downs.

[PhilCommander2]

Then what behaviors and how many of them will qualify a person to be autistic?

[MySonHasAutism]

Autism is a disability that a PERSON has. A person is born and develops autism without choice on their part. This is different than saying a person is "autistic" which implies they have control to be that way or not. "ism" refers to a symptom, "ic" refers to a state of being. People cannot become "autistic" the same way people become "artistic" or "alcoholic". To have Autism is not a choice. Saying a person is autistic implies a behavioral choice, or weakness of the individual's character.

[PhilCommander2]

i would argue that "autistic" is an adjective.

[drmaier]

Agreed, Phil. It's actually a suffix that modifies the adjective, applying the trait to the subject of the adjective.

[MySonHasAutism]

Great stuff, Thank you for helping! But remember the Child HAS AUTISM, not the child is Autistic.

[PhilCommander2]

Thanks for comment!

Please explain the difference. :)

[wiscsuzski]

Many autistic people would argue that "person-first" denies their autism as an integral part of them. Yes, some people do take pride in being autistic. Not as if it is something they "got" and wish to eliminate.

[SergioSPogi]

your vid on the gfcf diet helped my son a lot. after doing the diet, his behavior has improved a lot. Thanks a lot.

[mpinn0005]

Phil,

Thanks for the video.  Could you please post the video about reading soon? We can't wait to hear more!

[samsydneysmama]

Thanks for the insight, my three year old daughter is autistic, we focus on treating her autistic behaviors that are negative not trying to cure her autism as a whole. It is encouraging to see other parents viewing autism the same way.

[navywife1977]

WEEEEEE!!!! VERY well said!

[mrefus]

All our children are unique,yet as parents we are on the SAME path. I just came to the ralization you describe in this video last week. The quickest way to see results is figuring out the behavior. I guess this is why ABA works so well with our kids. My son is now 5 yrs old and it took me this long to figure it out. I totally understand why you are doing this to help parents. I hope they will listen and not waste the time I did. Thank you! Lisa

[sn8kedude]

This is a terrific video introducing why it's sooo important to do a functional analysis of any child's behavior before deciding what to do about it. Each child is unique and understanding their individual motivations is critical to knowing how to teach them.

[666sigma]

May not make a lot of sense???

It makes a hell of a lot of sense. Great observation and explanation. I actually did not know where you were going with the 2 paths until you explained it in wonderfully simple terms.

I also think that many parents will also recognize that some of the behaviors exist to some extent in other family members, if they take the understanding path.

BTW, Jake's looking for affirmation would not be considered a typical autistic behavior.

[BenedictC]

Great video phil... Don't worry I totally understand it and I think the way you put your point across was great.

Its more of a case of understanding why your child behaves in that manor and finding ways round it, not going after the entire spectrum of autism and wanting to cure it.

As some of the autistic behavior when encouraged can help the child... this includes obsessions, logical thinking and other things.

I always see autism as a neutral, the bad things are balanced out by the good things.

[likedcalico]

Why is my child autistic?

Because they have autistic behavior.

So what happens if an abused child has autistic behavior or a deaf child? Does that make them autistic? There are other conditions out there that share the same behavior, even abused children show it and deaf kids.

I was diagnosed as autistic when I was about two and my parents didn't buy it because I had hearing loss.

[PhilCommander2]

If someone is evaluated by a professional and they exhibit enough autistic behaviors then they will be classified as being autistic.

What you say is correct...there are other conditions out there that share the same behaviors as autism...That's why it is vital to ask the question "WHY does my child behave this way" not "What causes autism".

[xanovaria]

Another great vid phil. We missed you for a while there.

[iliciaq]

Great video, Phil... I totally agree. Waiting for the next one!

[autimom07]

good and simpleexplanation , thanks Mr. so keep them coming

[MusicalAspie]

I think you explained it quite nicely.I thought it was especially important that you emphasized that autism is a part of us.This seems to be often misunderstood.

[jon2xu]

Hey Phil.

[PhilCommander2]

Hey my man Joe...always good to hear from the other coast!

[jon2xu]

yeah w.coast i should go back to the east coast. It is tough out here. thanks for the reply.

[thewildeman2]

Phil, you have clearly thought this through. Astounding and awesome work! Understanding is such an important milestone in presenting a better future for our children who live with autism! Super KUDOS! I am really excited about your vids!

[PhilCommander2]

Thanks tons Wilderman! thanks for watching.