“The current coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent lockdown have disrupted routines unexpectedly and overwhelmingly. This has caused concern across the world about the impact on the mental health of not only adults, but also of children.”
Hanlie Degenaar, a senior speech-language therapist at the Institute of Psychology and Wellbeing at the North-West University (NWU), says that the reactions of autists, including children who are on the autism spectrum, to the lockdown differ widely. While some people flourish without social and communication pressure, families mainly report intense emotional disruption.
She explains that sensory sensitivity, anxiety, depression and the performing of functions are concomitant challenges to autists.
“That is why these persons depend on predictable routines, environments with little sensory distractions and opportunity for self-regulating actions for their daily functioning.”
Dilemmas during lockdown
The results of a survey by the Simons Powering Autism Research Organisation (SPARK) shows that families with children younger than five years were especially hard hit by the lockdown.
Hanlie says that the Institute of Psychology and Wellbeing, which focuses on autism, among other things, also received calls in this regard from parents with similar experiences.
“The majority of the enquiries were for assistance with the management of challenging and emotional behaviour. The increase in requests for advice with the regulation of emotions was also confirmed by Autism South Africa.”
What to do during lockdown
Hanlie says acting calmly and purposefully when the environment elicits uncertainty, fear, frustration and feelings of powerlessness requires a combination of brain processes.
“The way in which people process the information they gather through their senses determines the quality of the information they use to solve problems and to plan. If people find themselves in overwhelming situations, language processes and communication are essential to adjust their behaviour.
“Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects all these functions and it is therefore easy to understand that autists experience more challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
In order to deal with challenges, especially anxiety, at home, adult autists, parents and organisations focusing on support to autists suggest the following:
- Tell social stories.
- Draw up visual day and month planners.
- Do activities like breathing exercises, yoga, dancing, painting, playing with clay and making music.
- Give regular time for relaxation with activities that calm the senses.
- Prepare meals together.
- Practise hobbies.
- Maintain virtual contact with friends and relatives.
- Arrange online intervention sessions in the same time slot as the children were used to for support with interventions.
- Maintain physical activity.
- Enjoy car trips in the immediate area.
https://sparkforautism.org/discover_article/covid-19-impact-asd/
https://aut2know.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Supporting-Individuals...
The stories of families and adult autists about the Covid-19 lockdown emphasise the wide spectrum of strengths and challenges of this increasingly common neuro-developmental condition.
https://www.spectrumnews.org/opinion/cross-talk/around-the-world/
https://www.spectrumnews.org/features/multimedia/podcasts/spectrum-stori...
Hanlie says that although awareness of autism is increasing, in-depth knowledge about integrating the needs of these people fully with society is still lacking.
The Institute of Psychology and Wellbeing, in collaboration with Autism South Africa, offers their annual National Autism Symposium online from 25 to 27 June.
The aim of this symposium is to offer a platform to all role players to exchange and deepen practical, research and clinical knowledge.
For more information, call the Institute of Psychology and Wellbeing at 018 299 1737, or send an email to IPWinfo@nwu.ac.za.
More about autism
Autists experience, think, learn and approach tasks in a different manner, but this is not necessarily problematic. “Some people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have outstanding skills and can, with minimal support, make unique contributions to communities. Others have more challenges to overcome and need more support from persons around them.”
Hanlie emphasises that it is important to understand that autism is a diverse neuro-developmental condition that is characterised by challenges with communication, social interaction and repetitive behaviour. ASD presents with various subtypes that relate to a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
“Researchers are also investigating phenotypes relating to brain structure and functional brain activity. Clear answers are not available yet, despite active and focused research from different angles. However, it is clear that every autistic person has unique strengths and challenges.”
Hanlie Degenaar.
