They may not develop in the normal way. They may not like eye contact, may not even notice movements. They may start speaking much later than normal kids. They may not even interact with other kids, eschewing pretend play altogether. They may not like changes in routine, and can be unusually attached to objects. Parents might be forgiven if they think their child is mentally disabled, but in fact, these children might just be suffering from autism. Autism is a neuro-developmental disorder that affects the development, socializing, and communication of children.
On the other hand, parents might also be forgiven if they think their autistic child is just lazy, because these children can be exceptionally intelligent in specific areas. Their IQ can be higher than other children of their age. Autistic people do not process context, which might lead to dangerous behavior like climbing to great heights with no realization of the danger it entails, but it also gives them clarity in processing information where others might be confused by the context. Autistic people have trouble processing pretensions and lies, which often gives them clarity in analyzing emotions and relationships. And when such gifted children go on to school and do not perform well, parents often think they just lack the motivation to do so, when actually autistic children may not respond to normal teaching methods.
Though there is no data available for autistic children in Nepal, autism affects roughly 1 in 88 children in the US, leading to assumption that a similar proportion of children in Nepal probably suffers from autism. But there is so little awareness of autism in Nepal that very few of them get the help they deserve. Because it is hard to communicate with autistic children, parents and the society as a whole often neglect them, which hampers their socializing and communication even more. Furthermore, the causes of autism are unknown, and it has no cure, which means that an autistic child lives with his (autism affects more boys than girls) condition his entire life.
Autism neither has any known causes, nor cures. It cannot be prevented or healed. But it can certainly be diagnosed.
Autism is one of the many areas that the government needs to pay increased attention to. Currently, there are no policies or programs to address autism. Since autism neither has any known causes, nor cure, it cannot be prevented or healed. But it can certainly be diagnosed. The government can initiate awareness programs to help parents recognize autism in their children, teach parents to communicate with their autistic children, and help autistic children realize their full potential. Many autistic individuals are gifted with visual, musical, or intellectual abilities, and many intelligent and talented people with developmental difficulties in childhood like Albert Einstein, Hans Christian Anderson, Amadeus Mozart, Michelangelo, and Emily Dickinson, are thought to be autistic in retrospect.
Each child deserves the best from the society so that he/she has a fair chance of reaching such heights in life, and ultimately, society as a whole can benefit from their talents. Until now, private organizations have been fulfilling the niche demand of creating autism awareness and educating autistic children, but the government also needs to open day care centers and schools where autistic children can thrive. After all, autistic children have the potential to do what their normal counterparts are able to, if they are accorded proper care and attention.
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