In one of the scenes of the movie Rainman, Dustin Hoffman (in a role that earned him his second Oscar trophy) and heartthrob Tom Cruise are sitting side by side at a Las Vegas blackjack table.
By memorizing the order of six decks of cards, Raymond (Hoffman’s character) wins big money for his brother, Charlie (Cruise’s role).
Raymond is a genius trapped inside his autism. Far from “normal,” he lives in a mental hospital, religiously following his routine of television shows and meal schedules, with seemingly little to offer his brother or the world. By the movie’s end, however, Charlie learns to “connect” with Raymond, and the relationship between the brothers is sealed.
From the said Academy Award-winning movie, the people from around the world had a big-screen encounter with autism.
The Philippine cinema followed suit with Ipagpatawad Mo. The marriage of the lead actors—portrayed by Christopher de Leon and Vilma Santos—almost crumbles due to their son’s autism.
“Several important mental-health disorders, such as depression, often develop in childhood,” notes The Merck Manual of Medical Information. “Some disorders, such as autism, develop only in childhood.”
Autism comes from the Greek word auto, which means “self.” It was first described in 1943 by psychiatrist Leo Kanner. He wrote of several children who displayed similar symptoms: Totally self-absorbed and alienated as if they were “having a world of their own.”
The Merck manual defines autism as “a disorder in which a young child cannot develop normal social relationships, uses languages abnormally or not at all, behaves in compulsive and ritualistic ways, and may fail to develop normal intelligence.”
“A spectrum disorder” is how the US National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) calls it. “Some people with autism are relatively high-functioning, with speech and intelligent intact. Others are mentally retarded, mute, or have serious language delays. For some, autism makes them seem closed off and shut down; others seem locked into repetitive behaviors and rigid patterns of thinking,” it explains.
No accurate statistics are available to establish the exact prevalent rates of autism around the world. In the Philippines, however, autism has displaced the prevalence of Down’s Syndrome as the second most frequently diagnosed (after cerebral palsy), according to the Autism Society of the Philippines (ASP), a support group for families of persons with autism.
Based on the prevalence rates worldwide, the figure could be one for every 500 people. But these estimates, however, still underestimate the actual prevalence because of the difficulty in recognizing the condition with such a broad spectrum of manifestations.
“Children with autism generally look normal,” says Elizabeth Barratt, a British special educational needs teacher in Singapore. “Often, however, they have severe behavior problems and are socially inappropriate and unaware. Because of this, people tend to look at them and just think they are naughty children or even look at parents and blame them for not being able to control their child.”
The Singapore-based Autism Resource Center (ARC) claims that autism is not a mental disease, but rather a developmental disability. It is four times more common among boys than in girls. Symptoms may be present from birth, although they may not be noticed until a child is two or three years old, when he is expected to speak.
“Autism is different from mental retardation, although many children with autism have both,” notes the Merck manual, adding that autistic children develop symptoms in at least three of the following areas: social relationships, language, behavior and sometimes intelligence.
- Social relationships: “An autistic infant does not cuddle and avoids eye contact,” the Merck manual informs. “Although some autistic infants become upset when separated from parents, they may not turn to parents for security as do other children. When interacting with other children, they do not use eye contact and facial expressions to establish social contact, and they are not able to interpret the moods and expression of others.”
- Language: “About 50 percent of autistic children never learn to speak. Those who learn do so much later than normal and use words in an unusual way,” the Merck manual says. “They often repeat words spoken to them or reverse the normal use of pronouns. They often speak with an unusual rhythm and pitch.”
- Behavior: “Autistic children are very resistant to changes, such as new food, toys, furniture arrangement, and clothing,” the Merck manual explains. “They often become excessively attached to particular inanimate objects. They often repeat certain acts, such as rocking, hand flapping, or spinning objects in a repetitive manner.”
According to the Merck manual, about 70 percent of children with autism have some degree of mental retardation (an IQ less than 70). Their performance is uneven; they usually do better on tests of motor and spatial skills than on verbal tests.
Unknowingly, 10 percent of autistics have special abilities in some areas like music, art and mathematical calculations. Dr. Bernard Rimland, known as the father of modern autism, used the term “autistic savants” to describe this type of autistics. Raymond, the character played by Hoffman, is one of them. Experts pinpoint, nonetheless, that this type is the exception, rather than the norm.
Theories abound, but no one knows what really causes autism. Current researches link autism to biological or neurological differences in the brain. The severely incapacitating symptoms that manifest among autistic individuals are reportedly caused by physical disorders of the brain.
In some families, it may be inherited. “Often, autistic children have brothers or sisters with autism or other learning difficulties,” says Barratt, who believes autism to be genetic, although other factors may also be involved.
One recent study says the condition could be a developmental problem traceable to infancy. Newsweek once reported a research, which showed that autistic infants initially have smaller than average brains, but then, for some undetermined reason, grow explosively so that their brains become abnormally large for age. By the time they are age four or five, autistic children already have adult-sized brains.
Autism was once thought to be caused by faulty parenting; however, this has been proven to be absolute false. “Autism is not caused by faulty parenting, abuse, neglect, or other childhood trauma,” assures the US Center for the Study of Autism. “Parents should not feel guilty that there is something that they have done or not done for their child. It is not their fault,” Singapore’s ARC points out.
In the final analysis, no one specific cause of autism is known. “Generally, no one can tell you specifically why your child is autistic or why you have an autistic child and your neighbor does not,” ASP said in a statement.
Author’s Note: From January 25-32, the Philippines observes the 2015 National Autism Consciousness Week. This year’s theme is: “Autism Inclusive Philippines: Aim High, Fly High.”