Introduction
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a problem that affects a child’s nervous system and growth and development. A child with ASD often has problems communicating and engages in restrictive and repetitive behaviours. ASD begins before the age of 3 years and can last throughout a person’s life, although symptoms may improve over time.
You can be rest assured that at Skooc, you and your family are in good hands.
In the first year of life, children’s social and communication development is an important area to watch for early signs of autism. Keep a look out for some of the following signs in your child.
Verbal - delayed speech, not responding when someone calls their name
Social - avoiding eye contact, not sharing enjoyment or interests with others, rarely showing interest in other children
Gestures - unusual body movements (flapping, arm-stiffening, back-arching, etc.), uses only a few gestures, rarely pointing to or holding up objects to show you things
Sensory - being very focused or attached to unusual objects, interacting with toys and objects in limited ways, being extremely sensitive to sensory experiences – certain sounds or will eat only foods with certain textures or colours
Intense interests - rituals such as repeating things over and over or lining up objects, being very interested in certain objects or activities and getting upset if they can’t do that activity,
Behaviour - rarely pretend play, little to no imitating others, easily upset by change, and need to follow routines.
If you notice recurring instances of a few of these symptoms in your child, we, at Skooc, recommend a formal evaluation.
The results of a formal evaluation at Skooc will determine the kind of intervention or treatment the child will need.This formal evaluation is a more in-depth look at a child’s development, usually done by a trained specialist, such as a developmental paediatrician, child psychologist, speech-language pathologist, occupational therapist, or other specialists.
Click here to take an assessment.
Next Steps and Intervention
Our team of professional psychologists at Skooc can help you and your child by providing the necessary interventions. At Skooc, treatment for children with autism can include:
Behavioural
Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA)
Discrete Trial Training (DTT)
Pivotal Response Training (PRT)
Developmental
Speech and Language Therapy
Occupational Therapy
Sensory Integration Therapy
Physical Therapy
Educational
Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication-Handicapped Children (TEACCH)
Social-Relational
Developmental, Individual Differences, Relationship-Based
Relationship Development Intervention (RDI)
Social Stories
Social Skills Groups
Psychological
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
"My daughter lost 11 kgs across the Skooc program which was more than 10% of her body weight and has stayed in the healthy range of BMI since then. She now makes the right decisions regarding her foods and is aware of the effect of what she eats and her exercise on her weight.
Skooc has helped my daughter get into a great shape physically and mentally. She has lost more than 15 kgs and has improved her health metrics enough that she is no longer at risk of chronic diseases. The program worked with my daughter and me to help us understand how to correct what we were doing. Very importantly, Avi and I no longer fight over what she eats and what she does not.
My son has lost 15 kgs and I lost 10 kgs through the Skooc program. It was easily paced and did not ever restrict my child from eating anything that was essential. He had a balanced meal everyday and he and his counsellor agreed on a schedule that was easy for me to cook too. From a child who watched TV all the time and ate junk food, Ayaan is now an active child and a healthy eater who is very happy and confident with how he looks.
Manish was severely obese with a risk of contracting chronic conditions. After joining the Skooc program, he has lost over 15 Kgs and has started to exercises everyday for 45 minutes. He suffered from pain in the knees which has gone now and he is able to run and play with his friends. It has been 1 year since he started to lose weight and he is still in the process successfully losing wight and getting healthy.
Ria was teased very badly in school for being fat and would be very embarrassed about even going out. When we went to the doctor we were shocked to find out that she was very overweight and had high cholesterol. We joined Skooc and both she and I have dropped our extra weight and even after finishing the full course are able to stick with the habits we learnt at Skooc. We are both very happy with our new healthy bodies.
My son suffered from constant digestive issues and obesity. He found it very difficult to run and play due to his thighs being very fat and also he suffered from pains in his knees, hips. He also had trouble breathing after even walking a small distance. We joined Skooc because we had tried to put Jay on a diet before and it had not worked. At Skooc, he dropped 24Kgs and is now a teenager who was healthily and works out everyday. I personally dropped 16Kgs and now we are both very close to entering our ideal weight zone