Autism Spectrum Disorder is a term that is used to describe Neurodevelopmental problems. It is a disorder that includes problems with behaviour and communication. It includes repetitive and limited patterns of behaviour. They have trouble understanding people and in communicating how they feel. This disorder usually begins in the early childhood year and goes on to affect the child’s functioning in society.
Symptoms of Autism may include:
- Unable to make eye contact.
- Have very few interest or intense interests for certain topics.
- Rocking back and forth or repeating words and phrases or flipping a leaver.
- Sensitive to sound, touch or smell.
- Not wanting to be held or cuddled.
- Not looking or listening to people.
- Having problems in understanding speech, gestures or facial expressions.
- Have trouble adapting to change.
A routinely developmental screening process by the doctor will let you know if there is any delay in development. If the child shows any of the above mentioned symptoms it will be best to visit a doctor or a psychologist as soon as possible to begin a treatment plan.
Unfortunately, there is no permanent cure for Autism. But if treatment is done properly and regularly, it can lead to a major difference in the development of the child. To help with this, the Mind Alcove – Journaling and Mood Tracking App, has proven to be of great help in this domain. The Mind Alcove App has been designed to help people express their feelings and emotions through multiple journals. It also tracks their mood and helps them connect with society.
How Mind Alcove can help Autistic Individuals and Parents of Autistic children
- Treatment for Autism includes speech therapy:
Speech Therapy helps individuals with a range of speech impairment problems like; Speech fluency problem, Stuttering issues, Language issues, etc. Through the media and audio segment of the Mind Alcove app autistic individuals to record their thoughts in their own voice. Parents, doctors or psychologists can open the app, play the recorded audio and monitor the progress made by them.
- Customized Diaries:
The Mind Alcove app provides its users with 5 types of customised diaries;
i) Daily Journal
ii) Gratitude Journal
iii) Learning Journal
iv) One Line a day journal
v) Dream Journal
Parents of autistic individuals can use the Daily Journal to keep a daily record of their kids. Their behaviour, progress, diet, difficulty faced by them, etc. all this can be recorded in this journal. So that next time they visit the doctor or psychologist all they need to do is open the app and present them with these details.
The Gratitude Journal can be used by autistic individuals to connect with society. They can use it to write what they are grateful for or whom they are grateful for. If they learned something specific the Learning Journal can come in handy. Where they make a note of what they learned and how they implemented it in their daily life. The One line day journal can be used by autistic individuals to make a note of a Specific line that struck them the most or a quote which they would want to remember.
Parents of autistic individuals can go to the Mind Alcove app and access these journals written by their kids. It helps them get a better understanding of what their child is going through, what new thing they learned and how much progress they made.
- Mood Tracker:
Even though a mood tracker cannot help with autism. It helps to manage the emotions of the autistic child as well as their caregiver. The Mind Alcove app gives its users weekly, monthly and quarterly stats and insights on the mood of the child. It helps them form a routine based on their moods. It sync’s the caregivers and child’s schedule along with their moods. This in return helps reduce conflict between the two and helps in the emotional breakdown of the child. Henceforth creating a harmonious environment for the two.
About Mind Alcove
The Mind Alcove App comes with features such as journaling and mood tracking. With the help of journaling and mood tracking, parents of children with autism can understand their moods and emotions better at a go of a click. Upon gaining more awareness about self, one can take better decisions, avoid triggers causing negative moods and thereby improve their quality of life.
Download the app from your PlayStore or AppStore and take better care of your thoughts and emotions whenever parenting gets challenging and cumbersome.
Download for Android or iOS now.
References 1. Healthline - What Is Autism? Symptoms, Causes, Tests, Treatment, and More (healthline.com) 2. WebMD - Autism: Definition, Symptoms, Causes, & Types (webmd.com) 3. Mayo Clinic - Autism spectrum disorder - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic 4. Picture credits - Prek4sa
