CASE STUDIES / Autism

Subject: Autism
Patient: 5 year old female
Treatment: Occupational Therapy, Sensory Integration, Integrative Manual Technique, Samonas, Nutrition, Visceral and CranioSacral therapy
Patient was treated 1 time a week for 2 years.

Assessment: SM had Autism with severe fight or flight reactions to various stimuli. SM would run, hit, kick, scream and cry in reaction to these normally innocuous stimuli. Her safety and ability to tolerate the world was severely limiting her ability to interact with her family. Developmental milestones for motor skills were limited, social emotional interactions were limited, and her ability to judge situations for safety was severely limited.

Strengths for SM were that she had a dedicated family that was very supportive. SM was also able to make eye contact, had speech skills, and was extremely bright.

Diet was limited at first due to her selection of foods that were acceptable.

Palpation: SM had several areas that were indicated as areas of concern. Her cranial system were extremely tight, the dural membranes and cranial bones have a normal physiological motion that was severely limited. This improved as treatment progressed.

Mobility: Soft tissue assessment indicated limitations in the liver, small and large intestine mobility.

Motility: limitations of the liver, dural tube, and kidney were evident by testing.

Treatments: Weekly routines were established to limit uncertainty. Sensory integration and the deep pressure program were implemented. She was not able to go into an open area due to the fight or flight reactions and the safety of herself and other children. She had poor awareness of her body and where it was in space. In order to plan how to move the parts to climb or balance, SM received manual therapy, visceral and integrative therapy to address the area of greatest concern each week.

Progress: SM began to exhibit calming faster between upsets. Desensitizing to the door by entering or leaving the room throughout the session was implemented by the therapist. Her diet improved and mom was able to add nutritional supplements to improve detoxification of metals and anti-oxidants.

SM began to show an interest in her sister and other children. She would have relapses of intense fight or flight but was able to verbalize emotions. SM learned vocabulary to describe facial expressions but not yet internalize the word for emotions that she herself might feel. As SM progressed, she learned to read and take turns in some simple games. She would learn about varying situations and flexibility.

As the sensory integration treatments progressed, SM developed improved awareness, reacting to pain in a more normal way. She was beginning to feel the normal pains when she got hurt. This was the beginning of developing safety awareness and empathy for other’s pain, a crucial step in social-emotional development.

SM was able to improve in her motor skills, enjoying baseball with a t-stand, climbing and throwing as other children her age. She has made excellent progress in all areas treated.

Parent’s Comments:

SM was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in March 2004, before which she was referred for occupational and speech therapy by her pediatrician. SM had moderate to severe sensory issues, including but not limited to, an aversion to getting messy, sound sensitivities, and assorted anxieties, some of which interfered with her daily life. We could not take SM out in public in most situations, because she had severe anxiety about doors; any time a door opened or closed, she suffered severe breakdowns and tantrums with up to an hour of recovery time. SM was very non-compliant and had strong “fight-or-flight” tendencies. When faced with non-preferred activities, she would typically hit or kick, rather than verbalize her feelings. SM also had a very difficult time in flexibility with play; she played the same way, placing objects in the same order each time, and would not allow outside distraction or sharing in play activity. SM also was not aware of her body in space. She was frightful and overly cautious with swing, climbing, and jumping. She would not swing, could not climb simple ladder or rock walls; she did not know where to place her feet or how to move her hands in order.

As for SM’s play and body awareness in space, SM is now fully capable of climbing up and down ladder with no assistance and climbing both a vertical and inclined rock wall. She knows where her feet are and where to place her hands and in what order. Swinging is not her favorite, but she will swing and spin and bounce, which helps to focus her. Her balance has improved. –KM (Mom)

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