When a child has been diagnosed with autism, early intervention is crucial because it can greatly improve their developmental outcome and quality of life. Nicole Ercan, Clinical Director for Apara Autism in San Antonio, discusses what early intervention looks like and the social skills programs involved in treatment.

What should a parent do if they think their child might be autistic?

Ercan: If a family suspects that their child may be demonstrating symptoms of autism, it’s very important that they speak to their pediatrician. A second opinion may be necessary if there are still doubts after speaking to your doctor. The earlier that the family is able to obtain a diagnosis for autism, it allows you to explore what resources there are available for early intervention. Some children may just need speech or occupational therapy, but it helps set them up for success later on down the road if they would benefit from applied behavior analysis.

What are symptoms of autism?

Ercan: Some early signs and symptoms may present as delayed language skills, repeating of words and phrases like echoing, avoiding eye contact, or not responding to their name. The child may also engage in behaviors such as lining up toys or objects, not showing interest in ongoing activities, not attending to others, or avoiding peers. Just because you see these things doesn’t necessarily mean that your child would be diagnosed [with autism].

There is negative context behind an autism diagnosis. The diagnosis is not something that should be considered “bad”, it just means that we need to be aware that they have a different learning style.

Can you talk about Apara Autism’s approach in working with a child?

Ercan: Once the child gets their diagnosis, the provider should provide a referral list for different therapies that they’re recommending. Having an autism diagnosis does not necessarily mean you’re going to need applied behavior therapy. For those individuals that have a moderate to severe diagnosis may require the additional support and learning environments that our therapy provides for our full time clients.

For children that would be mildly on the spectrum, they may qualify for group intervention such as social skills or even part time, 10 to 15 hours a week. Apara’s social skills [therapy] involves getting into deeper conversations on topics such as, making friends, addressing bullying, humor feedback, and handling relationships.

How does Apara Autism integrate the child’s therapy with the home environment?

Ercan: Applied Behavioral Analysis is not just for the child, it is for the whole family. This approach ensures that what we work on in the center is able to generalize to the home with family members and a variety of community settings. Through our training and support we help build in flexibility and living skills for adapting to different settings.

Does Apara Autism also help families find other resources to help their child?

Ercan: Our intake team does a fantastic job communicating with families and providing additional resources that they can explore in collaboration with Apara. Our number one goal at Apara is to get children into therapy as quickly as we can, and work on skills to transition them out of therapy as soon as possible into a less restrictive environment.

Are therapy sessions at Apara Autism just for the child?

Ercan: We encourage families to do what we call “parent meetings.” In these meetings, we review programs and the child’s progress on skills that we’re working on. We also bring caregivers into the therapy session and allow them to observe skills that are being taught and specifically how to fade back adult assistance to teach independence.

Interested in learning more about Apara Autism of San Antonio? Visit their website aparaautism.com.

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