{"id":101,"date":"2021-06-15T08:00:09","date_gmt":"2021-06-15T15:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/?p=101"},"modified":"2025-03-13T15:17:37","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T22:17:37","slug":"6-myths-about-autism-spectrum-disorder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/6-myths-about-autism-spectrum-disorder\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Myths about Autism Spectrum Disorder"},"content":{"rendered":"<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Misinformation about autism can make it harder for some autistic children to receive a timely diagnosis and the support they need. Let\u2019s break down six common myths about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD<\/em>)<em>.\u00a0<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 1: Your child is not ready for speech therapy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>There are <strong>no prerequisite skills for speech therapy<\/strong>\u2014not even speaking! Non-speaking autistic children can benefit from therapy that is play-based and focused on alternative communication methods. Finding a speech-language pathologist (SLP) through registries like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hanen.org\/Special-Pages\/Members-Search.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hanen<\/a> or <a aria-label=\"PROMPT (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/promptinstitute.com\/search\/advanced.asp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">PROMPT<\/a> can help ensure evidence-based practices are being used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 2: All children with ASD have poor eye contact<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some autistic children avoid eye contact, while others have appropriate or even intense eye contact. Every child is different! If social communication is an area of concern, speech therapy can support the development of pragmatic (social) skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 3: All children with ASD have poor play skills<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Many autistic children prefer solo play or engage with toys in unique ways, but others love playing with peers! Play skills exist on a spectrum, just like autism itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 4: Autism can\u2019t be diagnosed until age 4<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Autism can be diagnosed as early as <strong>18 months<\/strong>\u2014sometimes even earlier. In fact, signs of autism may be noticeable by <strong>six months<\/strong> of age. Early diagnosis allows for early support, which can be beneficial for many children and families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 5: Stop self-stimming behavior<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Self-stimulatory behaviors, or \u201cstimming\u201d (such as hand-flapping, spinning, or repeating sounds), help autistic children regulate their sensory systems. Suppressing stimming without an alternative can lead to distress or even self-harming behaviors. Instead of trying to stop stimming, consult an occupational therapist specializing in sensory processing. Tools like fidget toys, movement breaks, or specialized seating can help meet a child&#8217;s sensory needs in a supportive way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Myth 6: Autism is caused by vaccines<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This harmful myth comes from a <strong>now-discredited<\/strong> 1998 study. The researcher responsible lost his medical license, and extensive research has since proven that autism is <strong>not<\/strong> caused by vaccines. Autism develops in utero, well before a child receives any vaccinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By dispelling these myths, we can foster greater understanding and ensure that autistic children receive the support and acceptance they deserve.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Misinformation about autism can make it harder for some autistic children to receive a timely diagnosis and the support they need. Let\u2019s break down six common<span class=\"excerpt-hellip\"> [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":105,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":395,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101\/revisions\/395"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.southernnvspeech.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}