UM Capital Region Medical Center - Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital

The goal of speech therapy is to help your child communicate effectively with other people across all environments. This may take the form of using gestures, simple signs, verbal speech, and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC).

Some other common things speech therapists can help with:

• Nonverbal skills, such as signs or gestures
• Forming speech in a clearer way
• Communicating thoughts and feelings clearly
• Understanding and responding to questions
• Discerning facial expressions and their corresponding emotions
• Noticing and understanding body language
• Feeding and swallowing
• Stuttering

When you visit a neurologist, they’ll assess your child’s needs, run some tests (think imaging or EEG), and diagnose. From there, they’ll create a customized treatment plan. Medication, lifestyle tweaks, or maybe even a referral to another specialist could be on the table.

There unfortunately isn’t one test for all neurodevelopmental conditions. Most likely you will go into a visit to test one or two medical conditions. If you are looking for a comprehensive autism evaluation, developmental pediatricians, psychologists, or neuropsychologists are the preferred specialists who can diagnose autism.

No, neurologists focus mainly on non-surgical interventions. If your child needs surgery, neurologists might point you in the direction of a pediatric neurosurgeon.

A mental health professional (such as a pediatric psychologist) can help concerns around anxiety, depression, trauma, eating disorders, ADHD, behavioral challenges, OCD, grief/loss.

The occupational therapy process includes an OT evaluation before care starts. Here are the four steps your family can expect when starting occupational therapy:

1. Complete OT evaluation. An occupational therapist first identifies your strengths and needs through a thorough OT evaluation, also known as an OT assessment or screening. You’ll answer questions about you your skills, and you will most likely demonstrate these skills via hands-on activities with the therapist. Evaluations can last 30 minutes to a couple hours.
2. Approve OT plan. The therapist develops a care plan with individualized goals and customized interventions based on your needs. You can also share any specific goals or concerns before approving the OT plan.
3. Start therapy sessions. The therapist works directly with you, using various strategies and exercises to systematically improve areas of limitations and to build upon your strengths. If there are others part of your care team, the therapist may teach strategies for supporting your individualized needs at home and may recommend tools and techniques to use at home, in the community, or in the classroom to help you thrive.
4. Monitor your progress. You can expect ongoing progress monitoring and communication to ensure you're achieving your short and long-term goals.

More research is needed to understand the link between sleep disturbance and autism, but there are a few possible reasons why autistic children have difficulty sleeping.2

• Co-occurring conditions. Coexisting medical conditions like ADHD, anxiety, or sleep apnea (when you stop breathing multiple times throughout the night), environmental allergies, and gastrointestinal upset (like constipation), can negatively impact sleep.
• Sensory sensitivities. Sensitivity to lights, sounds, and touch (think textures of blankets and clothing) can disrupt sleep.
• Medications. Often autistic children are prescribed medications to address various concerns like hyperactivity, anxiety, or aggression. Many of these medications may contribute to sleep problems. Adderall, Focalin, and Vyvanse are examples of stimulants prescribed to children on the spectrum to treat hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention, that can cause insomnia. Abilify and Risperdal (medications commonly prescribed for autistic children who have severe irritability, aggression, and/or self-injurious behaviors) may cause some children to become very sleepy.  However, each person responds differently to medications. (Pro tip: Keep channels of communication open with your doctor so that you can find the best medication to help your child that least affects sleep.)
• Neurobiological differences. Some research suggests autistic people may not produce the same levels of neurotransmitters (such as serotonin) or hormones (melatonin) important for sleep regulation, and may also experience disruption in circadian rhythms.3 In addition, low muscle tone can contribute to sleep-breathing disorders, such as sleep apnea, which also affects the quality of sleep and can lead to increased inattentive and hyperactive symptoms during the day. These behaviors, in turn, make it more challenging for the child to participate in therapies and activities. 

For more information, read our comprehensive sleep guide.

Like anyone else, when children on the spectrum don’t get adequate sleep, they may find it difficult to self-regulate during the day. But there’s another consequence – autistic kids who don’t get enough sleep can experience an increase in stimming, irritability, inattention, difficulty socializing, and keeping up in school.3 They may also face challenges with increased hyperactivity and lack of impulse control. In short, lack of sleep can intensify your child’s existing challenges.

The same goes for parents, too. It’s hard for you to keep your cool and be fully present when you aren’t well-rested.5 As you’ve already found out, good sleep is crucial for everyone in the home.

Speak with your doctor if you have concerns – especially if you notice your child snores or gasps in their sleep, grinds their teeth (bruxism), sleeps with their mouth open/drools, or is very sweaty during sleep, as these are potential signs of sleep apnea. It can be helpful to keep a log of concerns, including when the child falls asleep, how many times they wake up, when they wake for the day, and any unusual behaviors (e.g., an unusual number of sleep terrors, recurrent nightmares, sleepwalking, sleep talking, unusual hand movements, lip-smacking).

Research shows that pediatricians are sometimes unaware of the severity of sleep issues in autistic children, so please continue to advocate for your child if you have concerns.