Effect Of Speech Therapy VS ABA Therapy On Autism!

Autism is a disorder related to the development of the brain that creates difficulties in social interaction. There are various special schools present to help those children who are dealing with this condition. With this, they can advance and improve their educational life and participate in fields of their interests and talents.

Symptoms

The problem of autism starts in children usually in the early stages of their life. Later on, they experience the symptoms at the age of 18 to 24. There is a mixture of symptoms so sometimes it is difficult to identify the stage of the disease. Lack of facial expression, lack of social communication and interaction, poor eye contact, delayed speech, unaware of other’s feelings and many more are included in the symptoms of autism.

Treatment

There are many treatments available. Therapy is one of them that benefit in curing the disorder of autism. The therapy improves behaviour, speech, and learning and development. Speech therapy and ABA therapy (Applied Behavior Analysis) are very common therapies that help in the development of social communication and interaction.

Speech Therapy

Speech therapy is a therapy that deals with the challenges of communication and language. It improves social, verbal, and non-verbal communication for people who are suffering from autism. The overall aim of this therapy is to help the person interact in more functional and useful ways. Speech therapy may work on these given below skills:

• Responding to questions

• Modulating the tone of voice

• Making clearer speech sounds

• Understanding body language

• Strengthening the neck, jaw, and mouth muscles

• Matching an image with its meaning

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Therapy

This therapy is mostly used in clinics and schools to help the child reduce negative behaviours and learn positive behaviours. This method can be used to develop a number of skills such as communication skills, public dealing, and language skills. ABA is a very flexible treatment that can be provided at several different locations such as at home, clinics, schools, and in the community. It teaches skills that are helpful in everyday life and can also involve group instruction or one-to-one teaching. 

One of the foremost strategies used in applied behaviour analysis (ABA) is positive reinforcement. Positive rewards encourage them to continue using the skill. So, the therapist can also recommend this therapy to the person suffering from autism.

Takeaway

Autism is a disorder linked to brain development that creates difficulties in social communication and interaction. There are several kinds of therapies given to the patients in order to cure the disorder. Speech therapy and ABA therapy are some of them which help in dealing with the challenges with communication and language. These therapies work effectively; it is advisable to consult a doctor before going for any of these therapies.