Autism; It is a neurodevelopmental disorder that manifests itself with signs such as retardation in language development, inadequacy in imitation skills, not returning to one’s name, not making eye contact, and obsessive repetitive behaviors in the first years of life. While one out of every 150 children was diagnosed with autism in the early 2000s, today this number has increased to 1 in 68 children.

According to our clinical observations, autism manifests itself with various findings in the early period (0-3 years). The most wrong approach to this group, which manifests itself in the early period, is; parents are waiting until the age of 3 for their children to be diagnosed, or they are directed to educational methods that are not suitable for their children in this period. Although there is no early intervention method developed especially for autism in our country, the importance of early educational diagnosis and intensive play therapy in recovery is very great. Because the remarkable findings in these children emerge during the play processes. Families observe that their children are not interested in their peers, toys and the functions of toys. This situation appears as a corrupted game:

Interest in the details of toys (wheel of the car, tag of the ball)

Flipping toys in hand

Gathering or arranging toys together

Like not playing imaginary/symbolic games (not pretending to drink from a glass..)

In order for children with autism symptoms to get rid of these findings, first of all, their play processes should be regulated. For this reason, it is important to improve the indoor play environment, toy preferences and the play processes that parents establish with their children. We are also Prof. Dr. At Burak Tatlı Child Neurology Clinic, we are opening the door to early intervention in autism with the NeuroPLAY Method.

If your child is between the ages of 0-3 and you observe at least two of the conditions such as not returning to his/her name, making unusual hand movements, turning around, misusing objects, avoiding eye contact, and not being able to perform the social play skills expected from his/her age, you should definitely consult our clinic.

Involving children in life with the right approach is as valuable as noticing autism. Let’s play the autism we noticed together.

Happy 2 April World Autism Awareness Day! We wish to reach more children on time…