when I read THESE kinds of articles whether to be excited, sceptical or hopeful. It talks about an oxytocin deficiency in people with autism, this is a bit from the article by Time.

But more recently, scientists have begun to determine how oxytocin functions in the human brain — or, more specifically, how it malfunctions. Studies have shown that people with autism tend to have low levels of oxytocin, as well as hyperactivity in the amygdala, where most oxytocin receptors are located. The amygdala is also where memories are formed, and where our brains process and assign emotional meaning to sensory information — that is, where we turn perception (seeing someone smile) into "neuroception" (understanding the feeling of happiness that the smile reflects), according to Stephen Porges, a psychologist at the University of Illinois in Chicago. So, misfirings in the amygdala, in tandem with low oxytocin, may help explain why people with autism have trouble distinguishing between happy expressions and angry ones, making social interaction difficult and unpleasant.

I know what it is like not to know what to do in social situations but I have no idea what it would be like not to be able to read peoples facial expressions and body language. It is one thing to learn this but a whole other thing to feel it.

Along with the Early Intervention therapies, continuing occupational therapy and possibly things like this it will make things better for Alec, there is argument for all types of things, cures, no cures and the list goes on and I don't want to get into all that except to say what I believe, which is this is a condition where in cases of classic or high functioning autism early intervention is what must be first and foremost in peoples minds, genes can't be repaired deficiencies dealt with as they arise, it is always a wait and see approach, for now for us OT and speech and one on one therapies are what are working for Alec.

Labels: autism