“Sydney was an 18-month-old baby. He was quite physically active and enjoyed spending time with his parents Rodney and Monica. However, like any average child of his age, he had still not mastered talking. He used to respond to sounds that surrounded him and responded with non-verbal tones. He could not use any words and did not have control over his pitch and tone. This is when Monica doubted her child’s growth. After discussing this with their pediatrician and a psychologist, Sydney was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder, which is a type of developmental disorder. The doctors suggested an early childhood intervention to the parents, in order to lessen its impact.”
Need for Such Support and Educational System
The Concept
In case a child shows initial symptoms of any type of developmental disorder, it is best for the parents to contact a psychologist and start an intervention program, not only to help him/her, but the family, as well. Often, in spite of the best intentions, the family of the patient fails to create a conducive environment for the patient’s growth. It is very important to have the most conducive environment for the child. Sheila Wolfendale defined the goals for early childhood treatment as “to provide support to families to support their children’s development, to promote children’s development in key domains such as communication or mobility, to promote children’s coping confidence, and to prevent the emergence of future problems”. Thus, it seems to be the best method of treatment and rehabilitation.
The Program
As a program, it works on accomplishing the aforementioned goals. Most of these programs have residential treatment for the patient and counseling for the families. However, the best ones prefer keeping the child in their regular environment, and treat both, the child and his family. This way, he/she does not feel like there is something out of the ordinary going on, and the family will know how to deal with day-to-day issues, better. This is simply the best way to ensure long-lasting effects of the child development and treatment.
The Result
Early childhood treatment plays on the fact that, when the child is young, the care and treatment will be easier. More so, such a program ensures a normal life for the child, post the treatment. Hence, most of his/her social life can be as normal as possible. As such, the chances of complications in the future are brought down to a considerable extent. This is what that makes this method one of the best, to deal with developmental disorders.
It is true that one has to love his child for what he/she truly is. Nonetheless, it is almost cruel to let the child live incomplete life, caused by a developmental disorder, without trying to do anything about it. So, keep a keen eye on his/her development, and make sure that you contact your doctor in case of any discrepancies.
