Making Sense of Autistic Spectrum Disorders
Create the Brightest Future for Your Child with the Best Treatment Options
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
In this authoritative and empowering book, one of the world’s leading experts on early child development gives caregivers of children on the autistic spectrum the knowledge they need to navigate the complex maze of symptoms, diagnoses, tests, and treatment options that await them.
For more than thirty years, James Coplan, M.D., has been helping families cope with the challenges posed by autistic spectrum disorders (ASD). Each family that walks into his office, he knows, is about to begin a journey. With this book, he lays out the steps of that journey. Dr. Coplan brings you into the treatment rooms and along for the tests and evaluations, and provides the kind of practical hands-on guidance that will help you help your child with ASD through every phase of life.
At a time when ASD has become the subject of wild theories and uninformed speculation, Dr. Coplan grounds his recommendations in reality. He helps you understand for yourself where your child may be on the spectrum that includes autism, Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified. His clear, comprehensive, and compassionate advice prepares you to make informed medical decisions, evaluate the various educational and therapeutic alternatives, and find answers to such fundamental questions as
• How do I optimize my child’s long-term potential?
• Which interventions will best serve my child?
• How do the various therapies work, and what is the evidence to support them?
• What is the best way to teach my child?
This book empowers you to be an expert advocate for your child, so that you’ll know when to say no to an ill-advised therapy or medication and can make with confidence the hundreds of important decisions you will face in the years ahead. For every parent who has made the painful transition from “Why did this happen?” to “What can we do to help our child?,” here is the indispensable guidebook you’ve been waiting for.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A developmental pediatrician who has worked with children on the autism spectrum for more than 30 years, Coplan pre-sents a detailed analysis of the disorder. In Part I, the author discusses the causes and symptoms. Part II focuses on treatment, including a thorough examination of behavior management techniques and medications, and in Part III the focus is on the family as the child ages. The sibling of an individual with special needs, Coplan has a compassionate voice and a keen understanding of the devastation parents feel upon learning of their child's diagnosis, but he is also determined to confront sense and nonsense in autism treatment. He questions the popular theory of a connection to gluten, refutes the assertion that autism results from the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, and argues that while the prevalence of autism is certainly on the rise because of broadening definitions and changes in federal education law, there is not an epidemic, as many claim. Though pragmatic, Coplan maintains a hopeful tone; he points out that autism often has a natural history of improvement over time and predicts scientific progress as well. This is a comprehensive text dealing with a complex disorder, but it's Coplan's worthy contention that the more parents understand, the better advocates they will be for their child.