Regarding children with Autism... the "spiritual" interpretation of autism is
that they are "indigo". This refers to a "violet" tinge that you might see on photos. On the surface, children with autism are seen to
be "difficult." Uneducated people say these children are "spoiled" or
"belong in an institution". They say that the "indigo" label was created
by new-age parents to somehow glorify a mental illness.
Autism
manifests in random ways - it is different for every child. For this
reason it is difficult to diagnose, and is often mis-diagnosed as
another "mental illness," or is not diagnosed because parents "take it
personally" when someone suggests that their child is anything but
"normal." In a few famous cases, the children are "disowned" by their
parents and institutionalized in a mental hospital. "That is not my
child."
Some
children go into a catatonic state, they "freeze up" or they have MAJOR
tantrums. Sometimes the tantrum involves physically harming themselves or anyone within reach. They might have repetitive behaviors, and often have a hard time
"fitting in" with their peers. They might have speech impairments, they can be
extremely sensitive to sounds, and also can be sensitive "visually" to
different things. There is currently no known "scientific" cause - but
clinical research points to a combination of certain factors - including
vaccinations, genetic disposition, and environmental factors (for example, food allergies).
There
is a difference between "high functioning" and "low functioning"
autism. High functioning means they can deal with most things in life
but have "strange" behavior patterns. Or they might be considered
"normal" but they might have a tantrum every once in awhile (something
random might set them off). Whether or not they are high or low
functioning, they tend to be extremely intelligent. They develop extreme interest in certain topics, and might have a "natural talent" in certain areas. Low
functioning autism is similar to above, except often they have an
extreme speech impediment or can't talk at all. They tend to be "locked
in" to a certain repetitive behavior. They may have a physical disability.
My position /
realization on this is that, regardless of their diagnosis, children with autism are here to RESIST.
What are they resisting? Well, pretty much EVERYTHING to do with the old
paradigm. Who are they resisting? Their parents, their doctors, their
teachers, and anyone else who continues to exhibit "old paradigm"
behavior.
From this perspective, "treatment" might be to expose them
to "new paradigm" behavior. A good example of this is "parallel play".
Instead of discipline and punishment, you might give them choices, so
they know they are in control. Instead of yelling at them (this will get
you nowhere), understand that they are doing this for YOUR benefit, not
theirs. They are here to teach YOU, because the old ways of doing things are no longer
valid. Time to try something new.
“The most important kind of freedom is to be what you really are. You
trade in your reality for a role. You trade in your sense for an act.
You give up your ability to feel, and in exchange, put on a mask. There
can't be any large-scale revolution until there's a personal revolution,
on an individual level. It's got to happen inside first.” - Jim Morrison
These are our freedom fighters... and they are fighting a revolution to free us all.
