On dogs and autism
April was Autism Acceptance Month. In this blog post, we will explore the things we learned about autism, the widely accepted misconceptions about autistic people, and of course how dogs benefit autistics. Let’s take a look at what we learned.
What is autism?
Autism is a developmental diagnosis described in the DSM (diagnostic statistical manual). The diagnosis and its criteria underwent a major change from the DSM IV to DSM V renaming it to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) because it affects individuals is so diversely—on a spectrum. It is typically diagnosed in 2-3 year olds and is a lifelong condition.
The CDC (center for disease control) describes autistic people as having differences in the way they may learn, communicate, and interact compared to non-autistic people. The DSM considers two criteria for autistic people: “persistent issues in social communication and interactions across multiple contexts” and “Restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities”. The first criteria includes behaviors such as difficulty with reading social cues, difficulty with back and forth conversation, difficulty with initiating or responding to social interactions, and difficulty with developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships. The second criteria includes stereotyped or repetitive motor movements, strict adherence to routines, and difficulty managing emotions when routines or expectations are broken, fixated interests, and hyper or hyporeactivity to sensory input.
Autism typically has many co-morbidities including anxiety, depression, ADHD, neurological disorders, and gastro intestinal problems.
Autism is a very dynamic condition that is hard to grasp in a single definition because it is so broad. For example, some autistics have advanced conversation skills compared to the average person while some are completely non-verbal. With the right supports people can live fruitful and fulfilling lives. Most clinicians will not diagnose autism in adulthood yet we need to remember autistic children turn into autistic adults and we need to support them as well. A big misconception about autistics is that they don’t have empathy and feelings. Autistics in fact have both and it is a disservice to them and the autistic community to believe otherwise.
How can dogs help autistic people?
1. Some autistic people struggle with social interactions. A dog can be a helpful “social lubricant” to give autistic people a reason to interact with others and engage in social interactions. For autistic children, a dog can serve as great bridge to develop social skills with their peers.
2. Dogs can support autistic people’s support sensory sensitivities. For example, a service dog can be trained to provide pressure on an autistic’s chest or body to help calm them. This also helps with less meltdowns.
3. Dogs make wonderful companions and best friends especially when it is a challenge for autistics to connect with humans.
4. Dogs can help autistics with physical safety such as road safety by being trained to guide autistics.
5. Dogs help reduce anxiety. Anxiety disorders are one of the most common co-morbities with autism thus relieving symptoms of anxiety is very important. Numerous studies have shown again and again that dogs have a calming effect on our nervous systems and increase happy hormones.
6. Dogs have been shown to benefit both autistic adults and children with vocal skills by simply being present.
IGTV conversation with Autienelle
We had a conversation with Lauren Melissa AKA autienelle. Lauren Melissa was diagnosed with autism when she was 23. She described her experiences of living with dogs and how it has helped her overall wellbeing. She grew up with a dog and currently lives with an Akita and Japanese Spitz Mix named Farron that she rescued. This is what she shared with us about how her dog helped her:
Lauren Melissa grew up with a dog that provided companionship and was part of her large family. She recalls, “ she could tell what I was thinking or feeling by me just pointing my finger in different directions. That was really meaningful for me because I could communicate with her non-verbally. Knowing I could communicate with a dog and not have to talk was a really important thing for me.”
Living with a dog as an adult has been a different experience for LM. Farron was rescued from a difficult situation and she had to invest a lot of time and care taking to help her. She said investing in her has been really rewarding, “I see a lot of my sensory sensitivities that I experience in my dog and I can understand what she’s feeling or going through and I can really empathize with that.”
Farron has improved LM’s overall well being in a very specific way, “Dogs are routine animals. Autistics often really benefit from structures and routines and having an additional being in my life that requires and needs that routine and structure and its my responsibility to implements it. That’s been helpful and healthy for me to routinize my day.”
Farron helps with social situations, but there is also a flip side to that, “Dogs can be a social lubricant. Small talk is impossible for me. I don’t like small talk. I love talking to people about serious things but not small talk, which is a common autistic experience. Having a dog has enabled me to have small talk experiences because it’s easier and more natural because I’m talking about Farron who I love so I’m not talking about something I’m not interested in. Theres a flip side to the socializing because I have to set boundaries for Farron and myself because she gets socially overloaded like I do, which is a challenge I experience living with Farron but at the same time it does help me remember to assert boundaries and take care of myself in social situations”.
What Lauren Melissa wants non-autistic people to know about autistic people:
“We can’t assume someones intelligence based on how someone looks. Sometimes people look at me and assume I’m a high functioning autistic and I personally do need a lot of support and accommodations. I’ve had times in my life where I was struggling to get out of bed on my own and people turn to me and say oh you’re high functioning based on the way that I look and that’s quite and assumption.”
Overall, LM describes being very attune to dogs and understanding them in depth, “a lot of things dog’s don’t like, autistic people don’t like. We live in a very loud world. I can relate to the dog experience in a human world”
Final Thoughts
A big barrier for people having a connection or relationship with dogs is accessibility. Dogs are also a big responsibility. We need to be flexible in how we want our dog to play a role in our lives depending on their temperament and the relationship we have with them. Additionally, if having a dog isn’t a good fit with your life, there are other ways to benefit from interacting with dogs such as therapy dogs in controlled settings.
Get Involved:
Consider giving to organizations that help autistic people connect with dogs.
Check out our @autinelle and I’s full conversation here.
