One in every eighty eight American children are born with a face of autism. Autism is not a disability one has but rather a different way that one thinks. The medication used for curing an autistic person can negatively affect him or her in unimaginable ways. Many issues arise when it comes down to actually taking the medication; severe symptoms can occur and therefore, alternative treatment should be put in place if needed at all.

People are diagnosed with autism at an early age. This leads to autistic patients taking medication very young. Studies show that 10% of autistic infants are already taking several medications. (Geggel Laura) Starting children at an early age will only increase the dosage they consume at a later date. Parents only want what’s best for their child and agree that putting them on medication is what’s best. What parents don't know is that the medication actually stuns the brain. Patients on medication will no longer be thinking on their own and will be subliminal to all brain activity. Autistic people are extremely intelligent but may appear to be socially awkward. In addition, our society today is very narrow minded on such an expanding subject. So where is the line drawn from being a “nerdy” person, to someone that has a true disability? The fact of the matter is, medicine will never really cure an autistic person and will just lead to them having to take a prolific amount.

There are three main components of autism that are the focus points when trying to find a reliable medication. Those three points are: communication skills, social skills, and repetitive behavior. In attempt to cure an autistic child, doctors need to find a diagnosis for each individual symptom. It can become a long and tedious process. When all is said and done, the autistic patient can be placed on several medications and still never be fully cured. Dr. Elliott once stated, “I think medicated kids are easier to control. I think they are much harder to teach.” (Arky Beth) With those words, he was exactly right. The medication an autistic child is placed on is used to mitigate his or hers repetitive movement. Likewise, the brain is completely nonfunctional. The repetitive behavior is stopped, but so is everything else. An autistic child placed on medication shuts down his or hers entire body. Movement is decreased, communication is nonexistent, and teaching them is not going to happen. It’s almost as if the medication completely turns off the brain, and exacerbates the entire situation. A term used to describe these children is “Zombified.” Furthermore, it’s not like there is one medication out there to cure every autistic person. What works for one person may not even affect the next. The only way to discover what will sustain the preexisting symptoms is through trial and error. The person will have to suffer the side effects of each medication and then the brain will have to go through an adjustment between each one as well. Overall, the medication will have a negative effect on the autistic person’s mind and body. There is not one medicine out there that will relieve all autistic symptoms. With everything already known about autism, it’s still a complete mystery to us without a known cause or cure.

Dealing with autism is hard enough in itself. Prior to taking medication, an autistic person can be difficult to control and may inflict self-harm. After consuming several antidotes, severe side effects can occur and even worsen over time. One factor that doctors are further looking into is when the medication stops having an improving effect on the autism completely. The autistic brain is proving to develop tolerance, or sensitization, towards the medication. (“Medicines for Treating…”) This means that medicine being consumed will no longer help the autistic patient. The brain develops an adaptation to the drug so that the chemical enhancements used for curing the symptoms can no longer be controlled. The process all takes part in the neural system and the only way to continue curing the autistic person is by pursuing a new effective drug. This is also how an autistic patient can be placed on several medications at one time. Yet, when one develops another tolerance for any one of his or her medications, it will need to be replaced with new. Again, when trying to find a new medication that works for the patient, he or she will have to keep testing out several prescriptions until one that works is found. This can become a continuous process that will never end and inundate the person who has autism. Also, with trying all these medications, the chemical reactions between them can clash and have abject side effects on the autistic person’s mind and body. This is when the severe symptoms begin to develop and make life harder for the person whom has autism, as well as for everyone else around them.

Autistic people are not only dealing with the original symptoms of autism, but they are also experiencing a copious amount of side effects after the medication is consumed. These side effects may even exacerbate with time and cause the patient more pain than relief. One of the most common side effects, post medication, is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; better known as ADHD. (Sweeney, Dwight P.) When at first the medication is used trying to prevent fidgety behavior, it can also contradict itself and cause autistic people to become overactive and unable to focus. Some of the less severe symptoms that can occur are weight gain, and from there it can lead to diabetes. Even though these are not too serious of reactions, they create more struggles that an autistic person may not have had to deal with before. Going into more harsh conditions: anxiety, depression, and heart problems can also be a consequence of taking counter measurements. Not only will the autistic person have to go through the everyday obstacles, but he or she will also have to encounter these horrific mishaps that he or she will not even be able to explain. On the more extreme side, epilepsy or seizures can occur due to the medication. This can be ultimately dangerous for the patient by threatening their well being. Many would agree that they would rather see their child living life with average symptoms, rather than watching them go through painful experiences. In addition, the worst note that could occur within an autistic person, due to the medication consumed, would be Parkinson’s disease. The medicine used for an autistic patient can cause a neurological disorder. Symptoms that will start to arise are small tremors and slowed movement. Eventually, the patient will have impaired posture and balance, and loss of mobility. This will also include loss of writing technique, as well as his or hers speech ability. Overall, the medication drastically impairs the autistic brain. Doctors may continue to alter the prescriptions given to their patients but in the end, the person holding autism will be the one who has to undergo the severe side effects. Their whole life, as they know it, will be completely turned around. The patient’s brain will be confused and unable to operate properly as it should. Ultimately, one person could potentially accumulate more life threatening symptoms than ever before. They would then have the concern of the medications side effects rather than just focusing on progressing towards improving their own abilities. In some cases, medication may be able to cure illnesses, but when it comes to autism, medication only worsens the cause.

Deciding whether or not to put a child on medication is a very touchy subject. There are many factors that go into making any final decision so it’s difficult for parents to be completely sure. At the same time, there are some people that do believe medication is a necessity for their autistic child and use it as a sustenance for life. Those people are said to be “probiotic.” These parents will go to extreme limits doing anything and everything they can in order to cure their child. Although, autistic people tend to lack communication skills. At times, they can not communicate their wants and needs. In some cases like these, the parents do not fully consider how their child will be effected. Instead, they are quick to jump right in and make hasty decisions. Of course parents have the best intentions for their children; but what they think is best for them and what truly is the best thing for them, does not always match up. In fact, many of the drugs prescribed to patients by doctors are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. (“Treatments for…”) The medication may have shown to improve some of the symptoms held by an autistic patient but only helping people without the disorder. For example, if someone with autism is showing signs of depression, he or she will be given medication as anyone else would for depression. It has never been proven to actually cure autism. The FDA actually put a “black box” warning on antidepressants used by the children and adolescents. Suicidal thoughts and attempts actually worsened in children to the age of 25. Autistic patients do not respond the same way as typical developing children do so extra precautions need to be taken. Some medications, such as Risperdal, used for helping irritability in autistic children, have been FDA approved. Yet, this medication only shows to work in patients of age five to sixteen. Later, medications will need to be switched again. Not everyone’s conditions are the same, and no one will respond to the medicine in the same way. In order to track progress, parents are asked to record actions in a “patient insert.” This shows to be extremely useful when several medications are being prescribed.

One out of every 150 children are born with autism. 30% of which are also affected by an anxiety disorder. Some of these patients tend to develop some type of sleeping disorder as well. (“ASD and Anxiety”) They can become very restless and wake up several times during the night. Not only can this be frustrating for the autistic patients, but for the entire family as well. The long sleepless nights can cause agitation throughout the day. The person who has autism can show signs of aggression towards people around them, as well as themselves. Lack of sleep causes many to become irascible. Some say this could also have a negative effect on their learning. Not sleeping at night leads to sleeping in the day and in turn, it leads to missing out on school work. On the contrary, trying to find an effective sleeping medication can be just as difficult. It is also bad for the patient and his or her brain to rely on medicine in order to sleep. The abnormal sleeping patterns become highly degrading on the developing brain. However, parents want what is best for their child, their education, and their future. Parents are told by teachers, “Your child can not stay in the classroom, why don’t you try medication?” and there can be a lot of pressure to do so. A very wise woman, named Temple Grandin, said, “These kids often have uneven skills. We need to be a lot more flexible about things. Don’t hold these geniuses back. You’re going to have to give them special ed in reading because that tends to be the pattern, but let them go ahead in math.” (Grandin, Temple) Having autism herself, Temple is a prime example that medication is not needed in order to survive through everyday life, and advocates daily for people with the same condition as herself. She was able to learn in school like everyone else, just as anyone else can too. The truth is, medication is inconsequential for people with autism; the only reason parents place them on antibiotics is in hopes of becoming more manageable and socially accepted. Sure there will be times of struggle, but nothing is too big to overcome. Keep them in a normal classroom setting rather than exasperating them around other autistic children. Play to their strengths and help on their weaknesses. Even though autism can not be cured, it can be controlled.

There is still so much to learn about autism that it still remains a mystery to many. Since autism is such a broad subject and no two cases are exactly the same, ways of treating people must be just as broad. Depending on the severeness of the case, there are many ways to go about it. When in the middle of the spectrum, there is a huge void on what to do. Many questions are still left unanswered. Although medication is a quick fix for some parents, it is not the only solution. When wanting to help an autistic person control their thoughts and actions, there are many alternative treatments to pursue before the need of medicine. Autism is recorded to be idiopathic, meaning it has no known cause. Autism also cannot be cured, but steps are taken to help treat patients. The first step would be to get rid of the grey area. When symptoms are not so severe, it is not always clear if someone has autism or not. To be absolutely positive, test, such as MRI’s, can be done. The reason being, is because autism is believed to be some type of neurological mutation; so, a diagram of the brain activity will help make the decision. From there, it is a matter of trying new methods to see if anything works. The treatments do not take a toll on the autistic patient’s mind or body since no harmful drugs are involved. One of the best ways to control autism is through sensations. Find something that they like the sight, sound, or maybe even the touch of, and use it when needed. In some cases, music has shown to be helpful as well. For example, if the autistic patient starts to inflict self-harm, playing his or her favorite song or a specific type of music may help calm him or her down and clear his or her mind. Another alternative would be the use of therapy. This could include ways for them to develop social and learning skills, pivotal response therapy, and verbal behavior therapy. (“How Is Autism…”) The therapy is not only good for the patient, but for the entire family. It is especially helpful for parents in order to fully understand what is going on and how to properly help their autistic child. Having social interactions has also shown to have positive effects on the autistic person. Some other alternative treatments would be: the right dosage of Omega-3 Fatty Acids, to help the functioning of the brain, nutrient supplements, such as multivitamins, or perhaps a Casein and Gluten-free diet. (“Complementary & Alternative…”) None of these treatments have been scientifically tested or guarantee to show any progress. There are, however, recorded cases where each of these alternatives have worked for at least one person. Even though not all conditions are the same, if there is the slightest possibility that it could help, why not try it? Then of course, if all else fails, and the alternative options are exacerbated, using medication is the final treatment to turn to if need be. In the same sense, the medication is not necessarily needed all the time. If one is found that actually helps, it should only be given to the patient when needed. If the autistic person is just staying home or handling him or herself properly, there is no need to medicate them. It is the time to let them think freely in his or her own creative mind. So, if medication is an absolute must, it should still be regulated. Besides, some of the most renown people had autism, and the world would not be the same today without any of those creative thinkers.

Autism is a continuously arising subject. What works today may not work tomorrow. Since no one reacts in the same way, it is necessary to take precautions when making final decisions. The consumption of medication usually starts at a young age for most. This will just cause more difficulties throughout one’s lifetime and lead to increasing the amounts of medicine. Severe side effects, harming the brain and body, usually occur post taking the prescribed medication. Overall, medicine will bring more troubles than relief to the autistic patient. Alternative options, such as therapy, should be considered before turning to medication. Medication would be a perfect solution if it worked in the ways that doctors, parents, and even teachers hope it will; but it doesn’t.