By Renuka Dhakal

Kathmandu, Feb.1: Pramila Neupane and her husband had to visit different hospitals for the diagnosis of their daughter’s condition. With anxiety and stress, they finally reached Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Maharajgunj in Kathmandu.
After inquiring about the symptoms from her parents, a doctor at the hospital suspected that she might have autism and he recommended them to take her to Autism Care Nepal Society.
Neupane said that her daughter Dhikshhta Pandit was diagnosed with autism when she was three and a half years old. Now she is 10 and is studying in a day care centre of Autism Care Chitwan Society in Bharatpur.
Pramila’s husband died in the 2015 earthquake in Kathmandu leaving her behind two children with one autistic and another normal boy.
She was completely devastated after her husband, a tax officer, died. On the one hand, she was to overcome the pain of her husband’s death, she had an ailing daughter to bring up on the other. Moreover, Nepali society has a different perception towards her autistic daughter.
But slowly and gradually she succeeded to overcome the ordeal and is now associated with Autism Care Chitwan Society, which was opened in her initiative.
Autism is a lifelong neuro developmental or sensory processing disorder. It is also known as the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). People with autism have difficulty in integrating with social activities. Likewise, they often show repetitive actions and behaviours.
According to Chief Administration and Project Manager of Autism Care Nepal Society Surendra Bajrachrya, autism can be diagnosed as early as the child becomes 14 months old to three years old.
He said that parents or caregivers had to notice that why their child did not speak, play and did not react while calling as other children do. These could be the sign of autism.
Bajracharya further added that most parents had difficulty accepting autism. Even though they are aware of it, they do not want to understand it.
If it is overlooked or ignored by parents or caregivers, the condition of the child may worsen as it grows up. Both genetic and environmental factors could lead to autism.
However, it is yet to be confirmed the exact causes of the condition and solutions to such disorder. Some scientists believe that it is a genetic biasness, others blame environmental factors.
According to World Health Organisation Report (WHO), one in 160 children has an autism spectrum disorder in the world.
There is no accurate data about autism in Nepal, but if we see the WHO data, it can be estimated that more than 300,000 people have autism in Nepal. The government has also ranked autism ninth among 10 identified disabilities.
According to president of Autism Care Nepal Society Dr. Sunita Malekhu, early intervention is crucial for future prognosis and improvement of social functioning of autistic individual.
Stating that autism is a condition where verbal and non-verbal communications are impaired, she said that communication therapy and cognitive behavioural therapy were required to improve the condition.
She further added, “It is not a disease so there is no medical treatment. The number of professionals to handle the case properly is low in Nepal, so the parents need to be trained to help their autistic child.
President of National Federation of the Disable-Nepal (NFD-N) Mitra Lal Sharma said, “People with autism are living a hellish life.”
“Also, Nepali health institutions have not been able to identify autism properly,” he said. He further added that except for a few parents, others considered their offspring with autism as a burden.
He also emphasised that the government had failed to address the problem of autism properly though it had included autism in the list of disability.
Many people are still found unaware about autism.
“If they noticed the unusual patterns of development in their child, they just get panicked and curse their fate,” Sharma said.
(Assigned story)