ADHD and autism are different, but many people with ADHD and autism have other problems, such as sleep and anxiety, that stem from the brain's ability to regulate itself. With very young children (i.e. under 3), we know that early intervention and therapy can make a world of difference - even with some autistic kids.
Yes, early intervention is considered important for almost any challenge, but the interventions chosen are not the same ones. You use different tools to intervene for kids with different challenges. Behavioral therapies are notoriously ineffective on kids younger than 8 with ADHD (so far as I know), yet they are great for kids with ASDs.
At some point, perhaps when a child is 7/8 yrs old, NFT might be something to consider and an option. I don't know, but I think a lot of parents with kids who are autistic are willing to explore and find out if there are alternative treatments which may help.
Yes, therein lies my skepticism. People with autism have been subjected to alternative therapies that have *literally killed them.* I am not exaggerating. I am talking about enemas with bleach, chemical treatments of their blood, a variety of truly insane things tried on children whose parents consented out of desperation to try something to help their kids. Desperate parents will "explore" and try things and lay out every bit of their money for a treatment whether there is a scientific basis for it or or not. (There is. by the way, no scientifically proven biomedical treatment for autism at this time, though medications are sometimes used off-label to treat symptoms such as anxiety.)
NFT claims there is no downside to what they are doing; I don't know enough about it to evaluate the truth of that claim. But some of the things that are tried to help people with disabilities definitely do have a downside, and science can protect people by evaluating those claims carefully, testing whether they are always true or in what conditions or popuations they are true.
All these alternative therapies, like medicines, are also money-making industries-- let the buyer beware.
You don't have to agree with these authors though....
Parents have to be invested in it. Otherwise, it's not going to be effective.
If it's a matter of belief, then it's a religion. If it works on someone else, it should work on them regardless of what's in my head about it.
CD, I'm glad to be in conversation with you, but I must for now remain a skeptic. I hope you are not offended by that.
DeeDee
