Movement Issues

Sue Rubin

Hello my name is Sue Rubin; I am a college student with autism. I would like to discuss briefly movement issues in autism. Difficulties with movement can hamper every facet of our lives from communication to completing daily functions.

So much of what is perceived as behavior and/or mental retardation is actually a movement problem. People assume I am retarded even when they see me from a distance because of the way I walk. My problem is weak abductor muscles; it is difficult to balance my body when I pick up one foot to walk. My difficulties walking may be disabling at times, but does not make me retarded or an inadequate individual.

Movement problems also look like behavior problems. It may appear that I am non-compliant if when asked to move or pick up something I do not respond immediately, therefore I must be retarded. The truth is that we can’t move, especially if we are not given a long enough time to organize our minds and bodies. Movement issues for me are a connection difficulty. I hear you ask me to complete a task, but my legs stay put. Through the use of Facilitated Communication I have been better able to get my body to engage in a task. Typing requires thinking and focus. My body has been trained to focus on movement when asked to do something or asked to respond.

Even without outside prompting I have been able to work on initiating action. Initiating action is very important for autistic people. It means we finally have control over our what we do. It is a liberating feeling when you can hand a board to your facilitator and initiate typing. When I find myself stuck, it is most helpful that my facilitator lightly touches my shoulder to refocus my mind. Facilitators play an integral role in combating some movement issues. We are a team yet I strive everyday to gain greater independence from their assistance.

Movement is essential to communication. I am unable to speak because of apraxia, a movement disorder. I can type because the movement of one finger going up and down is much easier than speaking or sign language. Adding a series of movements as in sign language would be dreadfully frustrating for me. Even simple movements are trying at times. Struggles with control over my movement have made it difficult to type for long periods of time on larger keyboards. When I know I will engage in a lot of typing I prefer to use a much smaller board. With the letters in such close proximity it makes moving from one letter to another faster and easier.

There are those times that movement is unplanned. I often cannot control my body and make jerky weird movements. These movement disturbances can be very distracting in my classes and conferences. When typing these movements hinder my thinking. I attempt to work through them to complete my thought, but sometimes my body demands control over my mind and I follow. That is a constant struggle with killer autism.