Autism Therapy: psychological therapy

definition of psychological therapy: not yet defined.

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U.S. Pharmacist, by Slavik, S., and Popovich NG, published in 2007, summarized Oct 9, 2008

Pharmacists and doctors may be able to help families best if they understand the nonpharmacologic therapies for autism.

This review article describes some of the hundreds of non-drug therapies for autism. The focus of therapy is to relieve the symptoms of autism and help people with autism to lead easier lives. These non-drug treatments are the mainstay of any program that aims to improve the daily life of a person with autism. The authors suggest that treatment be tailored to the patient's age and symptoms. Therapies include: sensory integration therapy, psychological therapy, behavioral therapy, diet therapy, and vitamin therapy.


J Autism Dev Disord, by Sofronoff, K., Attwood T., Hinton S., and Levin I., published in 2007, summarized Dec 27, 2007

Six weeks of cognitive behavior therapy may help children with Asperger Syndrome learn to manage their anger.

This study was designed to see if a type of psychological therapy known as cognitive behavior therapy can help children with Asperger Syndrome handle their anger. It also looked to see if the 45 children would be able to take what they learned in therapy and apply it to the real world (generalization). The study measured success by looking at whether or not the child was able to give advice to a comic book person who was being teased. The study also looked at whether or not the parents thought that the child was doing a better job handling anger. Both the comic book test and the parent reports showed that the child had learned to manage anger better.


Child: Care, Health, and Development, by Gringas, P., Santosh P., and Baird G., published in 2006, summarized Mar 16, 2007

DENEM(TM) is an easy-to-use program that helps keep track of the therapy and progress of children with autism.

Children with autism get behavioral therapy and psychological therapy and drug therapy.
This article describes an internet-based system (DENEM(TM)) that will help to make sure that a child with autism gets good care from many therapists. The system also helps to make therapy decisions and reduces treatment errors. The system includes tests to see if drugs are helping a child. DENEM(TM) can also assist parents in understanding the different therapies that the child is receiving.


Easter Seals Central Alabama recently opened the Autism Spectrum Disorders Diagnostic Clinic. The clinic is home to a multi-disciplinary team that includes speech therapy, occupational therapy (OT), and psychological intervention. Opening of this clinic allows for more children to be screened, diagnosed, and treated, also waiting time for appointments is decreased.

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Responding to insurance

Sep 13, 2011 by Anonymous

We have private insurance for which we pay a premium and deductible.  It covers occupational therapy, language therapy, physical therapy and psychological therapy but at a combined 75 visits for calendar year.  This is not for each therapy but rather 75 total for all together. Thus, even with illness or vacation times taken, we do not have enough alotted time slots covered to continue therapy for a full year.  Once we run out of the 75 covered slots, we must pay out of pocket.  We pay a copay of $20 per visit.  So, for example, if my child sees a language/speech therapist and the ot once per week it is $40 out of pocket until we hit the magic 75 allowed under the insurance.  Then we woud have to pay $150 for one therapy and $160 for the other per week.  The psychology/psychiatrist appointments are monthly. All of these therapies would be available more frequently and I am told by the therapists very helpful if we could do more than once a week for 1/2 a session but we cannot afford to do this.  The children on the autism spectrum benefit greatly from these therapies and it is something that should be covered under the insurance policies, just as any health or mental health issue should be.



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  • Synonyms for psychological therapy include: psychological intervention
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