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Child with autism learns to do things

AL AIN — Fahad M., the nine-year-old child who was suffering from mental retardation and hyperactivity accompanied by a-ggressive behaviour, was moved from a neighbouring GCC country to Al Ain in 2005. Since his arrival at the Al Ain Private Centre for Care and Rehabilitation (AAPCCR) Fahad’s condition has been showing considerable improvement.

Saadi J. Dhaher, General Manager of AAPCCR, said a couple of years after his birth, Fahad’s parents noticed that he was indifferent to the surroundings, was content being alone, happy playing by himself and showed little interest in toys.

“The parents also noticed that he would not laugh and appeared to be hard of hearing,” added Dhaher.

Dhaher said that when Fahad joined the centre two years ago, he was unable to manage himself and was accustomed to wearing diapers as he could not control the movement of his bowels. He was not able to dress up or brush his teeth without somebody’s help.

After being put through various therapies and rehabilitation programmes, Fahad can now manage his personal activities like brushing his teeth and wearing clothes. Dhaher said Fahad’s family visits him six times a year, adding that they shower him with love and care.

Autism is a disability which surfaces in the first three years of life. The result of a neurological disorder, which affects the functioning of the brain, autism and related behaviour reportedly occur in one among 500 people.

“The centre has 23 patients suffering from autism, and it helps them with several activities, including swimming and athletics, entertainment programmes, weekly trips to Al Ain gardens and tourists places like Hafeet mountain and Al Faydha springs, forts and museums,” he added.