At first glance, Kimi seems like an ordinary child with an adorable smile and an energetic temperament. Upon understanding him, you would realise that he took a long journey which started back when he was diagnosed with ASD. Kimi first came to AP when he was 2 years and 7 months old. At the time, he was non-verbal and exhibited a multitude of problem behaviours. After a year and a half of intensive ABA therapy in AP, he has improved significantly and returned to a mainstream school, learning quickly with other peers! We are happy to have Kimi’s mum, his supervisors, Christy and Ivy share the journey it took for Kimi to get to where he is today.
1. What problems did you notice in Kimi at his earlier ages?
Kimi was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) when he was at the age of two. Before he was diagnosed, he has already showed signs of delayed speech in comparison to his typically developing cousins who were of similar age. For example, he could not say “Ma” or “Pa”.
Nevertheless, we did not seek for professional help at that time as we thought it was just minor language confusion as Kimi was learning 2 languages at the same time. We spoke in Cantonese with him while our domestic helper communicated with him in English, so his pronunciation in Cantonese was always not accurate. We thought as time goes by and if we were consistent in speaking in Cantonese, his speech would eventually improve.
From a young age, Kimi has showed certain atypical behaviours. For instance, he would unexpectedly run off at high speed, bang himself against the wall, or he would be highly obsessed with the vehicle wheels. Then again, we thought he was just being naughty and seeking for attention. Back then, my husband and I both had full-time jobs so we did not have the time to pay much attention to all these behaviours.
It was not until I heard from his kindergarten teacher about his problems in class, and I knew we had to take action immediately. The teacher informed me that Kimi had quite a few behavioural problems–he would not sit nicely nor listen to classroom instructions, and he was not able to speak in nursery class. With all these obvious red flags, the teacher suggested us to take Kimi for an assessment.
2. How did you feel upon learning about the diagnosis?
From the teacher’s feedback, we initially thought Kimi had Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), but instead, the nurse of the Maternal and Child Health Centres told us that Kimi appeared to have ASD and referred us to conduct a more in-depth diagnostic evaluation. At the time, both my husband and I were very shocked. Our knowledge of ASD was very limited–all we knew were the stereotypes of ASD portrayed in TV dramas: reticent to talk, engage in odd behaviors – everything was so unclear to us.
After having confirmed Kimi was in fact diagnosed with ASD, we were deeply saddened and in disbelief, but we soon accepted it and spent days in researching to source for ASD treatments for my son. We thought there were medicines to cure ASD but it seemed impossible. Fortunately, a friend referred us to Autism Partnership (AP), and AP arranged a thorough assessment and months of ABA therapy training for Kimi.
3. Kimi has been receiving ABA therapy in AP for two years, what impressed you the most in terms of his improvement?
I am most impressed with his improvement in language. From non-verbal, not making a single sound to where he is now, where he can communicate fluently with others. I remember there was a time, I was exhausted and I said my shoulders were sore. He must have had overheard, and came to me and said “Let me give you a massage. This will make you feel better!”And just two years ago, I would never have imagined this kind of interaction would happen between us.
I was also very impressed with his improvements in logical thinking and observational skills. He was able to generalize what he has learnt and applied in his social life. Just the other day, we went bike riding in a park and Kimi invited a little girl to play with him. He knew the little girl was too short and had difficulties in riding a bike nicely. Yet, he kept encouraging her in trying and they clearly had some enjoyable times together. I was very touched to witness all of this.
4. Everyone in AP was excited to see that Kimi has successfully transferred to a mainstream school. However, before he has joined AP, he has attended a nursery class in a kindergarten, but he was not able to adapt to the environment. What are the major differences between now and then?
I really can’t compare the two scenarios as Kimi has changed completely. We ran into his old kindergarten teachers some time ago, and they also thought that the way Kimi behaves now was completely different from what he was back then.
In the past, very most likely due to the lack of the ability to comprehend verbal instructions from teachers, Kimi would mess around and misbehave, especially during music lessons and at story time. The situation was so bad that the teachers had to set up a circle to separate Kimi from his classmates. Kimi was asked to stand inside the circle so he couldn’t disturb the class. That period was very miserable for him, he would cry every morning just from seeing his uniform. This was a heart-breaking period for our family.
Now he is very attentive and enjoys being at his new school. Since he is a transfer student, he is not familiar with the school song, school chants and school motto, but he tried his very best to observe his peers and catch up with them. After school, he will share with me the things he has learned and the highlights of the day. It seems to me that he is having an enjoyable school life!
5. What are your expectations of Kimi?
Like all of the therapists in AP, we hope Kimi can use his unique perspective and experiences to help other people with ASD. But at this moment, his biggest dream is to become an automobile repairman. Haha!
6. What do you want to share with all the other parents of children with ASD?
First, I would like to encourage parents to embrace the fact that your child is different. Do not avoid or feel ashamed to seek help from the professionals, otherwise you will miss the golden opportunity for your child. Taking myself as an example, I didn’t conceal Kimi’s diagnosis from people around me. That’s why a friend of mine could recommend AP to us. Recently, one of my friends’ son was diagnosed with ASD. Since I always share ASD related information online, she knew I could provide helps to her and refer her son to AP. I believe being open-minded not only enabled me to help my son, but also other families in needs.
– Interview conducted by Beverly Chong (Autism Partnership Lead Behavioral Therapist)
Kimi has been receiving ABA training at Autism Partnership HK since January 1, 2017. He was 2 years and 7 months old when he first arrived AP. He was receiving full day intensive 1on1 ABA training and group sessions to train up his language, behavior, learning how to learn, social and group skills. He has improved greatly since then and now is studying in a mainstream kindergarten.
Kimi’s ABA Training Progress Videos
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[:zh]Kimi看上去跟其他小朋友無異，笑容可愛，精力充沛。但其實他被診斷為自閉症的孩子，並在2歲7個月大時開始在AP接受密集式的ABA訓練。
Kimi剛來時完全沒有語言能力，亦有很多行為問題。在AP進行了一年半的ABA訓練後，Kimi有顯著的進步，更重新入讀主流幼稚園，跟其他同齡小朋友一起學習!
我們很高興邀請到Kimi媽媽與大家詳談作為自閉小孩家長的苦與樂，以及他的兩位治療課程監督賴靜小姐(Christy) 和陳雅彥小姐(Ivy)分享治療怎樣幫助Kimi建立一系列為入讀學校作準備的技巧。
1. Kimi有什麼表現讓你覺得他跟其他的小朋友不一樣？
Kimi 是在兩歲時確診患有自閉症的。其實在確診前我們也發現他的語言能力跟年齡相約的表弟妹程度有異。他兩歲時還不會說「爸」、「媽」，但我們卻不以為然。我們以為因為外傭跟他用英文溝通，以致他把兩種語言混淆了，所以他的發音才會不準，期望當我們統一跟他說廣東話後情況會有所改善。
他亦有一些奇怪的行為，例如他會經常飛快地跑走，又會無故撞牆，亦喜歡摸車輪。我們以為他只是淘氣。加上當時我和丈夫都要上班，所以我們一直拖延問題，並未正視。
直到Kimi入讀學前班（N班），老師發現他有不少問題行為，如經常離座，不懂聽從指令，更不能發音，所以建議我們儘快去求診。
2. 得悉Kimi有自閉症時，你的心情如何？
剛聽到老師的反映時，我和家人都以為Kimi有過度活躍症，但健康院護士卻說他有自閉症傾向，即時轉介我們至兒童評估中心作進一步檢查。我們當時非常錯愕，而我們對自閉症的認識也非常貧乏，只知道一些在電視劇中對於自閉症人士形象的描述：他們都不愛說話、行徑古怪。
確診後，我們的心情更是沉重，一度懷疑，但我們很快便接受這個事實，積極尋求各種治療，希望有藥物能根治，但後來我們知道這是沒有可能的。幸好透過朋友的介紹，我認識了AP，於是安排Kimi接受評估及一連串應用行為分析治療。
3. Kimi在AP接受治療的這兩年間，他最令你鼓舞的進步是什麼?
我最開心的是看到他由最初不懂發音，到現在能夠順暢地跟他人溝通。記得有一次我很累，便說自己肩疼，我當時只是隨口說說。他聽到後立即跑來說：「媽咪我幫你『連連』丫，你就會舒服啲㗎喇！」(解：「媽媽我幫按摩吧，這樣你會舒服一點！」）這種交流是我兩年前從沒想過會發生的。
他的在邏輯及觀察力方面的進步也非常顯著。他懂得將所學到的技巧融會到社交生活裡。最近我帶他去公園騎單車，他主動邀請了一個女孩一起玩。他更說她的個子太小，騎單車時腿可能不夠長，雖然如此，他也不斷地鼓勵她去嘗試，兩人玩得不亦樂乎！這一幕幕讓我深受感動。
4. Kimi能順利入讀主流學校，AP所有人都感到十分欣慰！我們知道他在AP接受治療前曾入讀一家主流幼稚園的N班，但並未能融入。你認為他在接受治療前後在校的表現有何大不同？
我認為這是不能比較的，因為Kimi的表現完全不同。我們曾碰到他以前的幼稚園老師，這些老師也說他現在看起來跟以前完全不一樣。以前的Kimi，可能因為他根本不明白上課時老師在說什麼，所以他會到處搗亂，特別是上音樂課和故事課的時候。老師甚至畫了一個圈，罰他站在裡面，限制他的行動範圍。當時他每天早上看到我拿出校服更會嚎啕大哭。一切一切都令我和家人感到很心痛。
他現在在幼稚園上課時很專心。因為他是插班生，開始時他對校歌和學校主題金句這些不太熟悉。但當他聽不懂同學唱的校歌或誦讀時，他懂得觀察他們，嘗試跟上。放學後他亦主動跟我分享他當天所學或特別的事情（如老師缺席）。校園生活對他來說似乎既新鮮又快樂呢！
5. 你們對Kimi有什麼期望？
我們希望他能成為像在AP所有幫助過他的治療師一樣的人，能以患者身份，作育他人。
（不過他現在最想成為汽車維修員，哈哈！)
6. 你有什麼想跟其他同樣育有自閉症孩子的家長分享？
首先，我鼓勵家長應儘快面對現實，不要逃避或因怕尷尬而不向專業人士尋求幫助，導致孩子錯過黃金治療期。以我自己為例，Kimi確診後我並沒有對他人隱瞞，所以才有機會透過友人介紹到ＡＰ接受訓練。最近我的一位朋友的兒子亦發現有自閉症，由於我不時分享有關資訊，所以她知道我或許能幫上忙，特意找我幫忙接觸ＡＰ。我很慶幸自己抱有豁達的態度，使兒子能及早開始治療之路，亦能為身邊有需要的朋友提供幫忙。
– 採訪由莊頴嘉（Autism Partnership高級行為治療師）進行
Kimi 2歲7個月大時開始在香港AP接受ABA訓練。訓練由2017年1月1日開始，他接受了全日制的密集式ABA一對一行為治療及社交小組訓練。自訓練以來，Kimi取得了顯著的進步，他現在正在主流幼稚園上課。
請分享，讓更多人了解自閉症及學習更多應用行為分析（ ABA）的治療技巧。
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