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Autism and Music
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder which comes under the umbrella of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The symptoms becomes apparent in early childhood, typically before age of three. Common symptoms include difficulty in communication, social interactions, obsessive interests and repetitive behavior. Autism is a wide spectrum disorder and children with autism often vary in severity, symptoms and signs. One of the common problem that an individual with autism experiences are their hyper and hypo sensitivity to stimuli.Some people on the autism spectrum have hearing problems of various kinds but very few autistic people are hard of hearing or deaf. 1 in 59 children with autism are either deaf or have hearing disability or sensitivities. [3] There are 4 types of sound sensitivities that includes - hyperacusis, recruitment ,hypersensitivity and phonophobia. The basis type of sensitivity are as explained down below.

Hyper and hypo sensitivity of hearing: Hypersensitivity: Individuals who are hyper hearing are generally very light sleepers and are petrified by sudden unpredictable sounds (for instance- telephone ringing, baby crying,etc.). They dislike the sound of thunderstorms,crowds and are terrified of getting haircuts. They often cover their ears when the noise becomes painful for them to bear. Such noises would not be in the same intensity that the autistic individual may experience, there are even high possibilities that those noises are unnoticed by normal people.[1] Hyposensitivity: Individuals who are hypo hearing may ‘seek sounds’ (for instance - leaning their ear against electrical equipment, enjoying crowds and sirens, etc.). Unlike children with hypersensitivity ,they like restaurants and malls – the ‘noisiest’ places .They often create sounds themselves to stimulate their hearing – banging doors, tapping things, tearing or crumpling paper in the hand, making loud rhythmic sounds .[1] People on ASD are especially interested in and responsive to music because music is motivating and engaging, it may be used as a natural “reinforcer “. Music therapist build skills to reduce anxiety and develop communication skills.They include singing, musical games to gain attention,to stimulate speech for intervention. Neural pathways of individuals with autism prevent them from processing the information. They can't interpret facial ,body language cues that expresses different emotions .Individual with autism can not process  emotions through words but they can process it through music. Individual with autism show equal and superior ability in pitch processing and timbre. What Music does to the brain? More than a decade ago, a research team used brain imaging to show that when a pleasurable music is heard, the neurotransmitter dopamine is released in the striatum-an ancient part of the brain which is known to respond to naturally rewarding stimuli like food and intercouse and which is artificially targeted by drugs like cocaine and amphetamine. What’s more interesting is ,the neurotransmitter is  released not only when the music rises to a peak emotional moment but also several seconds before the music rises which is called the anticipation phase [4]. Another interesting fact is that music helps make good predictions about the outcome of one’s action. There’s a experiment in which you can participate, to agree with the above. To move on with the experiment, take a paper and a pen. Close your eyes and listen to see if you can guess when the FTSE 100 financial market rose and fell in 2016. Video courtesy - BBC facebook. https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews/videos/10154810312818895/ Music therapy: Music therapy improves ability to imagine and think symbolically, recognize and improve sensory and motor skills ,and also to learn languages and emotion. Music therapy and autism supports a link between musical processing strengths and autism and the use of music as a therapeutic intervention. Singing can be an in-road to promote early speech by helping children access new neurological pathways to compensate for communication deficits. Music is at its core a structured way to present information. Melodic and rhythmic patterns give students with autism a way to organize auditory information and help memorize scripts, task sequences, and academic facts. Music can help individuals with autism make social and family connections through a mutual shared interest. Music is a creative medium that can offer a motivating and safe way to explore more flexibility and spontaneity.[2]

Uses of music therapy: Music therapy may help children with Autism: In 2004 study from the journal of music therapy found that music in children and teens with ASD can improve social behavior, increase focus and attention, increase communication attempting (vocalization, verbalization, gestures and vocabulary) reduce anxiety and improve body awareness and coordination. Additionally a skilled therapist can use music with children to increase their social interaction and improve social skill [5]. Music can improve behavior: In 2012 study of 41 children with autism over 10 month period found that weekly music therapy sessions seemed to improve overall behavior. More than half the group improved by one or two points on the scale after music therapy sessions. Music can improve communication: Up to 30% of children with autism are nonverbal ,and many low functioning children have difficulty in verbal commands. Music found to improve the mapping of sounds to actions by connecting the auditory and motor sections of the brain which may help improve understanding of verbal commands. The brain set the path way needed to speak can be reinforced and improved. Music can reduce anxiety: Children with autism are more sensitive to anxiety than the average children, as they are unable to filter out provoking stimuli. The university of Wisconsin La Crosse in 2006 found preliminary success in reducing anxiety in patient with autism. During the treatment patient listened to rhythmic music this therapy appeared to have decreased anxiety related behavior. [5] Research findings: Music therapy research findings demonstrate that individuals with autism may show equal or superior abilities in pitch processing, labeling of emotions in music, and musical preference when compared to typically developing peers. The most compelling evidence supporting the clinical benefits of music therapy lies in the areas of social-emotional responsiveness and communication, including increased compliance, reduced anxiety, increased speech output, decreased vocal stereotypy, receptive labeling, and increased interaction with peers. Preliminary findings also support the potential for music to assist in the learning of daily routines. Reference: [1].http://integratedtreatmentservices.co.uk/blog/sensory-hyper-hyposensitivity-autism/ [2]. http://www.tunedintolearning.com/music-and-autism. [3]. https://mamatoadeafboy.wordpress.com/tag/statistics-of-deaf-autism/ [4].http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/09/opinion/sunday/why-music-makes-our-brain-sing.html

[5].http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1362361309105660