“Two minutes to better live with autism”, a video platform for caregivers of autistic children

“The idea of ​​this video platform called Two minutes to better live with autism came to me as I noticed over the years an explosion of cases of autism in consultation” explains first of all Priscilla Werba, speech therapist and founder of the Joker association, which helps parents of autistic people in the management of their disability. “For fifteen years, I have been receiving more and more autistic children in consultation, in particular non-verbal autistics but also other children with disabilities who do not speak.“adds Priscilla Werba.

A frustration of caregivers of autistic children

Priscilla Werba then realizes that caregivers of autistic children – their parents but also nannies or school staff – are sometimes helpless in the face of the crises they may face. “And on the internet, I realized that there was a lot of things to understand autism but nothing about how to manage a crisis or what activities to do with an autistic child” she explains.

“That’s how the idea of ​​these videos came to me and the creation of this platform, put online in 2018. Today, there are 120 videos available on it, made with the help of other professionals health, educators, teachers but also parents of autistic children. All available free of charge, it is important to emphasize this”.

Practical advice for everyone

In those videos, which last two to three minutes, actions of everyday life have been staged in the form of cartoons. Very easy to understand, they want to show that everyone at our level, we can do something. “These videos do not replace rehabilitation, but they can explain to a person who does not feel armed when faced with an autistic child, what they can do. There are different possibilities offered, at the end of the video, to understand a difficulty but also tips and advice…” adds the speech therapist.

Eight videos uploaded in April

For the rest, Priscilla Werba already imagines talking about autism among older children. “Our current videos target 0-12 year olds, why not talk about autistic teenagers and adults?” she advances. But starting this month, the platform will host eight additional videos that will talk about the early signs of autism. “They will allow parents of children who are asking questions to find clear answers because certain signs are detected very early, a few weeks after birth. adds Priscilla Werba.

Remember that autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder, which cannot be cured. “But the earlier it is detected, the more we will take advantage of the child’s cerebral plasticity to limit bad behavior and stimulate the child as much as possible to best orient his life trajectory.” summarizes the speech therapist.