Children (and anyone else) who have been diagnosed with a PDD / Autism / Asperger’s Disorder, currently and soon to be formally described as on the "Spectrum" are at risk for being mis- understood and hence not treated with all of the most effective techniques available today. Perhaps the greatest dis-service is the widely accepted belief that children with ASD lack the internal self regulation that is needed to connect and utilize of cognitive processes of self expression such as words or verbally accurate and effective interpersonal communication.

It is understood that their impacted abilities of self control are sometimes expressed through explosive and seemingly "uncontrolled" behaviors place themselves and / or others at risk for challenging and potentially abusive situations , and at least, non conforming behavior that has negative consequences. The customary approach of using behavioral shaping Techniques, such as behavior modification techniques (Applied Behavior Analysis, etc) attempt, and with some success are able to "shape" or modify a pattern of behavior deemed inappropriate for many people. Unfortunately the main reason for the label of inappropriate is that these children are being asked to conform to our mainstream structures such as schoosl, treatment facilities, restaurants, shopping malls... etc, and the list is limitless.

Psyche is ” the human spirit or soul”. Therapy is “the treatment of physical, mental or behavioral problems that is meant to cure or rehabilitate somebody (often used in combination).

Therefore to treat the spirit and soul of a child on the Spectrum we must have a pathway to it that is identifiable, workable and understandable.

The incorporeal and non-local aspect of the human psyche demands a treatment option that is not solely focused upon intellectual or cognitive functioning that leads only to behavioral changes or behavior modification. We must include the emotional and spiritual world if we are to understand, enter, validate and modify these emotional drivers of behavior. The very real acceptance that children on the spectrum have compromised cognitive abilities opens the door to another pathway that is more easily received by the child. Unfortunately this other pathway can be perceived as very mysterious and scary for the "mainstream treatment community".

This pathway is a sensorially oriented treatment called Creative Arts Therapy. Art Psychotherapy is the visual (or pictorial) dimension of this pathway and is provided by licensed Art Therapists , who by their training and natural connection to this internal, multisensory world can "connect" with our children on the spectrum.

The modality of Art Psychotherapy has two major dimensions, that are always at work, and from the outside looking in by an untrained observer may confuse or not be able to identify the clear separation of the two dynamics constantly at work.

Firstly, the aspect of Behavioral Functioning is the primary attribute that MUST be addressed. From arriving on time for a session, to finding the correct seat in the Art Room, receiving the appropriate materials, following instructions, appropriate handling of the materials (art supplies), and cleaning up are some of the many behavioral (or functional) steps a child must deal with in order to be “successful” in the eyes of the Art Therapist.

Secondly, the powerful internal process of conscious / unconscious emotional and spiritual expression of the self with its subsequent faculties of deductive reasoning, discriminatory selection (choosing the right color) , cathartic release, sublimation of aggressive drives (transformation), orientation to time and space, conquering the fear of failure as it is replaced with pride and accomplishment (which is even more scary than failure) and more detailed neurological phenomena (ie: recent research involving synaptic firing patterns) is at work, moving towards resolution all the time….even when it seems like the process is chaotic and it looks like "out of control behavior", more times than not it is but a necessary phase of the treatment where it can be understood as an adaptive regression in service of the ego. This is an older term that puts a handle on the idea of becoming more primitive in expression in order to build skills of conscious control and purpose.

The result of addressing these two key dynamics within the safety and trust of the Art Room, with a trained Art Therapist produce outcomes of INTEGRATION and INCREASE of the child’s ability to withstan , self regulate, process and structure the powerful, chaotic emotions at work. This phenomena is borne out and demonstrated over and over again through what is commonly described as the "Artwork". It is but a "Mirror", a "frozen moment of time" of the child’s dynamic process, containing within it forms, colors, and other symbols of sensory and intellectual perception, which can be "De-Coded", and used to understand the process the child has gone through. This leads to accurate diagnosis and treatment of the phenomena at hand.

Whether we believe ASD is a condition, disease, or simply an alternative genetic(spiritual) reality, etc., it is without doubt a different way to perceive life (as opposed to the traditionally accepted "Normal") and therefore demands an alternative (or more appropriate modality) to respond to its unique set of requirements and standards. Interestingly, Art Therapists themselves are “differently-abled” as they have spent and will spend the majority of their natural lives responding through their sensorially oriented consciousness, always working to “make sense” out of a primarily intellectually oriented world, in terms of structures and their meaning. It is this natural phenomena that bonds the Art Therapist with the ASD Child, and so trust is immediately being built upon introduction to each other, albeit on an unconscious level at first.

This is why children on the spectrum not only can respond to and therefore are appropriate for Psychotherapy but need a modality that it is attuned to their frequencies. Art Therapy may be able to be constructed to include more formal behavioral treatment (ABA), however the two disciplines must be fully integrated, conscious, and trained in each other’s process in order to be effective and not fragment the child’s experiences.

If all we do is try to shape the child’s behavior "from the outside", utilizing techniques such as verbal commands, token reinforcements, intellectual validations ("do you "understand me”") and fail to "see" how and where in the body they receive outside stimuli and emit their responses to a world that cannot receive and "see" their message, we will be involved in a long term dance and struggle for power and control and unfortunately miss the opportunity to connect with the child, validate their experience on the planet and above all share the love they, like all humans desire and need to survive and thrive in our world.