Hi Donna
I have heard recently that medications such as Prozac can sometimes be used to reduce some of the more distressing aspects of autism, and wondered if you know much about this, or have an opinion about it.

DONNA:
Recent studies of Prozac found that it no more effective than placebo in all but the most depressed of patients  taking it.
It is used for depression.
So IF someone with autism was apathetic, withdrawn, irritable, clingy, Selectively Mute, DUE to depression
then it ‘might’ help 50% of those people.

However Prozac would be a last step not a first one.

One can easily be depressed in a non-fitting environment, when feeling constantly disempowered, dealing with pain they can’t communicate, overwhelmed or disoriented by sensory or perceptual issues, frustrated by communication disorders and without augmented communication, regularly judged, misunderstood, devalued, presumed retarded, not a full member of a family, facing upheaval, lacking opportunities… the list goes on.
Better to address the REAL problem before presuming its ‘all physical’.
Also keep in mind that bipolar is regularly mistaken for depression and antidepressants can make mania worse.
There are also other ways of treating depression, including sunshine, exercise, laughter, music, arts, nature, a more autism-friendly environment and life.  Also B vitamins, omega 3s and L-Glutamine are all natural anti-depressants.

Always remember that if any iconic person on the autism spectrum has benefitted from Prozac for DEPRESSION that this is not the same as taking it for autism.

You may find further ideas in Autism; An Inside Out Approach and in The Jumbled Jigsaw.

Warmly,

Donna Williams, Dip Ed, BA Hons
author, consultant, public speaker
http://www.donnawilliams.net
http://www.auties.org