Swimming Can Help Those with Autism

Swimming has been shown to improve speech, coordination, social skills, self-esteem and cognitive processing for those with autism spectrum disorder.

Swimming might not be the first thing that comes to mind when looking for ways to cope with an autism spectrum disorder, but research suggests it can offer benefits.

Swim meets can be loud with bustling parents and a flurry of activity, but Dayton Edwards, a 16-year-old Indiana boy with autism, said those distractions disappear beneath the water’s surface.

Dayton, who was diagnosed with high-functioning autism, says swimming allows him to think and focus on his underwater form instead of worrying about test questions he missed.

It’s also a place where he finds solace.

Swimming has been shown to improve speech, coordination, social skills, self-esteem and cognitive processing for those with ASD, according to the Autism Spectrum Disorder Foundation.

Unlike sports and activities that require team coordination, swimmers become isolated beneath the water. For those with ASD, who can become overstimulated by noises and crowds, it can create a comfort zone, according to the organization.

Learning to swim might also save the life of a child with autism.

According to a study by the University of Sciences in Philadelphia, drowning was cited as the leading cause of death among children with ASD.

Experts caution, however, that some people with ASD experience difficulties transferring the ability to swim from a controlled atmosphere like a swimming pool to other bodies of water such as lakes or ponds, according to Autism Awareness Australia.

Swimming can be dangerous at any level of skill, and supervision should always be exercised when children are around water.

For more, click on the link to read how swimming deeply affected and changed the life of Dayton Edward, a teenager with high-functioning autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiance disorder.