Dr. José Fernando de Souza

Autism: under a medical-spiritist perspective

At the end of 2015, a survey by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), OF the United States, found that the incidence of autism among children has increased: now 1 child in 45 is within the autistic spectrum disorder (which is about 2.25% in the American country). Between 2011 and 2013, the rate was only 1 to every 80 and in 2008, 1 to 100.

Thus, it is estimated Brazil, with its 200 million inhabitants, has about 2 million autistics: more than 300,000 occurrences only in the State of Sao Paulo.

To learn more about this disease, we interviewed Dr. Jose Fernando de Souza (in the photo), who is a neurologist physician, Medical Director of the Integrated Core of Child Neurology in Juazeiro do Norte, State of Ceara, and President of SMA – city of Cariri.

Here is the interview: 

What characterizes autism?

Autism is defined by an abnormal development and/or regression of social interaction and communication linked to interests and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors.

How do parents and caregivers identify the first signs? At the age of how many months or years, can it be identified?

The windows of development are one of the main biological markers in global child development disorders in the autistic spectrum. These markers represent today the main parameters that we have and they arise from the following: the social orientation (ability to respond to a call) and joint attention (ability to share attention with any person) are skills acquired in the first year of life; therefore, currently we look for delays in the mentioned areas, the so called analysis of the phenotype (observation of behavior).

Presently, the most precise markers, i.e., indicators that can be measured, are the end phenotypes, or individual predisposition to develop pervasive developmental disorders. Thus, early diagnosis can be detected in a child who does not respond to a call with your look (orientation and shared attention) or has not developed the language up to 30 months of age. 

Are there genetic predispositions for autism?

There is a cluster of genes that have been identified as involved in the genesis of social disorders that comprise the autism spectrum disorder, such as neuroligins 3 and 4, the neurexias 1 and 3, the FMR1 and MECP2 in the case of these last two, studies involved with the syndrome of fragile X and Rett syndrome.

Spiritually, are there explanations or possibilities for this disease to occur?

A further explanation for the disorder of child development of ASD is the Law of Cause and Effect. As the Spirit Joanna de Angelis tells us in her book Wholeness: "human suffering of karmic nature can present itself in two aspects that complement each other: trial and atonement. Both aim to educate and reeducate".

Spiritually, children are Spirits in an educational and development process, with karmic demands (Law of Cause and Effect) to be cleansed. It is not the parents that give birth to the Spirits that return. They only assist in the genetic composition of the formation of matter in which this specific Spirit will live. The body comes from the body, but the Spirit does not come from the Spirit, because the Spirit already existed before the body was formed, the body in which it is going to live with. 

Today, we see more cases of autism. Why? Has the diagnosis improved?

The fact that we see more cases being diagnosed today for autism spectrum disorders is due to the increased information by those who deal with the disease and the disclosure made in the media by the autistic mothers' associations and children from all over Brazil, which have, unequivocally disclosed the natural history of the disease and how to diagnose it. It is evident that knowledge has been improving over the years. 

Is our society more prepared to support not only the child but the family too?

Our present society is much better prepared to accept and welcome these children, in view of the understanding of the disease and for those who accept the paradigm spirit-matter. 

In your opinion, what is the best lesson to learn from autism?

The best lesson we learned from children’s autism is that we are in front of a human being, who is suffering because previously he also hurt, and most of the times he hurt very much, as we were informed by the Higher Spirits in the statements of Herminio C. Miranda, Chico Xavier and Suely Caldas Schubert. "The atonement - they say - aims to restore the lost balance to the time when the offender is taken back to the spiritual stage in which he was before his disastrous fall”.

We have to take into consideration the proposal of the Spiritist Houses to assist the autist children with focus on two equally important points:

1. Permanent Spiritual Assistance to families and to the patient in the Spiritist Centre and in their home too.

2. Do not withdraw from the medical care and rehabilitation provided by various known techniques.