有這樣一群孩子，我們稱他們為“星星的孩子”，醫學上他們被稱為自閉症兒童。他們在溝通交流方面似乎有著一套不被常人所理解的來自遙遠星球的思維模式，好像孤獨地沉浸在自己的世界裡。
今天是“世界自閉症關注日”，讓我們一起來關注“來自星星的孩子”。
August 8 2018 - New York City。 Amy Schumer at #BlogHer18 Creators Summit at Pier 17 in New York City。 （Credit Image）
Actor Amy Schumer has revealed that her husband， Chris Fischer， has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder （ASD）。
演員艾米-舒默曾透露她的丈夫克里斯-非舍爾被診斷患有自閉症。
In an upcoming Netflix special titled Amy Schumer： Growing， the 37-year-old comedian talks openly about her personal life， including her marriage and her husband’s health。
在即將播出的網飛公司特別節目《艾米-舒默：成長》中，這位37歲的喜劇演員公開談論了自己的私人生活，包括婚姻和丈夫的健康。
“I knew from the beginning that my husband’s brain was a little different than mine，” Schumer says in the hour-long stand-up show。
在這段一個小時的獨立脫口秀中，舒默說：“我從最開始就知道我丈夫的思維和我有些不同 。”
”My husband was diagnosed with what used to be called Asperger’s。 He has an autism spectrum disorder。 He’s on the spectrum。”
“我的丈夫被確診患有艾斯伯格症，這是自閉症譜系障礙中的一種。”
The I Feel Pretty actor said there were early signs of the condition when she first started dating Fischer， who she married in 2018。
曾出演《超大號美人》的舒默說，在最初和菲舍爾約會的時候，她就發現了一些早期跡象。兩人在2018年結婚。
“Once he was diagnosed， it dawned on me how funny it was， because all of the characteristics that make it clear that he’s on the spectrum are all of the reasons that I fell madly in love with him。 That’s the truth，“ she said。
她說：“他確診後，我覺得這太有趣了，因為所有這些特徵讓我終於明白，我瘋狂愛上他的原因就是他所表現出來的這些特徵。真的是這樣。”
“He says whatever is on his mind。 He keeps it so real。 He doesn’t care about social norms or what you expect him to say or do，“ she added。
她補充說：“他想什麼就說什麼，如此真實。他不在乎社會常規，或者別人希望他說什麼做什麼。”
Students with autism take a hydrotherapy class at the warm-water pool of the Heep Hong Society， a children‘s educational and rehabilitation organization in Hong Kong。 Provided to China Daily
自閉症譜系障礙是怎麼回事？
Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how people perceive the world and interact with others， the National Autistic Society （NAS） states。
英國自閉症協會稱，自閉症是終身的發育障礙，影響人們對世界的認知及與他人的互動。
An autistic person experiences their surroundings differently to others which can impact their communication skills and their ability to relate to others。
自閉症患者感知周圍世界的方式與常人不同，這會影響到他們的溝通技巧，以及與他人交流的能力。
As the name suggests， autism is a spectrum condition meaning that while all autistic people share certain difficulties， they can experience the condition in different ways。
透過名字可以看出，自閉症譜系障礙意味著，儘管所有的自閉症患者都有某種障礙，但他們的狀況又各有不同。
自閉症有多普遍？
There’s is no official count of the number of people who have been diagnosed with autism worldwide。
全世界有多少人患有自閉症，目前沒有官方資料。
A study published in the Journal of Child Neurology in 2007 was the first large-scale examination of the prevalence of autism in China。 The study found that 1。61% of children under the age of 15 years were receiving some level of services for an autism spectrum disorder。
2007年發表在《兒童神經病學》期刊的一項研究是中國首個針對自閉症患病率的大規模研究。該研究發現，15歲以下的青少年中有1。61%的孩子在接受某種程度的自閉症譜系障礙治療。
There are around 700，000 autistic people in the UK – that’s more than one in 100 people， according to the NAS。
英國自閉症協會稱，英國有大約70萬名自閉症患者，超過總人口的1%。
People from all nationalities and cultural， religious and social backgrounds can be autistic， although it appears to affect more men than women。
來自各種民族、文化背景、信奉不同宗教、擁有不同社會背景的人們都可能患有自閉症，但似乎男性比女性患者比例高。
There are a number of theories as to why more men and boys than women and girls get an autism diagnosis， including genetic differences and the idea that that women and girls are better at masking or camouflaging their difficulties。
關於為何男性和男孩比女性和女孩更容易被診斷為自閉症有多種理論，包括遺傳學差異，以及女性和女孩更擅長偽裝和掩飾自身的障礙。
camouflage ［‘kmflɑ］：vt。偽裝，掩飾
自閉症的症狀有哪些？
While two people will not experience ASD in the same way as it has a variety of effects。 However， there are some uniting factors。
因為自閉症有多種症狀表現，所以沒有兩位自閉症患者的表現會完全相同，但還是有一些共同點。
In particular， understanding and relating to other people， and taking part in everyday life can be more difficult。
自閉症患者在理解他人、與他人溝通，以及參與日常生活方面會更困難。
As a result， people with autism can appear to be insensitive， seek out time alone and behave in a way thought to be socially inappropriate。
因此，自閉症患者可能看上去感覺遲鈍，總是獨處，並且行為怪異，不符合社會常規。
Autistic people also tend to engage in repetitive behavior and routines。 For example， they “may want to always travel the same way to and from school or work， or eat exactly the same food for breakfast”。
自閉症患者還總是重複某種行為和活動，比如，他們“或許總選擇同一路線去上學或上班，或者早餐總吃同一種食物。”
Many autistic people also experience over or under-sensitivity to sounds， touch， tastes， smells， light， colors， temperatures or pain。
很多自閉症患者對聲音、觸覺、味覺、嗅覺、光、顏色、溫度和痛感過於敏感，或者過於遲鈍。
Autism also affects a person’s cognitive abilities， with around 70 percent of children having a non-verbal IQ of 70 or below， with 100 considered the average。
自閉症還會影響人的認知能力，大約70%的自閉症兒童的非語言智商等於或低於70分，正常兒童平均值為100分。
However， Asperger Syndrome， which is a form of autism， is linked with average or above average levels of intelligence。
然而，自閉症中的艾斯伯格症候群患者智商等於或高於平均水平。
Children play at the Shijinglong Ski Resort in Yanqing， Beijing， on Jan 21。 ［Photo/Xinhua］
自閉症可以治癒嗎？
Autism is a life-long condition and many people see it is an important part of their identity。
自閉症是終身的發育障礙，很多人將之視為其自身重要的一部分。
However， there are a number of strategies and behavioral programs that help to enable learning and development which people with autism may find helpful。
不過，也有多種策略和行為計劃能幫助自閉症患者學習和發展，對他們有所幫助。
If your child is autistic， it’s also good idea to find out as much as you can about autism。
如果你的孩子患有自閉症，蒐集儘可能多的自閉症相關資訊是個好主意。
英國國民健康保險體系建議大家採取多種干預措施，幫助孩子發育，其中包括：
communication skills – such as using pictures， sign language or both to help communicate as speech and language skills can be significantly delayed
溝通技能：比如使用圖片和手語來幫助溝通，因為自閉症患者的語言技能發展可能嚴重滯後。
social interaction skills – play-based strategies， comic strips and some computer-based interventions can help
社交技能：在玩耍中培養社交技能，閱讀連環畫，或者一些使用計算機開展的干預措施會有幫助。
imaginative play skills – such as encouraging pretend play
想象力遊戲技能：比如鼓勵孩子玩角色扮演。
learning skills – such as pre-learning skills to help concentration， reading， writing and maths
學習技能：比如預習技巧，幫助孩子集中精力、閱讀、寫作和學習數學。
【小知識：“世界自閉症關注日”的由來】
2007年12月聯合國大會透過決議，從2008年起，將每年的4月2日定為“世界自閉症關注日”，以提高人們對自閉症和相關研究與診斷以及自閉症患者的關注。
自閉症，又名自閉症譜系障礙（ASD），是一類以社會交往和溝通障礙、狹隘興趣及刻板行為為主要特徵的兒童神經發育障礙。此病以男孩多見，男女之比4：1，發病原因主要為先天性因素，但往往在嬰幼兒期因為行為異常、語言發育遲緩才引起家長重視，最終到醫院才作出診斷。目前已成為全球患病人數增長最快的嚴重疾病之一。
翻譯&編輯：yaning
