Navigating an autism diagnosis can be an emotional rollercoaster for families. When level 3 autism, previously known as low-functioning autism, enters the picture, a unique set of hurdles can arise. According to a study by the CDC, parents of about 1 in 6 children between 3 and 17 reported their children to have a developmental disability, including Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Children with level 3 autism face severe challenges like limited communication abilities, intense sensory issues, and extreme difficulty coping with changes. Their substantial support needs make daily life exceptionally demanding for them and their caregivers.
To worsen matters, the conventional medical perspective offers little explanation and relief beyond genetic explanations, psychiatric medications for co-occurring conditions, and behavior therapy for symptom management. This leaves parents feeling dismissed, overwhelmed, and disheartened.
So, what is level 3 autism? In this article, we’ll explore the levels of autism and what it means to have a child with a level 3 autism diagnosis. We’ll also examine the daily impact this condition can have, “The Perfect Storm” of external stressors that can contribute to an autism diagnosis, and how Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care can offer discouraged families renewed hope.
What is Autism Spectrum Disorder?
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) refers to a range of developmental disabilities characterized by challenges with communication and social skills, as well as restrictive behaviors and interests. While genetics and neurological differences play a role, researchers now recognize autism arises from a complex “Perfect Storm” of external factors. These include environmental impacts interacting with biological vulnerabilities during crucial developmental windows.
This modern understanding sees autism as a “whole-body” condition. Innovative healthcare models like PX Docs focus on identifying and gently addressing traces of neurological dysfunction and imbalance-perpetuating symptoms rather than just labeling immutable limitations. As nervous system regulation improves, more flexible thinking and behavior patterns can emerge.
What is Level 3 Autism?
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), delineates three levels of autism that provide criteria for diagnosis and gauging the necessary degree of support. Level 3 autism, sometimes referred to as low-functioning autism, requires very substantial support, reflecting the most intense cluster of autism traits that significantly impair functioning. In the past, “low-functioning autism” was a label used to describe more severe forms of autism. However, this label was unreliable and limiting in capturing an individual’s full potential.
Therefore, now the focus is on needs-based Autism Spectrum Disorder specification levels, which aim to guide customized therapeutic approaches without relying on arbitrary functioning labels. This approach acknowledges the unique needs and abilities of each autistic individual and allows for a more personalized and effective care approach.
Characteristics of Level 3 Autism
Level 3 autism, reflecting the highest support needs end of the spectrum, is characterized by a cluster of profoundly disabling traits encompassing social, communication, sensory, behavioral, and overall developmental domains. Key characteristics include:
- Extreme resistance and negative reaction to changes in routine
- Highly restrictive, repetitive behaviors that interfere with functioning
- Severe impairment in verbal and nonverbal communication abilities
- Intense sensory processing dysfunction—either hyper or hyposensitivity
- Frequent co-occurring conditions like sleep disruptions, seizures, GI issues
- Safety concerns like the tendency to wander or elope without awareness of dangers
- Very limited social initiation and abnormal social interaction, such as avoiding eye contact
- Require very substantial support for stabilization due to pervasive disability in social, communication, behavioral, and overall developmental domains
In essence, level 3 autism requires pervasive care and support for stabilization amidst pronounced disability affecting socialization, communication, behavior, and by extension—overall development and learning. But what circumstances converge in the first place to set this subgroup of profound autism challenges in motion?
Unpacking “The Perfect Storm” Behind Severe Autism
At PX Docs, we use “The Perfect Storm” analogy to recognize that complex health conditions like severe autism rarely arise from a single cause but rather from an accumulation of interwoven factors disrupting normal functioning bit by bit over time. It is the culmination of events that fuels level 3 intensity.
Potential contributors fit into buckets like emotional, physical, or toxic stress during gestation, traumatic delivery involving oxygen loss or nerve injury, postnatal infections requiring antibiotics that decimate gut microbes, unrelenting sensory bombardment, or lack of supportive therapies for missed milestones.
Repeatedly disrupted or overloaded systems eventually pass tipping points into nervous system dysregulation, leading to severe reactions. Conventional treatment that focuses only on behavior modification or symptom management fails to address the root cause of the dysfunction.
What Factors Contribute to Level 3 Autism?
Rather than a fate fixed at conception, the current scientific consensus recognizes autism as arising from a cascade of environmental impacts interacting with genetic vulnerabilities during crucial developmental windows. This “Perfect Storm” brews over time, not overnight.
For children who develop level 3 autism, clues, and clinical patterns suggest heightened exposure to external factors that significantly challenged delicate neural circuit formation compared to peers with milder forms.
Typically, this “Perfect Storm” of external triggers can include:
- Maternal emotional, physical, or toxic stressors during gestation
- Inflammatory conditions or infections
- Traumatic birth complications involving oxygen deprivation or physical trauma
- Gut dysbiosis from inadequate nutrition or antibiotic overuse
- Unrelenting sensory discomforts
- A lack of proper developmental supports
This is where PX Docs’ expertise proves invaluable. We can map the cumulative chaos through specialized analysis technology called INSiGHT Scans, which provides a methodical review of each child’s history and experiences.
Then, using precise, neuro-tonal chiropractic adjustments, we work to restore proper nervous system coordination and balance to a system stuck in distress. As healthy, coordinated communication across nervous system pathways resumes, more flexible thinking and behaviors emerge from the fog.
Understanding Nervous System Dysfunction in Level 3 Autism
Beneath the outward behavioral symptoms of level 3 autism lies a vortex of neurological dysfunction driven by chronic stress physiology. At the core is an imbalance between key branches of the nervous system—the sympathetic fight-or-flight system and the opposing parasympathetic rest-and-digest system.
In particular, the vagus nerve plays a significant regulatory role as the prime conduit of the parasympathetic commands. This cranial nerve intimately connects organs throughout the body, controlling heart rate, digestion, inflammation, social engagement, and more. Poor vagal tone directly equates to loss of stability amidst the sensory, emotional, and cognitive chaos embodied in level 3 autism.
Moreover, neural interference along key communication pathways strains coordinated messaging, which is vital for “normal” adaptive responses. Vertebral subluxations are a prime suspect for this, as birth injury or high levels of sustained stress can misalign these delicate neural passages.
Fortunately, qualified PX Doctors offer Neurologically Focused Chiropractic Care that can help improve the quality of life for those with level 3 autism. They identify and correct points of interference that contribute to neurological dysfunction, restoring healthy neural communication. This leads to improved flexibility and relief for families and caretakers.
The PX Docs Approach to Level 3 Autism
At PX Docs, we recognize autism as a whole-body phenomenon beyond strict psychological parameters. To affect its most disabling manifestations requires addressing the root causes—not just chasing symptoms. This integral, neurologically-focused strategy centered around the “Perfect Storm” construct has helped many children defy level 3 autism’s devastating prognosis.
At the core of Neurologically Focused-Chiropractic Care are neuro-tonal chiropractic adjustments tailored to the unique pattern of vertebral misalignment and nervous system weakness identified by INSiGHT Scans. Specialized vibration is then applied to release deeply rooted tension, which manifests as symptoms, while custom exercises and nutraceuticals provide reparative building blocks.
If your family lives with level 3 autism, visit our PX Doc Directory to find a PX Doc to explore this paradigm-shifting approach. By compassionately targeting root causes rather than just symptoms, we can nurture capability where severity once towered as children embrace their potential.
