What makes us tick and what makes us stick?

Timing and inertia in ASD

Outline

• Neuroanatomy• What makes us tick?

– Intervals– Time and the

(autistic) brain– Time and autistic

traits

(break)

• What makes us stick?– What is inertia?– What isn’t inertia?– Executive function– Attention– Catatonia– Strategies

Neuroanatomy

• Pre-frontal cortex

• Cerebellum

• Basal ganglia

Timing Introduction

• Intervals– Circadian: about 24 hours– Interval: a few seconds to minutes– Millisecond: less than 2 seconds

• Time and the brain

• Time and autistic traits

Circadian

Length About 24 hours

Functions Sleep/wake cycles

Eating

Brain Suprachiasmatic nucleus

Autism Delayed sleep phase syndrome

Less pronounced rhythms

Sleep disturbance

Interval

Length A few seconds to minutes or longer

Functions Passage of time

Memory

Brain Basal ganglia

Pre-frontal cortex

Autism Structuring memory

Prospective memory (remembering to do something in the future)

Understanding change over time

Millisecond

Length Less than 3 seconds

Functions Motor coordination

Language

Brain Cerebellum

Autism Clumsiness

Language delay and language perception problems

Social timing

Time and the (autistic) brain

• Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)

• Basal ganglia

• Cerebellum

• Clock genes

Time and autistic traits

• Movement

• Language

• Change resistance

• Social timing

• Memory

• Task switching

Summary

• Timing is important for many things from language perception to movements to changes

• Time perception helps give the world structure and helps us interact with it effectively

• Timing helps us to predict what is coming next and respond at the right time.

Outline

• Neuroanatomy• What makes us tick?

– Intervals– Time and the

(autistic) brain– Time and autistic

traits

(break)

• What makes us stick?– What is inertia?– What isn’t inertia?– Executive function– Attention– Catatonia– Strategies

Introduction

• What is inertia?

• What isn’t inertia?

• Executive function

• Attention

• Catatonia

• Strategies

What is inertia

• An object in motion tends to stay in motion and an object at rest tends to stay at rest.

Starting,

stopping &

changing

of activities and focus

What isn’t inertia?

• Lack of motivation

• Depression

• Fatigue (though it can cause sleep deprivation)

• Procrastination or avoidance

• Laziness!

Executive function (EF)

• The mind’s ‘boss’ or director– EF is what stops an automatic response when a

non-automatic response is wanted

• Includes: – planning, organising, sequencing, monitoring,

inhibition, initiative

• One sign of impaired EF is perseveration• Autistic people do not usually have a problem

with inhibition, but ADHDers do.• Lacking initiative = what we call ‘inertia’

Attention

• Slow attention shifting (see timing)

• Missing cues

• Slower to orient and respond

• Things that are easy to do and instant rewards (computers)

Catatonia

• Physically ‘stuck’

• May be related to or similar to Parkinson’s Disease

• Caused or made worse by anti-psychotic medication?

• Passive interaction style

• Could inertia be a very mild version?

Strategies

• Reminders• Shock• The ‘do it now’ principle• Routines

– Inertia applies to routine instead of task– Attaching new task before an automatic one

• Perceptual patterns to follow - ‘flow’• Make it as easy as possible

Inertia summary

• Inertia is the inability to start, stop or change what you’re doing

• Inertia has a neurological basis and is not willful

• Executive function and attention switching may play a part and catatonia may be related

• Sometimes there are things we can do to make it easier.