ABSTRACT
Play by children with autism stimulates their mobilisation responses. Neurotypical children use their tone of voice and facial expression to communicate emotions. This prevents their playful behaviour from being interpreted in an aggressive manner by the nervous system of their playmate. This moment-to-moment facial interaction is difficult for both children with autism and those who have grown up in an unsafe environment through trauma, neglect, or abuse. The author's clinical experience using Bilateral Affective Reprocessing of Thoughts (BART) psychotherapy with traumatised patients leads to believe it will help patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The aim of treatment with BART psychotherapy is reintegration of the whole body at the level of the gut, heart, and brain, to keep the patient within their window of affective tolerance and emotional regulation. The stages of adolescent brain development are further described, with particular attention to the role of pruning in the formation of executive functions.
