It has been since last summer that Eloïse Caulier Vis and her husband have known that their second child, Marius, soon to be 5 years old, has what is now called a autism spectrum disorder. Diagnosis made after school alerts to his sometimes unusual behavior. Like Marius, however, 8,000 children are born each year with this disorder, i.e. approximately one in 100 births.
The vital support of the club
Fortunately, the handball club of Ailly-sur-Somme, where Eloise plays, has been of great help. “Sport already is a valve. It allows me to really breathe because autism is experienced daily, it never stops. And the benevolence of the club makes me feel good“, she explains. “_The entourage is super important, because_we very quickly feel alone and very quickly lost in the face of the handicap“.
– Bastien Roque
On April 2, World Autism Awareness Day, the club has decided to get involved in this cause. First by welcoming in the gymnasium stands of associations and organizations dedicated to the care of autism. Also present were the Departmental Center for People with Disabilities (MDPH), the Autism Resource Center of the University Hospital of Amiens, the Association for adults and young people with disabilities in the Somme (Apajh 80), and Autistes sans frontières.
Sport, a powerful remedy
Handball has, moreover, aroused a lively and unexpected interest in young Marius. “He already loves watching handball on TV“, explains his mother. “Because there are scores and he is very attracted to numbers. But there’s also the excitement, and he actually loves that. Enthusiasm is very important“.
Marius is not the only one to whom sport has done a world of good. Audrey, a friend of Eloïse is in the same situation with her 11-year-old son Hugo, who was diagnosed with autism only a year ago. Him found happiness in judo. “He tested a lot of sports, which were not suitable, and there we finally found it! It’s been his second year where he’s doing well. As _he is framed, necessarily he feels safe_, so comfortable. It was complicated but we finally found it!“
A tool for working on relationships
An intellectual but also relational interest, a very difficult facet to develop with autism. “When Marius comes to see the games, he has the right to come on the bench with my teammates, talk about all his interests, the girls are always there to listen to him. He also finds refuge in the hand, it develops relationships thanks to that, always being in a group, never alone in his corner. We really see a change!“
This common passion is also an opportunity to finally strengthen the relationship between this mother and her son: “As I have this center of interest too, I know what he is talking about and I can have very long discussions with him. And that is really great!“