TITLE:
Addressing sleep disorder of autistic children with Qur’anic sound therapy
AUTHORS:
Mohd Amzari Tumiran, Siti Patonah Mohamad, Rohaida Mohd Saat, Mohd Yakub Zulkifli Mohd Yusoff, Noor Naemah Abdul Rahman, Durriyyah Sharifah Hasan Adli
KEYWORDS:
Sleep Disorder; Autism; Qur’anic Therapy; Sound Therapy
JOURNAL NAME:
Health,
Vol.5 No.8B,
August
20,
2013
ABSTRACT:
Autism is a neural
development disorder characterized by the deterioration in social interacttion,
abnormal language expression, repetitive actions, imaginative game tendencies, and limited and/or obsessiveness in certain activities/
interests. Lack of sleep is one of the factors contributing to the worsening of
overall negative symptoms of autistic children. From the Islamic perspective,
sleep is a necessity and could function as a treatment for health problems,
in addition to influencing behavior patterns. Sound therapy has been used in
dealing with various health problems, including sleep problems and mental ill
health. Possibly, it can also address sleep problems of the autistic children.
Listening to the melodious Qur’anic recitation is known to have therapeutic
effects even on individuals who do not understand the meaning of the verses being read; it could function as sound therapy. However, no established work has been done to study the effect of Qur’anic
verses recitation on autistic children and their sleep problems. Similar to the use of music therapy, Qur’anic recitation is also expected to have a positive impact on speech, learning and
interpersonal relationship. As a healing medium, Qur’anic therapy is also expected to have a better result
as compared to other conventional sound therapy since its content could
be psychotherapeutic.