And they found that people with Williams syndrome have a lot more oxytocin than everybody else, and that it fluctuates wildly in the brain. As a result, they feel this biological impulse to love all the time.
Williams syndrome is called the happy syndrome because people with this condition often have outgoing, friendly personalities and tend to be very social. They may have a unique ability to connect with others and form strong bonds, making them appear very happy and engaging.
Children with Williams syndrome typically have a personality that is friendly, outgoing, and/or talkative. The appropriate use of language and vocabulary range may be unusually enhanced in some children with this disorder. Mild to moderate mental retardation may occur.
Most people with Williams syndrome have a normal life expectancy, but some may have a reduced life expectancy due to complications of the disease (such as cardiovascular problems). Oftentimes, people with Williams syndrome will need additional support as they grow into adults.
People with WS may have mild to moderate delays in their cognitive development (ability to think and reason) or learning difficulties. They also may have a distinctive facial appearance, and a unique personality that combines over-friendliness and high levels of empathy with anxiety.
People with Williams syndrome typically have difficulty with visual-spatial tasks such as drawing and assembling puzzles, but they tend to do well on tasks that involve spoken language, music, and learning by repetition (rote memorization).
The personality of individuals with Williams syndrome involves high sociability, overfriendliness, and empathy, with an undercurrent of anxiety related to social situations.
There is also evidence of accelerated ageing among individuals with Williams syndrome. An early onset of hearing loss is common and may coexist with hyperacusis (aversion to loud noises). There may also be premature greying of hair.
People with Williams syndrome can develop physical and mental health problems later in life, including anxiety and depression. People with Williams syndrome are very talkative and can be excessively friendly.
Williams syndrome is a progressive disorder with multisystem involvement.
The low I.Q., however, ignores two traits that define Williams more distinctly than do its deficits: an exuberant gregariousness and near-normal language skills. Williams people talk a lot, and they talk with pretty much anyone [p.
Individuals with WS exhibit consistent and unique patterns of social behavior, characterized by an overly friendly, affectionate, engaging, and socially disinhibited personality particularly toward strangers, apparent cross-culturally, and through separable channels of communication, such as eye gaze and language.
Social skills: Although children with Williams syndrome are known to be quite social, they may learn to play and interact with other children more slowly than other children. They are often more interested in adults, and may struggle with attention to social cues with peers.
Scientists realized it was related to the levels of oxytocin. They knew that oxytocin is involved in social/intimacy behaviors, like mother-child bonding or romantic encounters. And they found that people with Williams syndrome have a lot more oxytocin than everybody else, and that it fluctuates wildly in the brain.
Autism and Williams syndrome are genetically based neurodevelopmental disorders that present strikingly different social phenotypes. Autism involves fundamental impairments in social reciprocity and communication, whereas people with Williams syndrome are highly sociable and engaging.
Although low mood in Williams syndrome is less well researched, there are indications that clinical depression diagnoses may be present in approximately 10% of individuals. As in the general population symptoms of depression often occur alongside symptoms of anxiety for people with Williams syndrome.
Behavioural difficulties include: lack of social inhibition/discrimination, attention deficits, fears phobias, generalized anxiety (often related to health and illness), preoccupations obsessions (e.g. certain types of machinery e.g. lawn mowers, washing machines) and perseverative behaviour (doing or saying the same ...
"You listen to what I say, I listen to what you say, and then we build on that," Pober says. "But to sustain the attention and build on the dialogue enough to really get to know someone is hard for many folks with Williams syndrome." Pober says few people with William's syndrome marry, and even fewer have children.
Mental comorbidities, such as phobia, obsessive compulsive symptoms and anxiety disorders, are common in Williams syndrome. However, psychotic symptoms are rare in these patients.
Can people with Williams Syndrome have a child/children of their own? There are no significant physical reasons why people with Williams Syndrome cannot conceive normally, but their own health may pose a potential risk, particularly if they have a heart condition.
Williams syndrome is a spectrum disorder. There is a great deal of variability in individuals throughout the spectrum. Medical concerns and learning challenges, emotional issues, and anxiety are common and can be all-consuming at times. The severity of the challenges varies and can ebb and flow over the years.
Williams Syndrome (WS) is a genetically determined, intellectually disabling condition. Most affected children develop severe feeding difficulties in the first year of life, including vomiting, constipation and refusal to feed; they may be irritable, cry excessively and do not thrive well.
It affects approximately 1 in 10000 Australians. There are many symptoms that vary from person to person, but they each share a very social and friendly disposition and have a deep affinity with music.
Beyond infancy, findings have consistently indicated that children with WS have more sleep problems than age-matched TD children, including sleep anxiety, bedtime resistance, sleep onset delay, frequent night waking, general restlessness, and excessive daytime sleepiness [10, 11, 41,42,43,44,45,46,47].
Background. Williams syndrome (WBS) is a genetic multisystem disorder. The main symptom is borderline (intelligence quotient, IQ 70–79) or abnormally low intelligence (IQ < 70).