“My son is obsessed with snacks,” commented a dad of a young man with autism. “Because he is gaining an inordinate amount of weight, we would like to limit his snacks. But all our efforts have led to explosive behavior and to his sneaking out into the kitchen to steal bags of chips or cartons [...]
“Sometimes I just feel like I am going in circles with my son,” commented a dad of an elementary-aged boy diagnosed with autism. “We finally get one problem ironed out, and here comes another one barreling around the corner!” Teachers and job coaches of individuals with autism express similar frustrations. But, when you think about [...]
“I can’t believe my son loudly blurted out a graphic description of a temporary pain using anatomically correct words while we were standing in line at the grocery store,” said a parent of a young adult with autism. “It seemed like everyone in the store froze and looked at him in horror. Because he looks [...]
“My daughter loves to look at fireworks, but she is very sensitive to loud sounds,” wrote the dad of a pre-teen with autism. “Fireworks just don’t look the same on television. What can I do to help her enjoy the celebration?” Listen Now:
“My son has developed the habit of wanting to go to the store frequently and purchasing a variety of different items,” wrote a single mom of a young man diagnosed with autism. “At first,” she continue, “I was pleased that he was at last interested in things. But now I feel like I have a [...]
Effective behavior management is an elusive goal. A friend with many years of experience in therapeutic foster care commented on the challenges she encounters maintaining consistent, positive strategies in a 24/7 environment. We came to the conclusion that caregivers are always making decisions, consciously or unconsciously, about the most effective response to any given behavior. [...]
“After years of agitation, our son finally seems to be more content at school,” said parents of a 14-year-old diagnosed with autism. “But now that he is home for the summer, he is reverting back to some of his explosive, agitated behavior. What can we do about this?” Listen Now:
Caregivers sometimes wonder if they are fighting a losing battle. One dad said, “Sometimes it seems that my son takes two steps backward for every one step he takes forward.” A teacher said, “Two of my students diagnosed with autism need help in so many different areas – social skills, communication, behavior, academics – it [...]
“How can I avoid tantrums every time we change the sheets on my son’s bed?” asked a parent. “He never likes the clean sheets and he hides his pillow hoping I won’t change the pillowslip.” Listen Now:
A parent and a group home staff supervisor both asked for strategies to protect fragile items around the home from individuals with autism. “My daughter always wants to line everything up on shelves,” said one mom. “She has broken several items and we never can find the remote because she obsessively arranges items.” Listen Now: [...]
Holding a familiar object often helps people with autism stay grounded during the day. But, as our youngsters with autism get older, the old teddy bear they have held for years gets very ragged and looks a bit out of place in a junior high school classroom. Several parents and teachers have asked for some [...]
Several teachers were discussing the challenge of trying to communicate with individuals with autism, especially those who are non-verbal. What is a person trying to communicate when they suddenly start screaming, hitting, or biting? What are they saying when they suddenly drop to the floor or scratch their arm or cry uncontrollably? One teacher said, [...]
When a person diagnosed with autism is having a problem at home, school, or work or in the grocery store, park, or car, it can often be very challenging to discover the source of the problem. Many times, teachers, job coaches, therapists, family members, and friends must be “super-sleuths” in order to patiently explore all [...]
Today we will talk about one of the skills necessary for a person with autism to live independently or semi-independently of family members. Parents tend to take the full responsibility of waking their kids up in the morning, then nag and plead with them every step of the way until they are ready to leave [...]
In the past week, several parents have brought up concerns about inappropriate public behavior. It is the phase that parents of pre-teen boys with autism dread. “I can’t believe he just sticks his hands in his pants even when we are in the store or sitting in church,” said one parent. “We tell him to [...]
I was talking to a parent and an after-school teacher earlier this year about a young lady with autism who functions academically on grade-level with her peers, but struggles with social and behavior issues. Her mom said, “I feel like we are in a constant battle of the wills.” Her after-school teacher commented that she [...]
A parent of an 7-year-old girl with autism asked for some ideas for birthday parties. “Our daughter is invited to birthday parties of kids she knows at school and church,” said the mom. “We would like to have a party for her, but the sensory over-load of balloons, the cake and ice cream, the pile [...]
A special education teacher and I were discussing the negative reaction of several of her students with autism to the fire alarm signal at school. As the discussion progressed, we both realized that the entire school day is filled with sounds that are probably very disconcerting to individuals diagnosed with autism. She asked me to [...]
A dad and grandmother of a four-year-old non-verbal boy diagnosed with autism were discussing bedtime routines. Since the youngster was easily agitated by change and struggles with explosive behavior, they realized he would do better with a regular, predictable bedtime routine. But they didn’t really know where to start.
The father of a young adult with autism who has been involved in music therapy for almost 20 years was telling me a story that illustrated the need for concrete, specific communication, especially with individuals with autism. Dad said, “I really lost my temper last weekend when I asked my son to put his clothes [...]
