Just a quick question - we have had some close friends who have just had their 2 year old diagnosed as autistic. The mother has been thinking that for a while but the Dad has been in denial, thankfully no longer. They are both older parents and this is their first child. Now they have the diagnosis they are onto looking for therapists etc. He is a bright kid and verbal. The main issue they have is that their son has no sense of balance/spatial awareness, falling often and chipping his teeth. they were wondering if anyone had any advise or exercises that they might begin on while waiting to see a physical specialist? He also has sleep issues but not sure whether that is related to his autism or just a 2yo not wanting to sleep.
Hi Karen. Glad to hear The Dad is accepting now. I would encourage them to read about the "Actually Autistic" movement too. Their little boy sounds very much like my youngest, who has dyspraxia as well as being autistic. You can see various "broken arm and leg" layouts in my gallery LOL. Sleep problems are very common. We were lucky in that we instilled a very strict routine from birth in the hopes of avoiding her spending years in our bed like her sister did. It was a bit of a fluke really that a VERY dark room and a very predictable routine was exactly what she wanted and needed. My main advice to people with verbal, bright 'aspie' kids is just to talk, talk, talk and read, read, read. If there are particular things he is interested in (and there usually is) then use that as a way to engage and create a shared experience.
Thanks Lynn, I think they are struggling because they haven’t had any exposure to autistic kids and have no idea what to expect. They have got him into some therapy and a program at a local uni.
Karen, I'm autistic and so is one of my children. Feel free to message me if you want to "chat" about anything.
I don't have any children on the spectrum, but I have taught them. I will not try to give some grand amount of advice, just a few notes from those teaching years... Routine. Routine is BIG. May of these children thrive on consistency. Anything out of the ordinary can upset them. Telling them in advance that something "(_______________will be different today" and how seems to help a good bit, but they still want that routine. Socialization early is important. The fact that the parents addressed this so young is good! But they should know that it is possible for the child to not be "stuck" ( trying to choose my words carefully here) in a diagnosis. One of my students was completely non verbal and non sociable. She grew through therapy over her 5 years of age to the point where you could not see any real sign of any diagnosis. She was academically and socially developed and wonderful in the class- we saw growth every month! So there is GOOD news for them!!!! Different does NOT = bad news.
Actually, the other thing I forgot to add is that I always worry when parents choose not to tell their children about their diagnosis. We knew from when DD was three and we talked about it casually from then on so she has ALWAYS known that she is autistic (or 'aspie') a bit like they recommend children who are adopted always just know. We talked other members of the family (like her Grandad and me!) who have similar characteristics, we talked about the challenges, if she had a meltdown we talked about why and ways of avoiding it, and we also talked about the positives and the famous people who were/are autistics. The thing to remember is, autistic people KNOW they are different and that other people seem to just "get stuff" (mostly social stuff) that they don't and don't freak out over changes in routine or sensitivities to clothes etc. Having an explanation (especially one that comes with some positives and isn't made to feel like a big deal and a 'tragedy") stops years of feeling that there is something wrong with you and you don't know why. I always say that if it weren't for people who think differently, we would all still be living in caves
I have a 10-year-old boy with high functioning autism & a 5-year-old girl with mild autism. My 2-year-old daughter is in early intervention and will likely be diagnosed with autism as well. So I understand what they're experiencing. Autism usually includes sensory issues -- especially with vestibular & proprioception. I've found that OTs (occupational therapists) are the best for figuring out hypersensitivities and hyposensitivities in the senses, and then what exercises to do.
@AJK - I totally get the “I’m trying to choose my words carefully” when it comes to disability. A few years back some disability studies classmates and I were talking about a person with a disability vs a person without with some social work students and we were trying so hard to not use the term “normal” partly because we were out in a cafe after our final class for the semester and didn’t want to be heard saying the wrong thing. While the conversation at the time was serious I can’t stop thinking about how we were all in fits of laughter afterwards when we as a bunch of disability studies academics were stumbling with our words because we didn’t want to say the one word that would have been the easiest word to use because a) it wasn’t the right word and b) the discussion/argument would have been well what/who is “normal”?
Couldn’t have said it better - as well as having a disability studies degree I also have two friends with Autism/Aspergers Syndrome. While I don’t really notice any major issues with one of my friends I do with the other and many of the points @LynnG made totally apply so it’s even been a bit of a learning curve for me to be a more understanding and I guess patient friend to her.
Just rereading the thread again...totally agree with @AJK, Different can equal good outcomes. In my opinion it’s about getting the right supports in place early. Typically it’s much easier to get help when you are younger particularly for neurodiverse people (autism, aspergers etc) as they often fall through the cracks of the system later on. Generally the pot of funding for supports tends to go to a person with a “visual disability” as it’s far easier to support someone with services/funding when you can see the disability, ie: in a wheelchair, using a white cane, using a guide dog, using sign language.
As a person with three children on the spectrum myself ranging from High Function, to graduated and then low functioning, I know this well. I also had the father refuse to deal with it or say it and I CONSTANTLY tell my children they're aspies and not weird and that we just have to deal with things differently and that there is nothing wrong with them, they just do things differently. As to the original question in this which was about the movement aspect, one of the things that could help is to have a "line" or a "road" in tape on the carpet. Have them walk to one end and then spin as fast as they can and try to walk to the other end. At first, it's going to be frustrating for the kid (and probably parent) because it'll be hard, however make it a game, have them 'do it with him'. What he's doing is 'forcing' his brain to start learning how to be used to sudden changes, to movement and it 'compensates' by becoming more stable. It'll take time, but they WILL see improvement. My son hasn't fallen much at all and if he starts to get all wonky again, I'll randomly play "run to the wall faster than me and then back!!!" game and since he's forgotten the other, he just thinks I'm being weird. We run until we're worn out and then he seems to be okay again. I hope this helps!
