Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello
My son is 2 years 10 months he has very recently been diagnosed with ASD has most of the classic traits. However he's behaviour has took a downhill spiral especially when in public. For example we have a meltdown when going home as he wants to go to the park or in the supermarket as he wants something in the shopping there and then. He was throw himself on the floor and scream and shout to the point I'm being approached by members of the public trying to intervene which is distressing for the both of us. I don't want to have to explain myself to strangers as to why he is screaming. Does anyone have any techniques or strategies to deal with this behaviour this is becoming unbearable. All suggestions welcome.
This is one of the agonies one goes through as a parent of a child with ASD: trying to explain to the public why the child behaves the way he or she does in public places. The uninformed members of the public will think it is your fault(Poor parental upbringing) but most of the informed members will empathize with you.
My advice is for you to try and minimize these distressing occasions by keeping your child indoors as much as possible and exposing him to only people who have good understanding of his condition.You may find the services of an occupational therapist useful but more importantly is the need for you to create a home environment where all that are involved really understand and are willing to help your child to socialize and cope with his condition.
It is heart arching but perseverance pays off from my own experience.
Thankfully he is surrounded by a very loving and understanding environment but I do feel I would be doing him an injustice by keeping away from these situations as this is part of life. I feel I have to prepare him for these situations for him to be able to become an independent adult.
You are quite right. But it has to be a graded exposure.It is also expected that these symptoms will become minimal with time for most children with ASD.
I was personally advised to try and ignore most of the tantrums.Giving in most of the time will tantamount to reinforcing it. It is not always very easy to say no and stand firmly on it especially when dealing with a special child.
That's a relief to hear. It's just in the moment these outbursts happen which in my sons case is when he doesn't get what he wants. What can I do to stop the distress? He understands what No means which adds to the meltdown. Do I pretend it's not happening and reward him when he stops ?