trying to get a child with ASD to get their bedroom redecorated

We have just managed to do a full redecoration..even new skirting boards the whole lot! We even managed to get her to part with an entire midi skips worth of toys and general rubbish..how? Well first of all she got to sleep in my bed ( the hubby relegated to the settee ) we then had everyone involved in the mass clear out and allowed her to keep ( what appeared to her ) to be almost everything! Once the room began to look empty and less like her "bedroom" and more of a building site she was no longer concerned about the old and focused on what the new was going to be. We let her pick paint and wallpaper ( steered in a general direction I approved of ) so I went B&Q and got a ton of wallpaper samples and stuck them all over the walls - I didn't take her with me as this would have been disastorous, then once paper chosen I did the same with paint colour. i should point out my girl is not a girly girl and has no interests in fashion, colour or anything like that. I only made one mistake and that was allowing her to come bed shopping as she laid on a two grand bed and declared she only wanted that one! 

She is now completely at ease in her new organised and clean space and seems none the worse for any of the original anxieties around doing it! Wish we had done it years ago! 

I moved last year and my daughter got to choose what colour her room was however it was done before we moved in so less of a big deal.

I also have a nightmare getting her hair cut.  I was told it can have several reasons - the loss of hair can be emotionally traumatic but so can the feeling of having your hair cut.  Being a girl, it should be easier to have long hair but hers is really thick and she can't brush it herself plus she's messy and gets all sorts in it so it starts to matt :-(

andybc3 said:

Thanks any ideas on getting his hair cut 

Is the problem that he want his hair long, and you don't (for whatever reason), or that he just dislikes going to the hairdressers?

Thanks any ideas on getting his hair cut 

Hi Andy,

  My son lives in his bedroom and only leaves to go to College. We too faced similar resistance when I wanted to redecorate the room he shared with his siblings. The way we overcame it in the end was to include him in the changes.

My son doesn't do change. If he does, it's at his pace and with his input. Having some control over his environment retains his sense of safty. And his safety is familiarity.

We gave him the swatches in the colour tones we wanted and he chose. We used tester pots to paint two colours on A4 paper. (he did the painting.) Once dryed, we placed them on the wall next to his bed so he could get used to the colours. We substituted one colour, when he desided he didn't like it and repeated the process above. Eventually, he was at ease enough for us to paint the walls.

Change on his terms, with direction from us. He now has two tone bedroom walls he's happy with. Give it a go, it may work for you.

Regards

Coogybear xx