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My 3 year old little boy awaiting diagnosis

amanda66

Hello everyone,

My lovely little 3 and a half year old boy has autistic tendancies after we took him for a two week assessment at a local Child Development Centre. I, as Mum, have always known that there was 'something not quite right' but his Daddy (who has never had children before) had nothing to compare to so didnt agree.  We are really struggling with coping with his 'meltdowns' and obsessions which seem to be increasing. A Child Psychologist is coming out at the end of April, which is such a long way off. Can anyone out there give us advice on coping with his tantrums/meltdowns and should we allow him to continue with his obsessions which, if they dont work out ie building a castle with cushions on only one settee, (we have another one in our Conservatory - only one of his obsessions) If it doesnt work out exactly right, its a meltdown, ie throwing himself at doors, on the floor etc.  We are at our wits end, there is so much he does and he is very hard work for the 12/14 hours he is awake - non stop.

 Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank You

Parents

  • Obsessions, or special interests are very important to an autistic person.  They are a source of focus in a chaotic world for us and can help to alleviate anxiety.  You shouldn't prevent him doing them unless they are harmful to him or someone else.  You can try distraction if you can see something is going to go wrong that will trigger a meltdown, before he gets to meltdown.

    Have you tried PECS cards?  You can use a PECS emotions ring so that he can show you his emotions which might help a little with behaviour as he will feel able to communicate better.

    Meltdowns themselves, there is no magic cure.  As he gets older he will learn more control, but probably the best you can do to avoid them is to learn his triggers and try to avoid them happening in the first place if you can.  When a meltdown has started it often needs to run its course, just being sure he is not lashing out in a way to hurt anyone or himself or damage things.  Some autistic children respond well to firm hugs, it might be worth a try, but be prepared that some autistic children are the complete opposite and hate any hugs!

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  • Obsessions, or special interests are very important to an autistic person.  They are a source of focus in a chaotic world for us and can help to alleviate anxiety.  You shouldn't prevent him doing them unless they are harmful to him or someone else.  You can try distraction if you can see something is going to go wrong that will trigger a meltdown, before he gets to meltdown.

    Have you tried PECS cards?  You can use a PECS emotions ring so that he can show you his emotions which might help a little with behaviour as he will feel able to communicate better.

    Meltdowns themselves, there is no magic cure.  As he gets older he will learn more control, but probably the best you can do to avoid them is to learn his triggers and try to avoid them happening in the first place if you can.  When a meltdown has started it often needs to run its course, just being sure he is not lashing out in a way to hurt anyone or himself or damage things.  Some autistic children respond well to firm hugs, it might be worth a try, but be prepared that some autistic children are the complete opposite and hate any hugs!

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