Published on 12, July, 2020
hi
does anyone know how to discipline a asd child? my 4 year old son is very hyperactive and quick to aggression. so as you can imagine he is very easily upset and quick to have a meltdown. i am trying to catch it before he has a meltdown but it can be so quick it can be impossible to stop. i know his triggers but can not always eliminate them for example like his little sister crying. i generally use timeout for any hitting but when he gets worked up i know he finds it hard to not hit. also if i did put him on timeout when having a meltdown it would just esculate the problem. at the moment when he has a meltdown i first do what i can to calm him down and feel better. but when he is then calm what do i do to then get him to realise that he can't hurt people? he is also so heavyhanded when playing and doesn't realise he is hurting other children. i don't know what to do. i don't want him to hurt people and lose friends as he is already saying to me he's noticed he's different to other people, losing friends would make it harder for him.
I have found the comments here useful, and it is good to see the subject discussed from different points of view, because I think sometimes parents or carers can forget what it is like for the child, who might be angry or upset because of frustration or not understanding something.
My daughter gets very angry because she can hear every little noise, so I try not to make noises that will upset her, but it's not always easy, as a noise can sometimes just happen such as me scratching an itch and then she gets mad about it, and I try not to take her anger personally. She has the TV on quite loud but she can still hear some other noises even then, and is the same with music.
treva52, you have some really good ideas, especially the safe zone to go to, and with things that are comforting, and when someone feels secure and safe they will feel happier.