My ASD Child

"Our son with Aspergers (high functioning) recently turned 13. We are noticing an escalation in negative attitude and aggression (mostly verbal). We understand that traditional discipline may backfire with a child with this disorder. So, how can we approach these issues without making a growing problem worse?" When it comes to Aspergers (high functioning autism) behavior and teenager problems, the teen years are the hardest. That is to say that the teen years are the hardest whether your youngster has Aspergers or not! Raging hormones and frustration with social interactions at school can cause a lot of anger and bad behavior during the teen years. Your youngster may have the need to: Avoid responsibility (e.g, attending school, obeying parents) Fulfill sensory needs (e.g., relief from heat, cold, or to satisfy thirst) Get something (e.g., his way in a decision, your attention, control over a situation) Manage pain (e.g., physical and/or emotional stress that

Question Sometimes my son with Aspergers reminds me of an adult trapped in his little body – mostly when he says to me “mom, I don’t understand what you mean when you say… (whatever I said) … can you please tell me again?” Wow. Unfortunately, I have just today resorted to trying a medication to help control his aggressive behavior because he’s punching his own face and slapping his legs and kicks at adults; leaving bruises on day care teachers. He just doesn’t understand sometimes that you cannot have a banana if there aren’t any. That’s one example of a reason for a blow up. Do you have any advice on how to bring him out of a flying rage? Answer Most of us have moments where we have to stop and regroup and try to get our behavior in check. Even the most even-tempered of us can blow up over something seemingly trivial. For children with Asperger’s (high-functioning autism), understanding their own emotions and being able to control them is more than an occasional challeng

Unfortunately, there is no single magical formula for motivating Aspergers and high-functioning autistic (HFA students. Many factors affect a given student's motivation to work and to learn: interest in the subject matter, perception of its usefulness, general desire to achieve, self-confidence and self-esteem, as well as patience and persistence. And, of course, not all students on the autism spectrum are motivated by the same values, needs, desires, or wants. Some children will be motivated by the approval of others, some by overcoming challenges. To encourage Aspergers and HFA students to become self-motivated independent learners, teachers can do the following: Create an atmosphere that is open and positive. Ensure opportunities for students' success by assigning tasks that are neither too easy nor too difficult. Give frequent, early, positive feedback that supports students' beliefs that they can do well. Help children feel that they are valued members of

"We have heard that therapy using animals is an effective method for treating symptoms of AS. Is there one animal therapy that stands out above the rest, or one that is recommended more often?" Typical treatment programs for Aspergers (high-functioning autism) focus on behavior modification and improvement. The complexity of the behaviors is gradually increased in an attempt to help the person continue developing. Medication is sometimes prescribed to people with Aspergers, but only to control symptoms like hyperactivity or seizures. There's currently no known cure for Aspergers. Research into animal assisted therapy is fairly new. However, even among professionals who believe more research is in order, there's a general consensus that therapy animals can be a highly beneficial addition to treatment programs for kids with Aspergers. Equine assisted therapy seems to have the best results. The rhythmic motion of riding a horse causes the kids to focus on th

Many moms and dads of extremely verbal kids with Aspergers (high-functioning autism) are surprised when it is suggested that Speech Therapy may help their youngster with communication difficulties. The difficulties are not in how the youngster speaks or pronounces words, but rather in how the youngster perceives the meaning of other people's speech and how they respond to it. There are many expressions we use that are confusing to a youngster with Aspergers. Until you listen closely to the kinds of questions your youngster asks about what other people say, this problem is an easy one to miss. Here's an example reported by one parent: The other night my husband was holding a wooden bowl in his hands. Our younger son said "Can I see that?" and put out his hands to hold it. Our older son with Aspergers immediately asked "Why do people always say what they don't mean?" This had us puzzled until we dug a little deeper and found out the reason

Aspergers (high functioning autistic) kid’s anger presents challenges to educators committed to constructive, ethical, and effective youngster guidance. This post explores what we know about the components of Aspergers kid’s anger, factors contributing to understanding and managing anger, and the ways educators can guide kid’s expressions of anger. Three Components of Anger— Anger is believed to have three components (Lewis & Michalson, 1983): The Emotional State of Anger. The first component is the emotion itself, defined as an affective or arousal state, or a feeling experienced when a goal is blocked or needs are frustrated. Fabes and Eisenberg (1992) describe several types of stress-producing anger provocations that young kids face daily in classroom interactions: Conflict over possessions, which involves someone taking kid’s property or invading their space. Issues of compliance, which often involve asking or insisting that kids do something that they do not

Question My son is 10 years old and awaiting an Aspergers diagnosis. He frequently misinterprets the actions of others and becomes quite angry. He loses his temper frequently. How can we help him? Answer Your son is experiencing a great deal of stress due to the symptoms of Asperger’s (high-functioning autism). Some kids react by becoming depressed, some become anxious, and others become angry and experience rage against the frustrating events that occur in their day. Some kids externalize their feelings and blame others, while some internalize their feelings and have a difficult time controlling their anger. Their may be no particular event to his anger – just an aggressive mood or reaction to a frustrating experience. Encourage self-control and teach your child to consider alternative behaviors. Self-control can be strengthened by teaching your child to stop and count to ten, taking a deep breath and reminding themselves to keep calm. Or for s