Help for Tactile Sensitivity in Children with High-Functioning Autism and Asperger’s
“My 9 year old daughter was diagnosed with high functioning autism last year. She has major trouble wearing anything but shorts and very soft t-shirts on a daily basis. Is it wrong to force her to wear things that she doesn't like? I forced her to wear a dress for picture day at school earlier this year - and it was horrible. I don't know if I'm doing the wrong thing by forcing her.” I wouldn’t say it is “wrong.” Inconsiderate may be a better term. A common thread discussed by parents of children with High-Functioning Autism (HFA), or ASD level 1, is sensory issues. These children can have either Hyper- or Hypo-sensitivity. Some of them even express the sensory issues from birth. The sensory issues can be specific to one sense or across several senses. Oftentimes, these “special needs” children report that some – or most – of their clothes are “tickly.” They are often in the state of “red alert”. Many of the sensations that we take as meaningless, they view as a p