My ASD Child

" How do we tell others about our daughter's recent diagnosis of autism (high functioning)? Who needs to know - and who doesn't?" Finding out that one’s child has been diagnosed with ASD level 1, or High-Functioning Autism, can be scary. Some moms and dads naturally feel guilty, even though there isn’t anything yet known that could have prevented the disorder. Through all of this comes the need for telling others about the disorder and how it affects the child. If you are faced with having to tell those around you that your child has ASD, the first thing you want to do is understand and read about the disorder so that you can answer questions appropriately and truly be an advocate for your child. You will also want to start with those closest to you, beginning with the siblings of the affected youngster. Telling younger children that their sibling has a brain condition that causes him/her to have problems talking with others, causes him/her to focus ino

Question I am the dubiously proud mother of a 7-year-old girl with HFA. As with many autistics, she likes a certain sense of order in her surroundings, and will rearrange other people's belongings to accommodate her own preferences. We have spoken to her time and time again about not touching other people's things... all to no avail. Now her teacher reports she is taking things from others. This has been happening in our home rather regularly, and we have tried everything we can think of to stop or prevent the behavior, but it seems to be getting worse not better. Any help you can give me would be MUCH appreciated! Answer I don’t see this as an high-functioning autistic trait per say. The desire for forbidden objects overwhelms many kids, making the temptation to take them too much to resist. Your daughter probably just can't control her “desire” to have other’s belongings – but it is possible for her to control her “behavior.” Often times, kids take thing

"What can be done about  an autistic child (high functioning) who does things repeatedly like rocking back and forth, spinning and flipping objects, making strange vocal noises over and over again? This constant non-stop behavior can be so annoying (and embarrassing) at times." Most of our "leisure activities" are nothing more than self-stimulation behaviors that have become highly ritualized over time and made socially acceptable. There is nothing intrinsically valuable or reasonable about leisure pursuits such as bungee jumping, playing cards, dancing, playing video games, listening to music, smoking, etc. People participate in these different activities because they find them to be pleasurable and because the activities alter their physical state. Each activity provides us with a particular type of sensory input. There is not necessarily a great difference in so-called self-stimulation behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorders and some of thes