My ASD Child

"My 9 y.o. son [high functioning autistic] is under a ton of stress right now [I think mostly because of the coronavirus scare]... but there are numerous other things he tends to worry about too. How can we as his parents reduce his excessive and unrealistic fears?!" Many young people with ASD level 1, or High-Functioning Autism (HFA), will receive another diagnosis at some point in their development.   In one study, 70% of a sample of kids with an autism spectrum disorder (ages 10-14) had also been diagnosed with another disorder.  41% had been diagnosed with two or more additional disorders.  The most common types of additional diagnoses are those related to anxiety. Kids with HFA have more severe symptoms of phobias, motor/vocal tics, obsessions/compulsions, and social phobia than “typical” kids do.  Fear and anxiety makes it very difficult for young people on the spectrum to do everything from making friends to going school. And to further complicate matters, they

Parents who are raising children with autism have a special kind of patience. Symptoms of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are often pervasive, affecting every aspect of daily life, and emotional disorders begin to appear as children with ASD age. These painful differences are compounded by the social rejection that both child and parent experience as a result of being seen as “difficult.” Parents struggle to connect with their children who are sometimes described as being “somewhere else.” They understandably worry about their emotional well-being in addition to their safety, and solutions are few and far between. Treating the symptoms of an autism spectrum disorder requires a cocktail of medications that can have detrimental long term effects including extreme weight-gain, and side effects including tremors, anxiety, blurred vision, fever, confusion, abnormal heart rhythm, and the list goes on. Many parents believe that the effects of the medications are worse than the e

Most moms and dads with autism spectrum disorder work very hard to understand their kids -- and are eager to parent in their kid’s best interests. But, due to the challenges associated with the disorder, they often fall short. This, in turn, can create a lot of guilt and frustration in the parent who may be viewing herself or himself as a "failure." More resources for parents of children and teens with High-Functioning Autism and Asperger's : ==> How To Prevent Meltdowns and Tantrums In Children With High-Functioning Autism and Asperger's ==> Parenting System that Significantly Reduces Defiant Behavior in Teens with Aspergers and High-Functioning Autism ==> Launching Adult Children with Asperger's and High-Functioning Autism: Guide for Parents Who Want to Promote Self-Reliance ==> Teaching Social Skills and Emotion Management to Children and Teens with Asperger's and High-Functioning Autism ==> Parenting Children and Teens wi

Disciplining kids displaying difficult behavior associated with ASD or High-Functioning Autism (HFA) will often require an approach that is somewhat different as compared to “typical” kids. Finding the balance between (a) understanding the needs of a youngster on the autism spectrum and (b) discipline that is age appropriate and situationally necessary is achievable when a few effective strategies are applied. These strategies can be implemented both at home and school. Traditional discipline may fail to produce the desired results for kids with HFA, primarily because these children are often unable to appreciate the consequences of their actions. Consequently, punitive measures may worsen the type of behavior that they are intended to reduce, while at the same time, creating anxiety in both the youngster and parent. Behavioral Diary— Parents and teachers should consider maintaining a diary of the youngster's behavior with the goal of discovering patterns or triggers. Recur