Autism refers to a group of a pervasive developmental disorder or PDD and behavior. It is estimated that about 1.5 million Americans have been diagnosed with autism, or one of every 110 children. Boys are most often affected than girls.
If you live with a child diagnosed with autism, it can present many challenges in day to day life. Because children with autism have different brain wiring, their behavior often does not make sense to the whole world. Actions repeated, staring into space or doing anything in particular sequence or means are some signs of autism. However, if the behavior becomes dangerous or a security issue, it needs to be changed.
Here are some approaches you can take to change behavior in children with autism.
Determine attitudes to change Maybe there are many little things that drive you crazy. But choose your battles wisely. If the malicious behavior to him or to others, then prioritize it. You may need to forget about controlling the actions of others. Accepting that there are things only so much that you can modify. For example, if your child is able to feed themselves by using a fork for five minutes, consider that a success, compared to if he is constantly wandering around for the entire duration of the meal.
Be consistent. If your child is doing something unsafe or unacceptable, you must be consistent in improving behavior. Although drying to continue to admonish and constantly have to watch out, it should be done. Repetitive behavior is something your child can understand so dont veer far from what you say you will do. Make sure that all your child's nurse know your rules so that they can enforce even in your absence.
Provide a replacement. You can not delete all of the behavior but you can try to channel the direction of something else. For example, if your child likes to climb the bookcase, which is very unsafe, you may need to not take him to the park so that he could conjure climbing gym instead. If he likes to bang his fist on the floor, gave him a toy drum set instead.
Talk with your child. Depending on the level or degree of autistic children, you should be able to explain to children why he had to change certain behaviors. For example, tell him it's not safe to climb the bookshelf because he could hurt himself. He may not seem to accept you, but do it anyway. Be firm and consistent.
Dealing with an autistic child needs extra attention. For more information, check autismspeaks.org.
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