How Do You Handle an Autistic Fit?

Hi Trish,

I am a speech-language pathologist and have worked with many young children with autism spectrum disorders. The first priority is, obviously,for her safety. I have worked with some children that required intervention in their tantrums because they posed a danger to themselves (banging their heads on floors, walls, etc.). It is not uncommon for children with autism spectrum disorders to be challenged by emotional regulation. If your therapists are unable to guide you in this area, you may want to ask them if they could refer you to someone who could.

Are you a member of ASCC (Autism Society of Collin County)? Being a part of a support group will not only tie you to other moms who could offer referrals, but they could also share personal experiences with you. I would also recommend you consider joining the Early Childhood PTA, once your child is old enough to attend PPCD in your local school district. The support of other families, and the knowledge shared by parents of children just a little older than yours, could be so helpful.

I hope your therapists are able to help you develop strategies that will prove helpful to both you and your daughter.

Best Regards,
S.

Every child with autism is different, but what works for me is leaving the room and allowing my son to work out his fit. He prefers this and will calm down fairly quickly, at least to a point where he will listen to me again. If she cannot be left alone or just will not calm down, try hugging her very tightly from behind. Use your arms to secure her arms and your legs to control her legs, if she is not to big to do this. It controls the body and allows her system to get control of itself. You may need to hold her like this for awhile, but do not try to talk or make noise while doing this. Just hold her tightly and as securely as possible for however long it takes. When she gets to a point she has stopped moving or crying, begin to speak to her very calmly and tell her everything is ok and just relax. It is a therapy used by alot of people with autism or severe behavioral disorders. I think the point of it is to help them physically control their body so they can focus their energy on their mind and emotions. I have tried it a few times with my son when he has one of his CRAZY fits and it worked really well. It took about a half hour of holding him, but the calmness I saw in him afterwards was pretty remarkable. And I think he felt very protected too, which made me feel comforted, because sometimes children with autism can feel very alone and like no one is there that understands them. I may not understand my sons needs everytime, but I am always there for him and I think he understands that. Good Luck to you both!

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God Bless!
J.

My 5 year old son has a sensory disorder and now they are putting him in the autism spectrum. I've been reading Jenny McCarthy's book and I do think she is right what we feed our children has a lot to do with how they are acting. Look at all the harmful things in our fast food nation that we are putting into not only our children but ourselves as well. Good luck and there are a lot of us out here who understand.

My autistic son is now 16 but some of the things we used with him as he grew might help now or can be added later. First, you are not alone. There is a support group in Tulsa that meets once a month. If you call Sherilyn Walton at TARC ###-###-#### X201) she can give you all the information.

We found that presure therapy helped a lot. I made a weighted blanket for him but you can find one to purchase at http://www.affordableweightedblankets.com This allowed him to adequetly rest during hs sleep time. We also used a tube sock filled with rice (sewn shut at the open end) that we heated in the microwave and then placed on his shoulders. I added either vanilla or lavender to the rice as a calming agent (plus it helped cover up the smell of the hot rice.) I have read that soon there will be weighted vests availble...here's an article on them http://www.weightedblanket.net/therapeuticsystems.htm.

We found that having him pace with soft music in the background helped him too. We made a safe place for him to pace, added the music and used aroma therapy. Again, vanilla or lilac are great for calming.

We learned what his triggers were and avoided them whenever possible. Loud noises, bright lights (especially florescent lights), crowds, touching when it wasn't his idea, and the color red are all things that triggered him.

Some of his triggers stayed the same as he grew. But he also developed others and we needed to be vigilent and adapt to his changes.

We also found that having a larger dog, like a german shepherd size, had a calming effect for him. We tried smaller dogs at first but they were more skittish and contributed to his anxieties instead of calming them. You'll need a dog that will take tail and ear pulling, your child laying on it. We adopted a very trainable and docile dog through a newspaper ad...having interviewed his owner quite extensively first.

We also found that certain foods would heighten his tendancy to have meltdowns. We eliminated or cut down on things high in sugar, red dye, and overly processed. I have read that a gluten free diet could have a positive effect also. Here's a great article http://autism.about.com/od/specialdietsandautism/a/startg...#

I hope this has been helpful to you. If I think of other things we did I'll try and find your post again and add them.

Good luck and many blessings,

W. Q

I am sorry what you are going through and I want to tell you are not alone. I am a single mother of a almost 4 yr old son that has Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sensory Integration Disorder and Speech and Motor skills delays.
It it a struggle, some days are harder than other but Im here for you if you ever need someone to talk to.
My son goes to PPCD in Carrollton, I don't have any friends that understand what I am going through.

Talk to your daughter very calmly and try to redirect her, be VERY patient and definitely try to get some support and therapy. My son does the same thing when he is overly stimulated. I'm firm with him and try to redirect him and it usually works. I hope this help and I will keep her in my prayers.

M.
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