counselling for 16 yr old da with asd

[llama789]

hi, we've had some funding for counselling for my 16 yr old ds and i'm wondering what counsellors do for young people with asd? ds hates talking about feelings and emotions, won't open up at all and although i'm certain (have seen it) he's being bullied, won't discuss it. He's had cbt before and wasn't keen, but this is talking therapy. I know this place does art and creative counselling for the younger ones but ds isn't artistic. He hates art. Being asked to paint his feelings would be beyond mortifying for him. i think that's why they've referred him for talking therapy. i think that after a few sessions we can sit in on a review session with ds (if he allows it!) but i'm just wondering how she'll get him to talk, to open up, if he doesn't want to? He's kind of ambivalent about having counselling. the school thought it a good idea and ds kind of agreed. Are there any counsellors on here, who could tell me what happens when they won't/can't open up, but hate creative things? he struggles with eye contact too. A counsellor staring at him for an hour would really distress him. Has anyone had success with counselling and asd?

You should post on the SEN forum, but my asd ds had counselling when he was 11 with a specialist in child autism. I sat in with him during the sessions. They talked together about his 'meltdowns' and ds was amazingly articulate in discussing his feelings during the sessions, so perhaps that was down to the skill of the counsellor in drawing that out. I realise that 16 year olds are a different ballgame but it may be worth a try. Our sessions were stopped due to funding cuts which was a shame because I would have loved them to have continued during the teenage years. The counsellor had a lot of toys in the room and believed in playing Lego etc with the kids to build trust and observe how they play. Toys seems ridiculous in the context of a teen but actually I can imagine its easier to talk to someone whilst absorbed with building with Lego rather than face-to-face. Hope this helps.

thankyou. yes, i imagine it would be easier if there were things to do/look at other than each other. he finds prolonged eye contact very unnerving!