What next? Lack of insight

[Hawkmoth]

Hi all,

I'm after ideas of what kind of interventions would be good for a boy with ASD, ADHD and high levels of anxiety. At school, his 'friends' seem to have realised that they can tell him to do anything and he will just do it without question. This has led to a really serious incident last week when someone was hurt.

He's really got no insight into what he did or that his friends are doing it on purpose because he's different. He just can't say no to them. How can I build up that side of him, and his self esteem? Is this something CAMHS or similar could help with?

I can honestly say that if one of his friends told him to jump off a roof he would most likely do it. And that's scary.

What are the school doing? They should provide a safe haven at vulnerable times e.g. break and lunchtime. A circle time group and / or social skills group would also help. The only thing I can suggest is that you use social stories (google it) with him. You turn an incident into a simple social story. Tell the story. Hvae alternative endings, the child thinks what he would do. Discuss consequences. Make differently coloured cards with actions on one colour and consequences on the other. Set out between 3 and 5 pairs muddled up. Ask child to pair them. If pairing produces something funny laugh with the child then discuss what makes it funny.
Yes CAMHS would have strategies to help but I imagine the chances of a referral producing action is very limited.