dont know what to do about son who has asd and is a runner

[pramsgalore4]

Hi, firstly many thanks for replies to my last question about being refused dla because dla said he was age appropiate, good news after second report from teacher and 4 page letter by me dla looked at it again and i was awarded MC and LM.
my problem is ds has always been a runner,( he has asd no sense of danger, no stranger awareness, does not follow instruction )refuses to hold my hand or his sisters pushchair. when i hold his arm he struggles and will often drop to the floor, the school run is about 10 minute walk so i struggle using a buggy board but i am always fighting with him to get him to stay on it, i do fail and he runs off, you can shout and scream after him and the most you will get is if he turns to look at you and smiles but keeps running, i have lost him and he was found at the park which is on the way home ( the park can be seen from school gates ). his little sister wants to get out and walk but i can not watch both of them, i have made him sit in her pushchair while she walked but god the looks i got from other parents, when i go out for a walk in the holidays he does go in the double pushchair ( i ignore the looks not so bad when not in school less sly comments ) and i let him out when we are away from the roads and it is safe to do so, i do depend on my 11 year old to catch him if he goes to far, he is almost five and i have had to invest in a double mountain buggy because of his weight, it can not carry on like this as the older he is getting the worse he is, just wondered if anyone has any ideas, wrist straps dont work as he takes them off, he has a backpack with a lead attached but he has to be in the right mood for it, oddly though it is easier to get him to sit in the pushchair but has been known to climb out so you have to be armed with a taggy.

We have resorted to a pushchair with dd2 (5), she's just to big now for me to pick up when she refusses to move and i can't chase after her as i have her sister (also ASD) to keep an eye on, i rarely take them both out on my own but will do now i have a Maclaren Major to put dd2 in.

strange question i know how about a three seater bicycle or one of those bikes with the car attatched IYKWIM? its difficult i had a buggy for my ds hes still a runner now at 11 next week but is getting better hes far to fast for me to catch and i have to send his older sibs to catch him but ds was in a buggy till six or had reins and yep i got the looks the nasty comments but its a case of safety comes first so ive been learning still am to try and ignore the ignorant cos no other way round it or say out loud if they stare or make comments something rude backdoesnt help but makes me feel better lol

i refuse to stay in in the easter holidays and the summer hols and i can not drive, my dd is only 2.5 so can not walk to far, so i have to use a pushchair for her, so double if i go out for a walk with ds, its so difficult to know what is best, dd has a single mountain buggy so he can get in it and they are very well made so should take the weight of him on a buggy board, dont know if the buggy board will last though as is straining under the wait 17kg

We used a mountain buggy for dd2 last year, we replaced it this year with the maclaren as her head was hitting the hood in the mountain buggy (still plenty of room in the seat though), i would use the double and have both of them in it.

i have 4 kids, 3 can not ride bikes although going to try and encourage my 6 year to ride a bike this summer, she thinks she will fall off it, i have a trike with a child seat on the back so will only fit one, i can not ride a normal bike as suffer from slipped disks and it is really painfull, on my trike i can stay upright with my back dead straight, i would like a trikidoo but dont have the money for one. so i can only go on my bike when my other half is off work.

I imagine it probably wouldn't work for any other child, but DS2 (4) although often on a wrist strap, actually likes reins, and even asks for them on occasion - because he loves Dobbin the Horse from Gigglebiz on CBeebies. Being on reins he pretends to be a horse, and instead of running off at top speed he tries to do a sort of pretty gallop, which means he spends more time going up and down than forward, so a nice walking pace for me!

the trikidoo is fantastic isnt it there are a few charities that might help you get one its worth a go its awkward but know where your comming from ive 3 dcs and when they were little with ds also being asd it was flipping a nightmare trying to get out and about (still is) and hes too big for any of these things now it really is a case for me of my other two dcs chasing after him for me till i get there not an easy one to help with the only other thing i can think of is if god forbid he did get away for your own peace of mind how about the amber alert GPS?

what is the amber alert gps

its a small tracking system they can keep on them alerts a map of exact location on your mobile instantly doesnt stop it happening of course but at the end of the day if it ever does they would be instantly found as thats one of the aspects were most worried about i feel if past the age of buggies seats straps reins my ds is now better at not minding holding hands but depends how he feels at the time i might get one just for days out as worse when in a strange environment if they do get away,plus there is the stranger danger aspect that really worries me as he will talk to anyone

thanks, how would you buy one, are they really expensive, going to google it

just having a look there are a few different very small tracker gps systems available from maplins and other makes other than the amber alert too

not all that bad i guess loc8tor tracking device is £40.99

oops sorry £49.99 from maplins

i dont think the amber alert is in the uk, i have found it for sale in usa

the one aboves uk but just found another called Iseeka child tracking system if as he gets bigger he will wear a kind of watch

yes found it £99

This is just a thought... but before I had back pack with 'lead' I did in emergencies attach lightweight dog lead, (which I use with his back pack cos it is longer than one it came with) to the (firmly attched) loop at the neck of ds's coat...

Might it be possible to get a ring or loop attached to back of his coat (local cobbler sews that sort of stuff here). It won't work if you need to physically stop him, but if you just need to 'discourage' running off, it might...