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SN children

Here are some suggested organisations that offer expert advice on special needs.

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Original poster

louis theroux documentary on autism

170 replies

sphil · 10/04/2012 23:09

Next week, 19th April, 9pm on BBC2. It's called 'Extreme Love' - blurb says it focuses on young people attending an innovative school in the US.

Will watch - I like his programmes as a rule.

OP posts:

lisad123 · 19/04/2012 21:20

Thread on telly addicts too

Ben10NeverAgain · 19/04/2012 21:22

Different viewpoints completely

StarshitTerrorise · 19/04/2012 21:24

Not sure what that was. Was his sorting activity on the mat a punishment?

Ben10NeverAgain · 19/04/2012 21:25

Or was that calming for him?

lisad123 · 19/04/2012 21:26

Not sure how I feel about staff restraint but can understand it, poor staff being smacked around head and think he might have kept on

ArthurPewty · 19/04/2012 21:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ArthurPewty · 19/04/2012 21:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

moosemama · 19/04/2012 21:42

I'm not impressed with the constant focus on violent and extreme behaviour. It gives the impression that all children who have ASD are potentially violent and sadly a lot of people won't think past that.

coolaskimdeal · 19/04/2012 22:16

I actually thought the show was very interesting & quite good. And although I found it quite difficult to watch it was because I could relate so much to the parents (except the one who said her son started talking after a miracle in church...) & I recognize so many aspects of my son in their children. Sadly.

Voidka · 19/04/2012 22:18

I might steal the nice hands bit from the Mum of twins - DS is going through a pushing stage. Not hard, but pushing none the less.

I loved Nicky and his Mum.

AmberLeaf · 19/04/2012 22:22

Im about to watch on I player.

Will I be throwing things at the laptop then? whats the verdict overall?

saintlyjimjams · 19/04/2012 22:24

I thought it was pretty fair. There were times when restraint was used when I think some space would have been far more effective (and kinder). And there was one set of parents who were still very much coming to terms with the dx and I found their interviews hard to watch.

I thought the kids were wonderful - all of them, and I think Louis did show the huge diversity and connected with them on the whole. I was worried he would stand back and do a kind of freakshow but he didn't. Brian should have been given more space though, that was a misjudgment.

But overall I think he showed the autism I live with without sensationalising it.

coff33pot · 19/04/2012 22:24

Just going to iplayer myself now....

flyingmum · 19/04/2012 22:24

It was better than I thought it was going to be. I did feel for Nicky (lovely fellow) that the bus didn't turn up. I think (at least I hope) that they weren't due to film him on his first day but just did because thy landed up taking him there - at least they seemed to cut it pretty short because I did think it a bit much when the chap was already pretty stressed at starting a new school to compound it by filming further although I think Nicky was enough of a stawlart character to have told them to go forth if he didn't want them there. I was a bit shocked at the lying completely on top of the other boy as a restraint technique - seriously - on a 13 year old boy. Made me feel a bit uncomfortable. Glad she decided to change her method and I hope that works for her. I think the programme showed some of the difficulties that do happen at the more severe end and for me personally, I didn't think it was sensationalised. i think he was sympathetic otherwise I think those parents would have told him to f off - none of them (except possibly 'feeder mum') came across as fools and I think they just wanted to show the world what it is like to have a very different and challenging child. And I for one have been in some very challenging moments with my chap and he's not even on the severe end. I'm sure we've all thought about others 'if you only knew' and listened to parents worrying about 'little johnny having trouble learning their 8 times table in French' whilst thinking 'I wish that was my problem .. .' It's a shame it was set in america though. It didn't show any battling with LEAs, doctors, professionals. You know all the crap we deal with. I don't know whether the US mums have the same level of crap - probablly, so that would have been more balanced.

saintlyjimjams · 19/04/2012 22:27

the bit where the parents were sort of lying on their child looked awful, but ds1 used to crawl under the sofa cushions and get us to lie on him when he was younger so I suspect it was actually comforting. He still loves being crushed tbh. There was no space to explain that in the film (and probably Louis didn't realise) so I felt there was a bit of an NT viewpoint at that stage,

googlenut · 19/04/2012 22:28

At least he showed how difficult life can be and he focused on how life can be for parents. I would have liked to see a few more higher achieving kids so the programme wasn't so gloomy but he was trying to show how difficult it is for us all to keep on keeping on and I think he did that.

ArthurPewty · 19/04/2012 22:30

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

RinkyDinkyDoo · 19/04/2012 22:35

I said I wouldn't watch it,but I did. I filled up whilst watching,as I knew I would,it's my life and I knew it would be hard to watc,I also laughed as the kids were great.I didn't like the way Louis acted/questioned at times,but I do think it might have shown/highlighted that we,as parents of children with ASD have an enormous strain on our lives..It's a shame he couldn't/didn't show the stress of fighting for the most appropriate/best provision in order to help our children function in a NT world

moosemama · 19/04/2012 22:39

I think it improved towards the end. I definitely felt uncomfortable at the start when there was a lot of focus on physically violent behaviour etc, but the second half did balance that out somewhat.

For me, it wasn't very representative of my ds1 or our life with him, although there were moments that touched on it and certain things struck a chord.

2006hildy · 19/04/2012 23:07

I think it was pretty much tell it like it is but perception is a strange thing depending on which angle you are noticing.

AmberLeaf · 19/04/2012 23:11

Sounds interesting, ive still not watched yet as im waiting for my DS to settle and ive still not eaten!

will prob have to plug the headphones into the laptop and watch like that.

frizzcat · 19/04/2012 23:41

Flying - I have a friend in the US with a ds ASD, and they have an even worse time than us. Until Obama became president they did not get anything. If a child had a dx then they couldn't have treatment/therapy as it would be have been long term and none of the insurance companies would cover it. Their state school system is very poor and offers no support to dc's with additional needs, specialist state schools were poor and so parents were forced to either pay privately or educate at home. Having worked for a time there I would say the perception by the NT population of dc with SEN is worse if not the same as the average Daily Fear (mail) reader. My friends son would have been given help if he'd been dx as a sex addict though! In the end a sympathetic pead re-dx him with depression so he could get access to some help and she home schooled, but as he was approaching puberty he was starting to display symptoms of mental illness which dr's felt was due to lack of intervention and support. I often think of this when I'm kicking some so-called professionals arse into touch for my ds.... Fight, fight, fight!!!
I should also state that this case was confined to one state and it may be different in other states. Also once Obama got his health reforms through, one of the provisions was that all insurance companies had to make ABA available for dc with autistic dx

frizzcat · 19/04/2012 23:43

Ps - heard Australia and Canada weren't bad for help and intervention, but obviously nothing beats (literally) rural China

coff33pot · 19/04/2012 23:50

It wasnt as bad as I thought it was going to be. It was focused a lot on the aggressivenes I thought which I dont doubt much of the NT uk will focus on. Louis to me looked uncomfortable and couldnt even show humour clapping his hands to happy and you know it! but then in all fairness this was also a new experience for him. I think had he relaxed more maybe the kids would have relaxed more.

Its just the talking about your kids around your kids I cant get my head around such as putting them in residential care or saying about your relationship that your twins have with you. How do they know that child isnt taking it all in? which can produce negativity and inner self esteem issues if they are unable to express themselves. I dont know maybe its just me and it is a documentary after all.

I was more concentrating on what the school was doing re the classes made up as shops and teaching them the life skills for employment in the outside world. They were really trying to help those kids and that was great to see.

BackforGood · 20/04/2012 00:11

I thought it was good - will have shown a lot of people the constant strain some parents are under.
Re the restraint, I assumed he was one of those people that is comforted by being 'squashed' (as Temple Grandin is) - but it would have served the family better if that had been explained to people who haven't come across it. I think the parents were very brave to agree to be filmed.

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