Autism

[lyns90]

Hey is there any parents out there with an
Autistic child. My 3 year old son has autism and I would greatly appreciate some advice on a few things ?

Hi op,

I have an autistic 11 year old. Happy to help if i can.

Thanks My son is nearly 3 and a half
and currently non verbal I'm so worried about him and anytime I research anything to do with autism it says early intervention is key. I have been trying and bringing up my concerns since before he even turned one however I feel he's not getting the help he needs he's also becoming so frustrated now. Do u have any tips on how to bring on language or what is the best thing to do for him I hate seeing him so frustrated

Do you have a speech therapist?

Where you start would really depend on your little one and salt would be able to best advise the best option. Have you tried anything like pecs or makaton with him? The goal being to get some form of communication going to relieve some of the frustration he is feeling.

Yes he has a speech therapist who recently mentioned pecs although I was very unsure as I didn't want to start with the cards and it stops the speech because he gets so used to using cards. I also have went private with it now but unfortunately due to Covid we can only do zoom calls.Also my son has always been a good sleeper however for the past month he doesn't Sleep a full night. Is this a thing did u notice any of these problems with ur child at his age ?

It's actually quite the opposite. Pecs and other non verbal communication methods (of which there are many) are proven to encourage speech and communication in general.

Private salt is a great idea! We've had a private salt for many years, worth every penny! My son used pecs when he was little, it very much opened up communication for him and helped to relieve some frustration.

Yes we've had sleep issues over the years, ours where linked to sensory issues. With it being the last month only hopefully it's just a phase which many nt children go through. Has anything changed in his routine?

Ok that's good to know. The speech therapist is going to send out info on pecs. We were advised against pecs at the place we started privately as they said to keep pressing the language as he's still young and pecs they do use there but with the older kids as a last resort type thing. If you don't mind me asking did ur child talk at his age. Does he talk now ? I know everyone's different. Just interested. In regards to changes in routine I recently finished up for maternity leave but I've tried to keep things as close to routine as possible it was his gran that watched him n I still have her come down etc. Only have two weeks left I had to finish at some point 🙈.

Pecs won't harm language development at all. What you don't want is him to be frustrated and develop violent behaviours as a result.

My ds has other conditions along side autism which have contributed to the severity of his communication difficulties. He is mostly non verbal but did start saying a few words last year. He uses an ipad with picture based speech software and can communicate his needs really effectively.

Anything could be affecting it really. Lots of changes take place this time of year with Christmas. Maybe that's contributing, it certainly unsettles my ds.

All communication is good communication! Well, that's a simplification: but I agree with going for PECS. If your son takes for that then it teaches him that communication is fun and gets results. Hopefully in time as his other skills develop he may be able to develop other forms of communication (e.g. verbal) but in any case it gives him tools to communicate with you which must be good. It's rather like saying you wouldn't teach your child to ride a bike because you want them to be able to drive a car one day.

There are some good videos on this on a YouTube channel called nurturing neurodiversity. Her son started communicating using an AAC and cards, but is now starting some verbal communication (although he finds it difficult as he has apraxia of speech). But he's obviously been much happier since he had other ways to communicate.

www.youtube.com/channel/UCYMO-0EyM0hcWL_KTl7HQjw

Yeah all this covid stuff is just delaying everything aswell. It's such a pitty. The private help hes getting he can't actually go to the now. It's all on zoom. The speech therapy he can't go to the clinic for either and the more than words programme me and the husband where supposed to attend got cancelled after one session due to covid rules. I just worry with all these delays that the more time passes the less chance of him progressing.😢 Thankyou so much for ur advice it's greatly appreciated. I will give the pecs a go when ever we allowed back to clinic. Thanks again