For parents of kids with autism, they aim to provide the needs and love for their children despite the challenges. Apart from medical care and therapies, they ensure they make a difference in their lives every day in simple ways.
Practice Positive Reinforcement
According to Web MD, most kids with autism spectrum disorder often respond well to positive reinforcement. By praising kids for behaving correctly, they will feel good and parents as well. Professionals advise parents to be specific on what they liked about their behavior.
By giving them simple rewards like h extra playtime or a small prize like a sticker will motivate them. Health specialists remind parents to love their children for who they are.
Be Consistent
People on the spectrum have routines to follow, so parents need to be consistent in giving guidance and interacting with their kids. In this way, they can practice the lessons they have learned from therapy.
By being consistent, it will be easier for the children to learn new skills, and managing the behavior will be easier. Consistency also helps them learn to execute the knowledge they gained in different situations. It is advisable to coordinate with teachers and therapists to align a consistent set of techniques and methods of interaction.
Set Schedule for Playtime
Kids need time to play and have fun. By placing a date dedicated to playtime, you are teaching them to be responsible. In this way, you are also encouraging a child to open up and connect with you.
Give It a Time
In the case of parents who are raising kids with autism, disciplining, and taking care of them have lots of differences compared to other families. They may have tried a lot of different techniques, treatments, and approaches to figure out what would be the best for their children.
If you haven’t found a suitable approach, don’t lose hope because it takes a lot of time to understand your child’s needs. Be optimistic and never lose hope if you find your kid not responding well to a particular method.
Allow Your Child to Get Involved in Everyday Activities
Usually, parents tend not to expose their children to certain situations because of unpredictable behavior. However, health experts contradict this approach. For them, it is better to take the kids on everyday errands like grocery shopping or a post office run. By allowing them to get in this situation, they will soon get used to the world around them.
Be Part of A Support Group
Either you prefer online or face-to-face group, you will learn a lot of things regarding parenting in this group. Apart from that, you will receive support from other families, professionals, and friends, which are important to encourage and motivate your soul.
Support groups are a place or a way to share advice and information about raising kids with autism. Here, you will meet other parents dealing with similar challenges.
Counseling for Individual, marital, or family can be helpful, too.
Consider Hiring a Caregiver
Apart from taking care of your children, never forget to take care of your health too. Your kids need you, so yAs parents, you will always want to secure the future of your kids and ensure their safety. Many of them are doubting the future of their kids and their future as parents. The feeling of worrying may be doubled or even triple for those who are dealing with kids with an autism spectrum disorder or ASD diagnosis.
The truth about parenting, none of them are considered experts because every child is different, and challenges are not the same experiences. You may be their guides, but you also grow and learn more about life with them.
ou need to keep yourself healthy and strong.
Admit to yourself that you need help to assist you in managing chores and other responsibilities for the kids. Whether you are a single parent or living with a partner, you may consider getting a caregiver.
Parenting is one of the toughest jobs. There are times you need to take a break to reserve the energy. You can only do it by finding a caregiver to look after your kids.
There’s nothing wrong with taking a break, and it doesn’t mean you are an irresponsible parent if you demand it. A caregiver is helpful, especially if your child has intense needs due to ASD.
Listen With Your Eyes
Some children have delayed speech development. Sometimes, people or even you as parents misunderstood your kids and think they dislike talking to you because the response is silence.
To understand your kid, try to learn to communicate with your eyes. It will take time to find out how your child communicates. So, have patience. Since your kid may have delayed speech development, let him undergo speech therapy.
What to expect
Speech therapy may focus on
- articulation (teach kids how to make sounds with their mouths)
- nonverbal communication (it includes symbols, sign language, or voice-output communication devices)
- social pragmatics (teach how to use language with other people)!
Consider Deep Touch Pressure Technique For Your Kid
Some experts claim that deep touch pressure technique provides a lot of benefits to kids with autism.
Some therapists use deep touch pressure technique that includes firm holding, firm stroking, cuddling, hugging, and squeezing. A study posted in NCBI found six out of eight participants showed benefits of deep touch pressure technique. Five of them showed benefits across all domains, and one participant showed benefits on three out of five fields.
The results led to a conclusion that deep pressure appears can provide immediate benefit to people with autism and severe ID. However, researchers noted it that it needs careful monitoring of response.
Provide Weighted Blanket for Kids
Weighted anxiety blanket is believed could provide tons of benefits to people with anxiety and depression. But apart from that, researchers found that it is also an effective way to make children and adults with autism, ADHD, stress, anxiety, or sensory disorders calm and sleep through the night.
If your kid has trouble sleeping, why not try to give him this blanket? It may help him to relax and sleep through the night.