Community› The Bump Message Boards› Special Needs
Special Needs
New Discussion

ASD Moms: Anyone experience this?

SpocklesSpockles member
in Special Needs

DS has started trying to dicate which routes we take while driving. He doesn't really talk (only has a couple words), but mostly babbles. Whenever we approach an intersection or come to a stop, he always tries to signal to me which way he wants me to go. If I don't go that way, he gets upset. I try to redirect his attention, but there is only so much I can do while driving.

Also, It's like he has a photographic memory, too. He knows where we turn to go home, where we go/turn to get to the park at his school or a fun hill/street that he likes going down when we're on a bike ride. He knows when we're coming up to a park because he points before we get to it and says "bapi" which means park to him. He has also started getting upset when we have to stop at a stop light. Often starts to whine and have a fit...until the car starts going again.

Any advice how to correct this? I'm always trying to change the routes up a bit so he doesn't get so stuck on the same thing, like his EI therapist told me to do. Anything else I can do? Especially for the whining when we have to stop. Is this a sensory thing? Could this be related to ASD? (not an official Dx yet, but we think it will come to that) 

I think I should start carrying a pair of ear plugs. My goodness, he can get loud. Almost seems like he gets louder than most other kids.

Thanks!

Report Reply to Post

Re: ASD Moms: Anyone experience this?

  • ntyravgmomntyravgmom

    Yes. I'm curious to see auntie's strategy. I'm sure I'm no help. I ended up teaching 
    ds1 about traffic lights so that after awhile he started to understand that we had to wait at a red light. Now that he's older, he's learned how to read maps and that keeps him distracted enough where he doesn't get upset. However, he still sounds like a human gps. Just know you're not alone.

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • elli2010elli2010

    YUP!!! It's just starting for us! He's very low verbal so he just screams if we don't go the way he wants us to.  I'm really interested to see what Auntie has as a strategy for this. I'm concerned that this is going to get worse for us.


    Report Reply
  • SpocklesSpockles member
    imageelli2010:

    YUP!!! It's just starting for us! He's very low verbal so he just screams if we don't go the way he wants us to.  I'm really interested to see what Auntie has as a strategy for this. I'm concerned that this is going to get worse for us.


    It just started within the last month and a half or so and has been getting worse! How old is your DS?

    Report Reply
  • Bride2bMOBride2bMO member
    DS is SUCH a backseat driver. Both of my hands have to not only be on the steering wheel, but at 10 and 2. Ever since we turned him rear to forward-facing around 26 months he has opinions or fits about anything and everything while we're driving. I haven't talked to his therapists about it specifically, but they do know he's very bossy and have acknowledged that it's hard, but important, to respect his disabilities without allowing him to become a tyrant. I need to grow a pair, I think. ;)
    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • lite-brightlite-bright member
    image-auntie-:

    The red light thing is addressed by a simple explanation if you have a kid bright enough to grasp the concept who isn't color blind. A simple "green means go/red means stop" is the start. Later, you'll need to explain the concept of "right turn on red" and turn lanes with arrows. At 2 1/2 DS struggled with the concept of legal U turns at the beach (OCMD) and would howl "It's wrong, it's all wrong" when I made them.

    Oh, is this familiar. When we turned DD1 front-facing, traffic lights turned into an instant interest. She would narrate the colors through every intersection. After I started with "red means stop, green means go," rights-on-red would get a distressed yelp of "Dadda turn on red!" from the backseat.

    I had to explain quite a few rules of the road, the difference between regular lights and arrow/turn lights, etc. She was so fascinated with traffic lights that we had to close our kitchen drapes at one point -- you could see a stop light at night that was probably close to half a mile away, and she'd sit there with a big grin going "red - yellow - green!" instead of eating. :P 

    And she always knows where familiar stops are, even if the buildings aren't visible or we're coming at them from an unusual route -- Target, our church.  

     

    image

    DD1, 1/5/2008 ~~~ DD2, 3/17/2010
    Report Reply
  • elli2010elli2010
    imageSpockles:
    imageelli2010:

    YUP!!! It's just starting for us! He's very low verbal so he just screams if we don't go the way he wants us to.  I'm really interested to see what Auntie has as a strategy for this. I'm concerned that this is going to get worse for us.


    It just started within the last month and a half or so and has been getting worse! How old is your DS?

     

    He'll be three in June but we went through a period around 2 years of age where we had to listen to the same music in the car and his daddy and I couldn't sing along with the music. He hasn't shown any interest in where we are going etc until now.

    Auntie, our little guy freaks out at red lights because he's used to "ready, set, go" from therapy and so he automatically assumes that when he says "go" he gets what he wants. We're starting to see this come out at red lights on the road and then he flips out when we (obviously) don't go. 

    Do we need to start breaking down his expectations of ready set go in therapy? Or is there a way to get him to understand that different rules apply in different situations? I know, at almost 3 it's a long shot but what do you suggest? I haven't yet talked to his therapists about it, we really started seeing this trend grow in the last week and he hasn't had therapy since last Wednesday because of the long weekend.

    Report Reply
  • skittles_123skittles_123 member

    BTDT. I would just say we are going a different way, end of story. Yeah, he got upset, but life isn't about always getting your way, and he needs to know that.

    He will sometimes still ask why we are going a different way, but it really doesn't make him anxious anymore.

    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"