Hi all,
This is quite an amazing board. I recently starting working as a night caregiver in a group home. There is a 13 y/o boy with autism and is considered high function. He can hold a conversation, follow directions and intereact fairly well with most of the staff. I have also obseved he gets extremely agitated when told no and will throw an absolute fit if he cant get his way; stomping the floor, hitting his head/chest, screaming, throwing toys and even getting aggressive with staff. How is one supposed to interact with this individual and get a positive result? As a night caregiver, I am not allowed to give him "things or food" as positive reenforcement. I was instructed to make him stay in his room with the light off and door closed. If an autistic child has the ability to behave in a poor manner is it difficult for them to behave in a good one? I am not intimidated by this boy as he tries to do so with new staff, testing them I suppose. This child also does not eat well and I believe the majority of his calories comes from pop, chips and the occasional bowl of mashed potatoes. Any suggestions or help on how to get himto eat and behave in an appropriate manner would be greatly appreciated!
thanks
Amy
hmm, hello, welcome to the board, I must say u have a difficult task, but can be rewarding when later down the road, years, and hear about what they r doing then, your hard work then could pay off, i still have contact with an old teacher in NJ, and ive known him for 18 years, him and my parents still have contact, and I still talk to my special ed teacher via e-mail once in a while, i love to update them, tell them how i ended up, they r happy, seems i make their day when i tell them these things.Welcome! Thanks for caring enough to post!
Find a positive reinforcer that IS ALLOWED. For example, he gets a certain number of "tokens" when you start your shift. Each time he acts out, is uncooperative, etc., he loses a certain number of tokens, depending on the offense. In the morning, he can trade his tokens in for certain allowed daytime reinforcers...OR, he can save them up for a bigger reinforcer, like a trip to the zoo or something (I'm just making this up as an example). If you stick with this, and the other shifts and family support this, it will eventually work. Just make sure you find creative allowed positive "to die for" reinforcers...
First, I want to say that it's great that you take the initiative to learn more about autism and help the children in your care. But know your limits, and consult other professionals on this child's team or who are consultants for the group home.
The behavior you're seeing is not necessarily in his control -- ie it could be a meltdown. A child with autism is under so much chronic stress and frustration due to problems communicating effectively, sensory overload, sleep difficulties, etc. etc. When you say no, it can be the straw that broke the camel's back and pushes him over his tolerance level for stress and frustration -- straight into mental chaos and loss of control.
The good news is that there are ways of detecting when children are escalating (heading towards a meltdown), and ways to deal with both escalation and a full-blown meltdown. The resources posted under the following topic have been helpful for many parents on this board, and will presumably help you, too.
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=17134&am p;am p;KW=meltdown+resources
Given his odd diet, it's pretty safe to assume that he has sensory issues related to eating. An occupational therapist can be helpful in this regard. Here are some resources for sensory and eating issues:
http://www.infantandtoddlerforum.org/objects/pdf/fact_sheet2 .3.pdf - "Understanding and Managing Extreme Food Refusal in Toddlers."
http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/Medical/mealtime.html - Here's an article from the Indiana Resource Center for Autism. It's called "Mealtime and Children on the Autism Spectrum: Beyond Picky, Fussy and Fads."
http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/The_SPD_Companion -picky-eaters-and-resistant-eaters.html - Sensory Professing Disorder Companion, a newsletter issue devoted to picky eating, with info based on the highly-recommended book "Just Take A Bite."
http://www.autismsa.org.au/pdf/strategies/IS19_Eating_diffic ulties.pdf - covers the gamut of eating difficulties, including gagging, slow eaters, trouble staying at the table, etc.
http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/sensory-processin g-disorder-checklist.html
Helping this child feel understood despite his communication difficulties, and helping him manage his sensory input can go a long ways in helping his behavior stay on even keel, but you might need a behavior specialist on this child's team.
Good luck with everything.
I, too think it is great that you are looking for support and wanting to help this child, but as a parent I have to wonder (yet again ) about the amount of support, experience and training that is given to workers who are caring for these children.
Judging by your post, it doesn't sound like they have given you what you need. I'm not judging YOU at all, please don't take my words badly, but I would hope that they train you, answer all of your very legitmate questions and give you suggestions PRIOR to your working there and once in there have meetings, etc to touch base and clear up any questions that have arisen.
There is NO easy one answer fits all, but things to wonder about....does he have a consistent night time routine that he can count on and predict ? Music, night-lights, anything allowed to calm ? It sounds like you are new to him, maybe he is missing the last employee and not adjusted to the change yet. I have found that once a melt down starts, any restraining will only make it worse. You will learn to predict him and be able to help prevent them in the future.
Best of luck.....
i know i asked why he was their, seems like most of us wonder, i dont understand much about group homes, they r suppose to provide support cause for some reason the parents cant, i just think, my opinion, that if hes HFA, he should be at home trying to live a normal life, i mean, at that age I was pretty normal, had friends, did well in school, had good tunes back then to listen too, i just wonder if perhapse, he feels hes missing out, i know it sounds crazy, but maby he wants to be home, i know had my parents sent me to a home for whatever reason at that age, i would be much more difficult, collage was bad enough and that was volentary, and it was in the mountains so i had much escape. just a thought...Some one turn the light on for this poor boy. Why does it have to be switched off? My son can't go to sleep with the ligt off it really distresses him. Lights off do not relax him at all. With my daughter(also autistic ) it depends how stimulated she is before bedtime.
I am under the impression that he is in the group home because he has very aggressive behaviors. He has hit, kicked and bitten staff. His mother would let him do anything at home to avoid behaiors. I guess he would just eat junk and watch tv all day. You are tight inassuming they have done nothing to train me or educate me (probably evryone else) about autism/mental handicaps. This group home is quite disturbing to me as I am a CNA and perform all the tasks I was trained in to become a CNA at this home, yet they do not require their workers to be trained in anything. A lot of the workers are also felons! The other day this child would not eat. So the staff made a "special" piece of toast for him. One of the other clients grabbed the toast and ate it before the autistic child could sit down and eat it. When the staff of this boy asked where his toast was, it was discreetly told to him that another client ate it. It just so happens that the client that ate the toast is the same individual this autistic boy hates. SO the staff tells the boy "so and so ate your toast"!!!!! Which of course sends the boy into a toal meltdown. This is what I have to deal with. Inconsitency and ignorance on the part of the rest of the staff. I do know that this boy has tried to intmidte me(im 6'3) which didnt work, but hehas intimidated other staff and they reinforce it by flinching/acting uncomfortable when he comes up to them.
Amy
WOW - it sounds like they are being very neglectful. I think I would try to report their behaviors. I wonder if his parents even know what type of situation he really is in?? Maybe what they're serving he doesn't like. Payne is VERY specific about what he likes, but he will try just about anything with bribery. thats sad... this kid wont have a chance in life, his parents could not do it right, the facility could not do it right, i feel bad for him, his future at this point does not look good. I am sorry u have to deal with this, u seem like a nice person, someone who would have a positive effect on the place u live at. I hope u can get through to him somehow, hes HFA, and ill admit, i had my behavior problems at that age too, but sounds like his far exceeded mine, obviously the result of the parents.OH MY GOD! I AM CRYING AS I WRITE THIS...PLEASE REPORT THIS..PLEASE....WHAT HAPPENED TO MY SON IN THE GROUP HOME WAS AWFUL....PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS BOY SUFFER....PLEASE This poor boy needs love. Don't blame the parents for him having autism. You should report this abuse by law you're sposed too. ohhh no, i mean, its certainly not their fault, im saying, i mean... maby im making too many assumptions, but perhapse it is the parents lack of... well i dont know the word, but it was causing him to behave badly so they could not take it and had no choice but to put him in a home. Maby some kids r good and some need more direction, God... did i have behavior problems, but my parents knew the solution, and it worked. Everyone is different tho, yes! absolutly report that, he deserves a shot at a good life, and they r distroying his opertunity.I am documenting everything that happens there that is inappropriate. Unfortunately, in my experience (nursing homes) if someone calls the state to report unsafe working conditions or neglect it seems as if the state wont investigate, unless someones life is in immediate danger or if someone has actually passed away from it. Those who call in the complaints are usually fired or layed off. Im not afraid of being fired and I dont really need the job but i seriously doubt that if I take these findings to the head honcho at work that anything will be done. Its that kind of place. They also perform background checks and still allow people with records to work for them. One kid in particualr has 2 felonies involving drugs and alcohol. Why they allow this I do not know. Why they dont train us in dealing with behaviors of autistic kids/mentally challenged, I do not know. It is quite disturbing. I wouldnt put a family member in this group home if it were the last one on earth. I dont believe I am going to have many issues with this autistic boy, as I have been gentle yet firm with him and he does not intimidate me, but I have seen how he behaves with others and its like night and day.
Amy
One additional note: I do know that this child was kicked out of school for aggressive behavior. If it was before or after entering the group home I dont know. I also leave his light on. I figure if hes quiet and in bed whats the big deal with the light being on. There is also a camera in this home and from where it has been placed the supervisors have every oppourtunity to see how these people are being treated. Im not even sure if the supervisors/managers are educated in how physiology of autism. I sure dont but I bet Im the only one who is actively educating myself online about it.
Amy
AMY, SPEAKING AS THE MOTHER OF A AUTISTIC BOY WHO WAS IN A GROUP HOME FOR ABOUT 6 MONTHS, HE WAS PHYSICALLY ABUSED,OVER MEDICATED AND i AM SURE THERE WAS ALOT MORE DONE...ANYWAY, I BELIEVE YOUARE THERE FOR A REASON, IF FOR NOTHING ESLE THEN TO HELP THIS BOY IN SOME WAY...PLEASE..KEEP DOCUMENTING AND IF THE "HEAD" PERSON WON'T DO ANYTHING, GO ABOVE THEM..DOES THE BOY HAVE REGIONAL CENTER SERVICES? IF SO THEY SHOULD BE DOING CHECKS ON THE HOME...I WISH I COULD HELP YOU..THE ABUSE IS OUT OF CONTROL ON THE DISABLED AND I FEEL THERE AS GOT TO BE A WAY TO END IT.
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