In the steps of autism

In the steps of Elyza's autism is a poster I created some time back as I was starting to explore Elyza's ASD some time after the diagnosis. Making the poster allowed me to reflect on it all, but also as a way to share what I have seen and understood about Elyza's ASD with family and friends. The poster reads as follows for when I created it when Elyza was about 4 years old and now that she is 6 years old, there are some changes which I have highlighted below - this is due to a lot of factors, namely development of children of her age, social interactions she has had e.g. at school, playground, socially, ...):

Social interaction wise, it is difficult for me to understand and related to others.

• I do not always notice other children nor am I interested to play with them most of the time. Now, Elyza would notice other children playing around her, but still not all children, only those who are of interest to her, mainly children who are younger than her. And lately at school she was seen going to the younger children and 'bossing' them around lining them up then placing them in a circle to get them to play as she wanted.

• I do not always understand the emotions conveyed by others such as hurt or sad. Now, Elyza does react at times to me telling her I am hurt, and she would come and give me a hug. Is it a form of empathy? Or is it her associating me saying am sad and her giving me a hug as a response to it?

• I do not show (much) facial expressions. Now she has those facial expressions in different situations, are they mimics of how we respond or her cartoon videos?

• I do not always respond to my name. Now most of the time she does :) Sometimes needing encouragement from us to do so.

• I avoid / I do not keep eye contact. Eye contact improved as she started to enjoy watching herself in the mirror and in the selfie video recorder.

• I do not point to objects I want. Elyza still does not point to objects, however she does sometimes respond to me pointing to objects. She still uses a lot of hand-leading, which is a sign of her having difficulties communicating verbally.

• I do not play interactive games. Still not there, but she would at times be interested watching others doing so.

Line up objects. Elyza still does that but does not have meltdowns triggered if objects are moved. She might get annoyed but unlike when she was younger, the meltdowns are not as severe. What she did do the last time we were with other people is that she would have meltdowns if adults would not sit where they originally sat at during a social gathering.

Obsessive objects: I love alphabets and numbers. Elyza still loves her alphabets and is getting better and better with spelling words she has seen spelled or heard from her videos, but also new words that she would try to spell on her own. As for numbers, counting is still something she likes but have not started with counting.

Seeing the world from a different angle. This is for sure. I would say it is a blessing in disguise, as she allows us to also see the world from a different angle. A more positive angle :)

I often have trouble finding sleep. I wake up during the night. I am a light sleeper. To support this challenge, we have adopted a desensitisation approach. Desensitisation is a technique to help people with autism become less sensitive to certain triggers that might cause discomfort, anxiety, or stress. Slowly we introduced more and more noise around her while she would go to sleep or during her sleep - but only after having analysed her sleep patterns and when it would not affect her next day, e.g. over the holidays or weekends. It was difficult at first, and slowly but surely we managed through this. Now Elyza sleeps better with noises around her.

Sensory sensitivities and I react to way things look, sound, smell, taste and feel - as mentioned above through analysis of patterns and triggers, we worked on desensitisation techniques.

Gastrointestinal problems - Elyza would go days and days without pooping, and would reach alarming 2-3 weeks constipation. So we acted upon it, with a change in her diet, the toilet song, and with patience and persistence and discipline, Elyza now goes to the toilet every evening before bedtime.

Anxiety and struggle with a range of fears - similarly as mentioned above desensitisation helped.

I get upset with changes and the unknown - desensitisation, but also preparing Elyza with advance notice of what is coming up helped.

Difficulties with communication and speech. I do not communicate like you.

• I repeat words and sentences I have heard (Echolalia).

• Makaton signing and images flash cards, and hand leading help me.

• I use my tablet as an assistive technology to communicate. The virtual world is simpler.

Stimming (repetitive body movement and noises). I do finger flicking to

• Manage my emotions

• Manage overwhelming sensory information

Mommy and Daddy are my safe place. Other safe places are:

• My tent and under the cover/sheet (to auto regulate)

• Where I am comfortable, accepted, supported and understood

• Routine (change and transitions are difficult to cope with)

• Mindful of sensory triggers