I don’t see why a kid having a good time at the beach should bother anyone–no reasonable person heads to a public beach expecting quiet.

“We’re talking 50 to 60 Oreos. He didn’t understand the effect it had on the entire class,” Wilmoth-Williams said. “I had to make amends. I had to volunteer.”}

EXCUSE ME!!!! Part of ABA when we were in it was to go to seminars. And the ABA therapists one day told us that her teenage kid got up at the restaurant and took someone elses drink at another table. She thought it was OK and got them another.

We’re not talking about flapping, rocking, quiet scripting. Those are behaviours that bother nobody. Get a few looks, but most people in today’s world recognize them as autism and let it go.

But this “my kid is bad – screaming, melting, hitting” but it’s OK, b/c it’s Autism… is WRONG. What are you going to do when they’re teenagers??? That’s obvious, you’ve posted stories of where caregivers are harmed.

If you can teach a 2 to 4 year old child basic social skills, you can teach any child with Autism the same skills. If it’s a sensory issue, then I recommend you don’t take the child into a situation where there’s going to be issues until you’ve helped them master the sensory issue or go on off times when you don’t disturb others to get them use that space.

There are reason’s for correct behaviour in society. It protects all. Also, people pay good money, especially in an economy where money is tight and they expect to enjoy that outing, not listen to some kid scream. And that goes for us too….. we don’t wish to listen to our kids nor others “melt” when we go out for supper.

That includes ALL. I don’t care if your kid is NT or ASD or or or or…..

B/c if a child isn’t taught, very young not to hit, harm, melt…. they will be placed in specialized classrooms, meds will be demanded to protect the caregivers, and even institutionalized.

I will not be held hostage by these kids.. but then again… I’d put mine up against most NT kids anyday for good behaviour and we’ve been complimented on it when we’re out and have gotten “looks” when it’s found out they have Autism… b/c nobody noticed the quiet flapping/scripting.

S.

In many ways, this is the same situation the families of adults with severe autism face. Some stroke victims don’t speak clearly (or jumble words), they have bursts of anger, and need supervision.

My mother is doing all she can for her mother. My aunt cares for both paternal grandparents. But, there is a limit and potentially dangerous problems keep arising, from falls to “wandering” impulsively.

No one I know wants to admit they need help. The institutionalization comment might reflect a person who does need more help than a family can provide — we never know the circumstances. It’s easy to condemn the notion of institutions since many were and are horrible places. But, so are senior care facilities.

When my wife’s grandparents were alive, the last year they were together in a facility. It was heartbreaking, but the constant attention was necessary.

I have seen families struggle, torn apart by autism in teens / young adults. You might think the parents didn’t care enough to stay together, but you’d be wrong. In every case, one thought a group home or other arrangement might be better than keeping the young adult home.

An “institution” can be a group home, a “limited oversight” facility with apartments, or the horrible places we imagine. Group homes might make sense and even save some families.

I met wonderful parents in Orlando at the ASA who had a loving relationship with their son, but he lived in a facility. His violent outbursts had become too much for them — he was taller and stronger than both. They moved just for him to be in a special place, where parents could visit and be involved.

I wish such choices never had to be made… but humans are fragile creatures who eventually need assistance.

Would you consider commenting on my blog, listed above, on my idea for getting picky kids to eat their vegetables? And do you think it can work?

I just read that AP story and am disgusted with the comments of the uncle who says that institutionalization is a good thing. Sure, under *some* circumstances. But not just because someone’s noise is bothering you in a public place. I’m deeply offended by gross, furry, shirtless, overweight men, but apparently, their assault on my eyes is completely acceptable while an autistic child’s assault on someone’s ears is not.

Mockery aside, I think that medicine and modernity these days keep us too far away from reality. I was just reading the original manuscript on Parkinson’s today, published in 1817. People used to a live a lot closer to the realities of life than some of us do today. It’s not all pretty or clean or perfect or just the way you want it, and if you don’t like it, that’s too bad for you. You can’t lock people away in institutions any more just because they’re interfering with your sensory peace or your notions of how people “ought” to behave.