“Meltdowns”

Some Autism Awareness for the “General Public.”

Meltdowns at home can be very hard to endure.

Public meltdowns are made worse by the onlookers who stare and judge what they do not understand.

So let me shed some light.

When you are raising an Ausome child, there will be meltdowns.

It doesn’t matter how much progress has been made, they will happen.

Almost all of Jonah’s meltdowns are related to a frustration with communication. He wants us to know something, but is unable to relay that information in a way we understand.

If Jonah is having a meltdown and lashes out at me, I don’t correct him. Matter of fact, I don’t respond at all except to protect myself. I don’t even tell him “NO HITTING!” Some people say, I am making excuses for his “bad” behavior. But that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Verbal communication is not intrinsic for Jonah. And when his emotions run high, he has a very tough time relaying what he is feeling.

I can tell the difference between “communication” and “malice.”

And I won’t punish him for communicating with me.

Because when his attempts at communication are met with negative reinforcement, “hitting” would be the least of our problems.

Jonah has come a long way in that regard. The tools he has developed in school and from therapy have helped a ton.

From requesting “space” when he wants to be alone to learning to say “no” to something he doesn’t like, I have found that the more “tools” he has to communicate, the less he will “lash out.”

Because at the heart of a meltdown is a basic human need.

To simply understand and be understood.