วันพฤหัสบดีที่ 3 เมษายน พ.ศ. 2551

How to cope with aggressive and violent behavior in your child with Aspergers

Author : Dave Angel

For many parents of children with Aspergers Syndrome; coping with violent and aggressive behaviorcan be a very difficult challenge indeed. In this article I will outline the 2 essential factors that you need to know to cope with such behaviors.Aggressive behavior in the child with Aspergers Syndrome occurs for a reason, just as it would with anyother child. No child ever really just acts out for no apparent reason whatsoever. The key is in the words apparent reason there is ALWAYS a reason but the major challenge for the parent is often working out whatthat reason is.Inappropriate behavior, whether mild or severe, generallyoccurs in order to:1. Avoid something for example a child may becomeaggressive and shout before getting the school bus; as theywant to avoid going to school.2. Get something for example a child may lash out at another child because they want to get the toy that theother child is playing with.3. Because of pain for example a child may show arange of challenging behaviors to their parents because they feel in physical pain, such as having earache.4. Fulfill a sensory need for example a child may lash outor shout in the classroom if it is too noisy, too busy, toobright, too hot, or strong in a particular smell.So the first step in reducing or eliminating this behavior is todetermine the need that it fulfills by looking at the four categories above. The second step is to teach them a replacement behavior, which they can use to communicate what they want or dont want. It may even involve using some of their obsessive or self-stimulating behaviors (like hand-flapping, rocking, pacing) as a replacement behaviour.This is because it would be far less intrusive to others than aggressive behaviors, but still serve the same purpose. It could also be about encouraging the child to express their feelings or negotiate verbally. For other children they may communicate through another method like emotion cards, drawing, using symbols or talking through a puppet. You know your child best so you need to determine this.This process takes time and initially, depending on the behavior, you may not have time. If the behavior is severe,then you need to remove the child from whatever situationthey are in at the time immediately. Simply insisting that they stop the behavior and participate in whatever is occurring will not benefit the child or you; unless you remove them from the situation first. Maintaining your childs routine will go a long way towards reducing the need for inappropriate or aggressive behavior inthe first place. Because for children with Aspergers routine is a great source of stability and comfort for them.So just to recap the 2 critical factors for coping with your childs aggressive and violent behaviors are:1. Identify the real cause of the behavior from the 4main categories above.2. Teach the child to communicate the real cause of the behavior to you in a less harmful manner. Dave Angel is a social worker with families who havechildren on the Autistic Spectrum and is the author ofa new e-book that answers the 46 most asked questionsby parents of children with Aspergers. To claim yourfree 7 day Mini-Course for parents of children withAspergers Syndrome visit http://www.parentingaspergers.comtoday.


Category : General Home and Family: Parenting

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