Your child’s autism diagnosis can be destabilizing even if you suspected it. You may feel alone, unsure of how to support them, and fearful of what their future will look like. These emotions are completely normal and natural, but thankfully, they aren’t long lasting.
Once you understand how to support your child and learn about the different interventions available to them, you can help your child thrive. With the help of your support team, you can help uncover your child’s unique abilities and strengths, and foster healthy growth and development that will build a firm foundation for their life.
At Stride Autism Centers, we aim to give parents the resources they need to help design a plan of action for their preschool child with autism. We’ll discuss what to do if you’ve just received a diagnosis and give you actionable tips for beginning the journey with your child.
1. Educate Yourself
Receiving your child’s autism diagnosis can feel overwhelming, and it’s okay if you haven’t had time to learn everything yet. Take it step by step, and know that there are many resources available to help you understand your child’s needs. Autism affects approximately 1 in 36 children in the United States, so you are not alone in this journey. Learning about autism can empower you to support your child, one day at a time.
Autism Spectrum Disorder is a developmental disorder that is most commonly diagnosed in childhood. Diagnosis may happen between 18-24 months of age, but you may have noticed signs and symptoms of autism in your child sooner. Autism affects the way a child communicates, responds to social situations, learns, and behaves.
In addition to hard copy books and publications, you can gather information about your child’s diagnosis from reputable websites like The American Autism Association, and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychology. Through your research, you’ll learn that a focus on early childhood intervention can help children become more successful in life, and can help uncover their strengths as well as areas to improve.
2. Build a Support Team
Raising a child takes a village, and a diagnosis of autism will require a support team you can rely on for aid in helping you ensure your child has the best opportunity to thrive. Begin building your network by ensuring your child’s primary caregivers, educators, family members, and pediatricians are all aware of your child’s diagnosis. These individuals can become valuable members of your child’s support team. It’s also important to make these caregivers and providers aware of your child’s diagnosis so that they can offer any available accommodations to your child to make your child’s life easier and more comfortable.
The involvement of close friends and loved ones can help you get relief when you need a break, or if you’ve had a particularly challenging day. If you don’t feel you have reliable people close by, consider joining a local support group for parents of children with autism. There, you’ll be able to connect with other parents who are dealing with similar challenges as your own.
If you aren’t able to find a local support group, consider an online support group that offers real-time meetings. These will help you feel connected and may work better for people with very limited schedules.
3. Explore Early Intervention Services
Early intervention is key, and your child’s preschool diagnosis is a valuable asset to their growth and development. Involving your child in an early intervention therapy program, like Applied Behavior Analysis Therapy (“ABA therapy”) can help set them up for a successful future. There are numerous types of therapies available to help your child.
- ABA Therapy. The gold standard of interventional treatment, ABA therapy uses positive reinforcement for encouraging positive behaviors through play, one-on-one therapy sessions, and other child-focused engagement techniques. ABA therapy centers help prepare your child for life by encouraging independence and more effective communication methods.
- Speech therapy. For children who have a limited vocabulary, speech therapy can help your child develop the motor plans to produce sounds and words. If your child is non-verbal, communication therapy can help your child learn alternative methods, like the Picture Exchange Communication system (PECS), hand-gestures, or the use of specialized communication devices.
- Occupational therapy. One goal of occupational therapy is to encourage your child to complete tasks independently. Accomplishing tasks is encouraged by breaking them down into smaller tasks and having your child master the smaller tasks so that they can gain more independence and work on life skills.
It’s never too soon to contact early intervention specialists focused on ABA in your area. Getting started as soon as your child receives a diagnosis gives them the most exposure time to these therapies and the best opportunity to work on new skills prior to beginning kindergarten.
4. Create a Routine That Works for Your Child
Structure and routine are important for children with autism. Children with autism thrive on predictability and often benefit from repeated behaviors and tasks to understand and master new skills. Although it is impossible to create a routine that will never change, you can create stability in your home and in your routine in a few simple ways.
- Provide structure within activities of daily living. For instance, in the morning, tasks can include eating breakfast, brushing teeth, and getting dressed. In the evening, tasks may include bathing, having story time, and going to bed.
- Use visual cues. Visual cue cards that delineate tasks with pictures may be easier for some children to use and understand, as they depict a digestible visual story.
- Use positive reinforcement. When your child accomplishes something from the routine, give them praise and reward them for doing so. This method of “behavior management” encourages your child to repeat the behavior.
- Restructure your child’s environment. For instance, if your child is responsible for getting themselves dressed, it may be necessary to lay their clothes out for them instead of having them take them from their closet or dresser themselves.
- Stay flexible. Your child won’t be able to maintain their task list or routine perfectly. As a result, remaining flexible with your child can help them feel safe to make mistakes and take breaks from their routine as needed.
Keeping your daily routine can be a challenge, and there will be some days when the schedule is less predictable than other days. If you know that a schedule change will occur, talk to your child about it before it happens. You can also use techniques that your child is learning in their therapy sessions at home. Discuss coping techniques with your child’s therapist(s) and incorporate them at home to help reinforce them.
5. Stay Positive and Celebrate Progress
Maintaining a positive attitude is key to ensuring your journey with your child is joyful and supportive. When challenges arise, remind yourself that you’re doing your best and that it’s okay to have tough moments. When you lose your cool or feel defeated, don’t spend time feeling guilty. Every parent of a child with autism deals with these struggles.
One way to support your child and bring joy to each day is to celebrate each milestone, no matter how small. When your child unlocks a new skill or completes a new task, there is cause for celebration. Celebrating these small moments reinforces the process of establishing additional skills and can bring about more progress over time.
When you feel particularly discouraged, reach out to your support group to find hope through their stories. Remember that the days often seem long, but the years are always short. A rough day won’t last more than 24 hours, and it is usually followed with a day that is more pleasant. When negative feelings arise, find an excuse to get out of the house and have fun with your child.
Jump Right In
Your child’s autism diagnosis may be unexpected, and may be overwhelming. Keep in mind that this early diagnosis is a best-case scenario, and allows you to seek intervention on behalf of your child at an age when they are most adaptable.
As soon as you receive the diagnosis, take these steps:
- Educate yourself.
- Build a support system.
- Explore early intervention services.
- Create a routine that works for your child.
- Stay positive.
There will be many milestones for you to enjoy with your child, and this is only the beginning. At Stride Autism Centers, we want to partner with you to offer guidance, support, and therapy options that are tailored to preschool-aged children. Contact us today to learn how we can partner with you and your child.
Sources:
Autism | World Health Organization.int
Educate Yourself on Autism this World Autism Month | My Autism.org
