Sensory Input for Back to School

A few days ago I got an email from the amazing folks behind Craft City. They wanted to know if Liam would like a Slime Swag Set for back to school. Of course that answer was a resounding yes!

Sensory Input Back to School Style

Now I know all too well how much fun it is to make slime. It’s one of mine and Liam’s favorite ways to spend time together. However, we don’t always have that time, especially during the school year. With that being said, there’s still a need to have slime because it gives Liam wonderful sensory input, and also keeps his hands busy during lessons. Busy hands means he focuses more on me instead of looking around the room and trying to find something to occupy his empty hands.

So when Karina and her team from Craft City asked if we wanted some premade slime, our answer was yes! They did not disappoint! A mere two days later a bunch of slimy fun arrived on our doorstep.

Soda Slime

Let me tell you, this slime smells absolutely fantastic! When my son opened it, I could smell it sitting across the room from the him. He got Orange and Grape soda. Craft City also has Cherry Cola scented and Lemon Lime Soda as well. Your kids are sure to love this four pack of premade slime.

Super Slime

This may very well being one of Liam’s favorite types of slime. He loves the colors and glitter. His favorite is Fire and Ice. It’s an orange slime with gold glitter (two of his faves,) and it even has plastic chunks of “ice” inside. He loves manipulating this slime to expose the ice and pick them out. The four pack also comes with Mood Ring slime which changes colors with heat.  Metallic slime, and Glow in the Dark Rainbow too.

Galactic Slime

Inspired by space, this four pack of Craft City premade slime is out of this world! It comes with Blackberry Blast Off, Martian-mallow, Milky Way Cereal, and Green Apple Goo. The green apple smells exactly like a hard candy. The Milky Way Cereal looks and smells just like a fruity cereal. Plus it has foam balls for even more sensory input.

Glitter Slime

If glitter is your thing then you’re going to love the Craft City Glitter Slime four pack. It comes with glittery fun in blue, gold, rainbow and pink.

More Fun From Craft City

These are just a few of the fun activities and sensory items from Craft City. You can make slime, lip gloss, and more. There are even kits to color your own squishies too! Karina sent Liam two keychain squishies, and two of those balls that you squeeze and parts of it pop out. He hasn’t put them down since they came!

Let's Talk About Impulse Control and Autism

Impulse control has always been an issue with my little man. Now that he's getting older, it's getting even harder to help him restrain himself from acting out on impulse. This causes many issues. Let's discuss some of these issues, then we will move on to more about Impulse Control, and some ways we as parents and relatives can try and help our children.

People see this as bad behavior.

    While I really don't care what people think of me, I do care what they think of my children. To the untrained eye, my autie acting out impulsively looks a lot look he's misbehaving. In all actuality, he just can't help himself.

Other people think that reprimanding my child is helping.

    Family, friends, even strangers whom think they are helping will often times try correcting the child. Don't. All you're going to do is cause more guilt for the child. Preaching to the child about what they've just done is only adding more guilt to something they had no control over in the first place. If you want to help, try redirecting the child, or distracting the child. (Ie: Susie grabbed the kitten even though she was asked not to. Don't yell at her. Don't preach to her. Simply tell her the kitten is off limits, and then gravitate her attention towards something else.)

Think before speaking

    This is especially an issue in our home. Our eldest son has moved back home for a bit, and he rarely thinks before he speaks. (Much like Liam, lol.) For example, Liam will be getting on his nerves and he'll say, "go ahead, hit me if it makes you feel better." He's saying it in jest, trying to make light of a tense situation. However, all Liam hears is, "go ahead, hit me." He doesn't pick up on the social cues. He doesn't get the joke. Now Liam is swinging like a pro baseball player at his brother. Brother is angry, and Liam is upset because in his mind, he's doing what he was told. Now his brother, and often times his dad are yelling, because to them, Liam is acting out. It becomes monotonous having to break up conflicts like this. Conflicts that can be avoided if people just took more time to understand Autism and impulse controls. (I'm not saying my husband and son don't understand. They do. Hubby is always trying to keep the peace, and our eldest is out of practice as he's never lived here full time, so he's not completely up to par on our Autism world.)

Now that we've discussed some problems that arise from Impulse Control, let's talk about what it is. 

Impulse Control is the failure to resist an urge or temptation. Simply put, it's a thought that comes into one's mind, and the person then acts on it. There are five stages to impulse control. They are: 

Knowing the stages, what are some ways to help children learn from it, or even to help diminish the impulses?

Don't just focus on what the person did wrong, but also on what they should have done.

    So your child acted on impulse. Depending on what it was they acted on, you may or may not yell. It's okay, because NONE of us are perfect. That being said, try to remain calm. It's okay to tell the child what they did wrong, but make sure you also let them know what they should have done. Try to keep their attention. You don't have to force eye contact (trust me, they will zone out on you if you do,) but ask them questions to see if they understood what you said to them.

Work on listening skills

    This is HUGE in my home. If you are giving your child numerous instructions, they are only going to hear part of it, and start acting out that part. For example, if Liam has to clean his room, I have to say, "Pick up all your dirty clothes, then come back." After he does that, I will move on to the next directive. If you tell your child or the individual a few things at once, you are bogging down their brain. BREAK IT DOWN. I promise you, this works. I have been doing this for Liam for years, and he works so well when others do the same for him.

Repeat back

    Another great hint is to have the person repeat back what you asked them. That way you know they know what to do. This works great for when you want to expand on their directives. I do this when I give Liam two instructions. It helps him process more.

Practice waiting

   Yes, practice waiting. Waiting is especially hard for those on the spectrum. My son and I both hate to wait. (We're working on it.) A good way to practice is to use visuals. Find a symbol for wait, and then a reward symbol. Start out slow. Have them wait five minutes, or even two, quietly. Then they get the reward. (Whether it be stickers, screen time, whatever works.) Over time, you can expand the time. 

Make it a game

    Believe it or not, many childhood games are great ways to practice impulse control and waiting. Simon Says is perfect because the child has to wait on instructions from Simon, and is only supposed to do what Simon says. Follow the Leader, Red Light Green Light, and Duck Duck Goose, are all great games to practice impulse control.

Get the wiggles out

    Give them sensory input. A lot of sensory seekers lack impulse control because their bodies are always on the go. Giving these children appropriate sensory input will help keep their bodies in check, and may reduce some impulses. 

Work on emotions

    Teaching our children emotions helps as well. For example, acknowledging that some things cause anger is okay, but acting on that anger physically isn't. Talk about way to address that anger. Liam's BSC and us, are actively working on this with Liam as well. When he gets angry, all impulse control fails. Frustration is another one. Thinking of ways to help your child deal with frustration and giving them tools to use will help decrease frustration induced IC. 

In conclusion

    These are just some of the things that we are actively doing to help Liam control his impulses. What are some ways that have worked for you?

To the Untrained Eye, Our Kids Look Like Brats

We’ve all been there. In the middle of a crowded store, or restaurant, and our kid has a meltdown. The stares. The whispers. It’s an awful situation for everyone involved.

If I said I didn’t get angry with those people, I’d be lying. I know that they’re silently judging my child, and our parenting techniques. However, being that we’ve been on this journey awhile, I have come to have a new found patience with these people. (That is as long as they keep their opinions to themselves.) I understand that unless they live with an autistic, or work with one, they probably, in all honesty, think our kids are brats.

This is why as parents, families, teachers, and therapists of these amazing kids, we must do our best to educate. As a matter of fact, Liam presented me with a chance to educate last night. It wasn’t in public though, it was in our own home.

Before I go any further, I am NOT in any way condemning my husband for not recognizing the cues. I spend pretty much ALL of my time with Liam, and I know him like no other. There have been times when I can call a meltdown before he even realizes what’s happening. I’m also not knocking my step son. He isn’t around his brother much as he has a full time job, a girlfriend, and a life. I am merely relaying what happened, in hopes to maybe educate others.

Last night my husband took Liam and his older brother to two Super Bowl parties. Liam was going to stay home with me, but towards the afternoon, he decided he wanted “man time.” I, of course was thrilled because that meant HOURS to myself. I knew however, that more than likely, this would be a disaster later. What are we to do? We can’t keep our children from enjoying life just to save sensory overload or a meltdown later.

I had FIVE entire hours to myself. (Aside from my fur and fin kids.) It was great. When the boys arrived home, I met them at the door. Liam was a bit lethargic and quiet. I asked him if he was okay, and he replied, “yes, just tired.” I ushered him inside, and told him to lay down on the couch.

The other men filed in and within minutes Liam was bouncing off the walls. He was yelling, stimming and laughing, and being obnoxious. Typical of Liam when he is overstimulated. Instead of decompressing, he usually ends up like this, then heads into a chaotic state. I tried to get him to relax and sit, and talk to me about his night. That wasn’t happening.

In the midst of his jumping, stimming and screaming, he decided he needed to wrestle his brother. At this point, his body was wanting MORE input. Knowing what would come next, I advised against this. No one listens to me. EVER. His brother was cracking up and having a blast. One look at Liam’s face and I knew where this was headed. He would soon get pissed and things would get much worse.

Daddy came out. He thought the boys were just playing. So what does he do? He starts boxing with Liam. After a few minutes Liam’s eyes close. Tears are flowing, and he is swinging with all his might. Then he started kicking. I had to yell OVER him to get my husband’s attention. At this time, he knew Liam wasn’t playing, but he was busy blocking off his no no zone, and just kind of staring at him, unsure of what to do.

I told him (hubby) to go away. I glanced at Branden as I put Liam in a hold. Poor kid wasn’t sure what was going on. (I honestly think he thought Liam was being bad and was waiting to see what was going to happen.) I managed to carry Liam to the couch where he would be cushioned if he started flailing again, and asked if he wanted pressure. He screamed in my face. Eyes still closed. So I just backed up and patted his butt, as it has been the quickest way to calm him since he was a baby. I looked at his face and my heart was breaking.

He had black circles around his sunken in eyes from lack of sleep. Tears were flowing. His nose and lips were red, chapped and cracked, and his bottom lip was bleeding. He whispered, “Mama I need some pressure.”

Of course his weighted blanket was drying from just being washed that evening. His body sock was missing as well. I was able to think clear enough to grab his big crocheted blanket, which provides at least half of the weight he needs. I was actually able to get him calmed down in about fifteen minutes.

Then he asked for chocolate shake. (What he has always called chocolate milk.) Guess what? We were out. (We let him run out because he has been using way too much and he refuses to listen to us.) Of all times for us to try and teach him a lesson. I made some sugar and baking cocoa, but he wasn’t having any of that. He took his meds with a little pop, and let me put some coconut oil on his lips. He was fast asleep in another ten minutes. He slept until 11 am. I let him sleep because I knew after all of that, he needed to rest.

Afterwards, I had my husband walk out. In front of Branden I apologized for screaming at him to walk away. I explained that Liam had all of the tell tale PRE meltdown signs. I even went through each one, making sure they both knew I wasn’t patronizing them, but was telling them for the next time. Especially since they can differ from time to time. This was the first time in awhile that Liam had them to this extreme. In recap, Liam went from:

• lethargy
• hyperactivity/stimming
• craving input
• anger
• out of control, meltdown mode

My husband said he thought Liam was playing at first, and Branden concurred. When he got out of control both just thought he was mad. I pointed out the blind rage and the fact that he was falling and throwing himself across the room. He wasn’t angry, he was out of control.

Sometimes even family needs to be reminded of what is going on. Which is why so many of us write about it, talk about it, and Facebook it. Yes, we are divulging some personal moments, but we do so in the hopes of helping someone else. For the families that live lives like ours, they don’t feel alone. For those that don’t, if they happen to read this, and learn from it, well then maybe they won’t judge that screaming kid in public.