Autism - What Scares You?

We all know that our children with autism are more anxious than their peers, all of the time. But what you might not realise is that often our autism child's fears come from unexpected sources, or things that we don't think are scary.  Seemingly ordinary events can really worry our children. Simply driving to school can be fraught with imaginary danger:-

• Is mum driving too fast - the police will book her; she will have an accident
• Oncoming traffic - what if the other drivers lose control and crash into us; other cars causing an accident
• Vehicle safety - what if our tyres blow out; what if the car breaks down/overheats
• Raining - I can't see properly, so mum can't either; the road is slippery - we might skid out of control
• Stopping suddenly - what if my seatbelt breaks - would I go through the windscreen

The negative thought patterns of our children with Autism can very quickly spiral out of control and cause them to become terrified of everyday events. Their communication problems usually mean they don't tell us about their worries, and so they can seem anxious, tense and even panicky for no reason.

So if your child seems overly apprehensive examine what they/you are doing from a "worst-case" scenario and use your "Autism Detective" skills to try and work out the problem.  Ask your Autism child a few out-there questions and listen to their response. e.g. Does it bother you when we have to stop suddenly in the car? You might be surprised at their answer.