Christmas With The Autistic Child

Christmas can be a hectic time for the average family but with an autistic child in the home, it can be even more difficult. As parents you will have to prepare a little differently.

Your home will be filled with colourful lights and decorations: the cooking smells will be different and many visitors are possible at this time of the year. Your child might not easily cope with some or all of these changes to routine.

The best way to prepare is to begin well in advance for that all important day. Put up a big board and write on it what will be happening and when. As a family, check the list each day and work out what comes next. This will help prepare your child for change and at the same time, keep the rest of the family on track at this busy time.

Put Christmas baubles in jars around the home so that the child can see them at every turn and get used to them. Do the same with the lights too so that they get used to the colours. A little at a time is a good rule to go by.

On Christmas Day at meal time, have your child’s usual favourites on standby in case they refuse the new dishes. It is enough for them to get through the new routine without having to try different foods as well. Also, stagger the gift opening so that they are not overwhelmed with too many toys, etc. If they stop playing with one then move it out of sight until they finish with the next one.

The general idea is not to overwhelm the child if possible. Get some more tips from Stuart Duncan so that you can be fully prepared for a great holiday and minimise the chances of your child becoming upset.

Making Christmas Decorations

Christmas is fast approaching. A big part of Christmas is transforming the house, inside and out with Christmas decorations such as lights, tinsel, shiny baubles and smiling Santa faces galore! However, for kids on the spectrum, Christmas decorations can mean a sensory overload and might cause confusion and stress with all the changes to regular look of the house and their “space.”

Here are some tips on how to cope with the sensory overload of having a houseful of Christmas decorations:

• Get your child involved. They might like to choose a special decoration at the shops to hang on the tree. You could encourage them to focus on a particular job such as decorating the bottom half of the tree or something else at their height level.

• Make Christmas Decorations. Helping make decorations might help ease the sensory overload. We have some great items in our Arts and Craft section to help this. This Photo CD Ornament is a great idea as you can use photos of familiar faces and even the family pet which will certainly make it easier to deal with strange and new decorations. This Handprint Santa is also a lovely way to get your children involved.

• There are some certain decorations such as blinking lights, lots of glittery decorations such as tinsel and random noisy ornaments like talking Santas that can wear down senses over time. before your child reacts, try and plan carefully exactly the type of decorations you will include.

Getting your child involved in making Christmas decorations and decorating the house is an excellent way to help them cope with the changes that come this time of year. They will love to feel responsible for making the house look “pretty” and Christmassy and this will also give them a sense of pride when they can see their gorgeous homemade decorations hanging on display.