As you've seen, living spaces can become extremely cluttered when a person has trouble parting with his or her favorite “stuff.” It's also very common for people with autism to become extremely distressed if others rearrange or throw away their items.
Disorganization can also come into play with autism and autistic spectrum disorders, Asperger's Syndrome, and other diagnoses. To some extent, being disorganized is just a personality trait, a difference between us. Some of us like to be organized, others don't.
Maintaining personal hygiene can be problematic for someone with autism. It might simply be that they don't understand the importance of personal hygiene or the social implications, and need reminding to have a shower, brush their teeth, wash their clothes etc. For some, there are also sensory issues to consider.
Try having your child put everything that is on their floor in a pile on their bed. Then direct your child to put one thing at a time away. Clearing the floor and putting everything in one place gives your child a space they can look at while they clean that is not so stimulating.
Many children with autism experience sensory issues. When it comes to showering, sensory sensitivities can become overwhelming – some individuals may feel every water drop hitting them or be uncomfortable with the lights or noises from the shower.
Rhythmic, repetitive behaviors are a hallmark of autism. Hand-flapping, spinning in circles, body rocking, vocalizations such as grunting and muttering, and other habits can be disquieting to people unfamiliar with them.
Developing self-care skills such as washing and personal hygiene can sometimes be an issue for autistic people. Sensory differences, such as a heightened sense of smell or touch, can make washing an uncomfortable experience.
Clutter in a living space can be a huge stressor for people with autism because it can contribute to sensory overload and overall stress levels. An unorganized and messy space can also make simple tasks more difficult because a larger amount of time may need to be dedicated to finding needed items.
There are some autistic characteristics that can lead to difficulties with learning to use the toilet (Wheeler, 2007; Coucouvanis, 2008). Some of the language and communication around toileting can be confusing. They may not understand what you are asking them to do or could take things very literally.
People with autism may get easily attached to people, leading them to become over-friendly. It can be difficult to understand other people's perceptions of situations, therefore what they feel is appropriate, may be considered as socially unacceptable.
For many people with autism, for example, hoarding is a way to manage stress or anxiety. Collecting objects can be comforting and calming.
As noted above, the ASD group reported significantly higher thresholds for both warmth and cold detection, consistent with reduced sensitivity to thermal stimuli of both types.
Challenging behaviour in autistic children and teenagers
refuse or ignore requests. behave in socially inappropriate ways, like taking their clothes off in public. behave aggressively. hurt themselves or other children – for example, by head-banging or biting.
Examples of restricted or repetitive behaviors and interests related to ASD can include. Lines up toys or other objects and gets upset when order is changed. Repeats words or phrases over and over (called echolalia) Plays with toys the same way every time.
Children with autism are often clumsy, physically awkward or uncoordinated.
With autism, it's all about the kind of touch that the child is seeking. Some children who don't like hugs or cuddling really love roughhousing.
In general, autism-friendly lighting avoids fluorescent lights and it includes adjustability. You can see examples of this in each room where there are both overhead lights and a floor or table lamp. It is important to offer different levels of brightness and adjustability. Each room also has access to natural light.
Even to a trained clinician's eye, OCD's compulsions can resemble the 'insistence on sameness' or repetitive behaviors many autistic people show, including tapping, ordering objects and always traveling by the same route. Untangling the two requires careful work.
Many autistic people have problems like: feeling very worried a lot of the time (anxiety) feeling unhappy, irritable or hopeless (depression) feeling a need to keep doing certain actions (obsessive compulsive disorder, or OCD)
While baths are famous for their unique soothing effect, children with autism often find this activity challenging for a variety of reasons.
Some believe that autistic people aren't interested in romantic relationships or aren't capable of romantic love. However, this is far from the truth. In fact, autistic people can make wonderful partners.
Love and affection may be felt but expressed differently
Your autistic person feels love, and feels empathy too, but may struggle to express both in ways that lead to you feeling loved or empathised with.