Autistic people may also be able to hear sounds from inside the building – such as voices or noises from other rooms, or water in pipes and electricity in the walls. A decibel meter can be useful to support this work (now available as a phone app for those in need).
In the case of vocal stimming (or verbal stimming), the child might make noises such as groaning, grunting, high- pitched screeching, squealing, humming, or repeating random words, words to a familiar song, phrases, or lines from a movie.
Sometimes people with autism produce long strings of nonsensical speech sounds. We call this “jargon.” It can sound like the person is trying to express something because jargon is often produced with an adult-like intonation pattern. However, jargon is not easily interpretable.
High and intense noises can have a severe impact on people living with Autism. Autistic children are very sensitive to specific sounds and pitches that others are not affected by. The downside to sound sensitivity is that noise quickly becomes painful and can even trigger a panic attack.
White, pink or brown noise may not only block out household noise but can help your child to relax and fall asleep.
Hyperacusis (say it with me: HY-per-uh-CUE-sis), is an increased sensitivity to sound that is commonly found among people with autism. This means that certain noises, such as classroom bells, the radio or the TV, may be uncomfortable for your child to hear.
Brown noise for ADHD is thought to be particularly beneficial. Brown noise, like white noise, plays sound at all frequencies. However, brown noise plays lower frequencies louder and high frequencies softer. It's thought to be a better color of noise to fall asleep to, because it can support sleep and relaxation.
Children with autism are often clumsy, physically awkward or uncoordinated.
Some autistic people have: problems with reading, writing and spelling (dyslexia) clumsy movements and problems with organisation and following instructions (developmental co-ordination disorder, or dyspraxia)
Children with autism spectrum disorder have good vocabularies but unusual ways of expressing themselves. They may talk in a monotone voice and do not recognize the need to control the volume of their voice, speaking loudly in libraries or movie theaters, for example.
People with autism often speak with a different rhythm, prosody, and/or volume than typical peers. Thus, even if the words themselves are appropriate, they may sound flat, loud, soft, or otherwise different. It's not unusual for people with autism to "script" their conversations.
Up to 90 percent of people with autism are either overly sensitive to sound, sight, taste, smell or touch, or barely notice them at all. Some seek out sensations by, for example, spinning in circles or stroking items with particular textures.
In children and teenagers with high-functioning autism, this can present as a limited social circle, difficulty completing group work, or problems sharing toys and materials. Many people with ASD have sensory difficulties. Certain tastes, noises, smells, or feelings can be intolerable.
Though autistic people may respond to emotions and social cues differently than neurotypical people, this does not mean they lack empathy. Just like neurotypical people, levels of empathy vary between autistic individuals.
Many kids and teens with autism make frequent sounds and noises when excited or anxious. These vocalizations — which can sound loud or quiet, high-pitched or low-pitched, happy or upset — are often a form of self-stimulatory behavior (stimming).
Some things to look out for include limited eye-contact, inability to communicate, inappropriate responses, rarely smiling or lack of expressions, difficulty expressing empathy, overreacting to changes, OCD behaviors, lack of impulse control, disliking physical touch, self-injury, and head-banging.
Non-autistic people tend to assess concepts before details, also known as top-down thinking. Autistic people take the opposite approach with bottom-up thinking and use details to build concepts. It may take longer to filter out sensory details with this approach, but you're less likely to miss important information.
About stimming and autism
Stimming might include: hand and finger mannerisms – for example, finger-flicking and hand-flapping. unusual body movements – for example, rocking back and forth while sitting or standing. posturing – for example, holding hands or fingers out at an angle or arching the back while sitting.
If you have a picky eater with autism, know that you're not alone. A recent review of scientific studies found that children with autism are five times more likely to have mealtime challenges such as extremely narrow food selections, ritualistic eating behaviors (e.g. no foods can touch) and meal-related tantrums.
If your child does wake up, the sound might be soothing to them and help them to fall back asleep. White noise doesn't work for everyone, but it's definitely worth trying! Unfortunately, it's common for children with autism to have difficulties communicating how they feel and what they need.
Sound: Many people with ADHD are hypersensitive to auditory stimulants such as multiple simultaneous conversations, loud music, fireworks, or grating noises. For these individuals, such sounds could result in a stress reaction.
People with anxiety tend to be on high alert... The use of pink or brown noise may reduce their reactivity to those little sounds in their environment and support calming, sleep, or even concentration. The frequencies picked up in pink noise fall between white and brown noise and are also thought to aid in sleep.