| February 2012 : Volume VIII, Issue 2
I was working on my computer the other day and I got frustrated because it kept flipping back to a font that I didn’t want to use. Then I remembered that the computer program has a default setting. That means I can tinker around and change things like text size and colors . . . but when I open a new document all those adjustments disappear and the computer goes back to the default settings. I just have to remember that’s what happens.
So what does this have to do with autism? Actually, a lot.
Read on to explore some thoughts about default emotions. Warm Regards,
In This Issue
Default Emotions for Autism? Do you have a default emotion? For example, when life throws you off with a bad day or a bad experience, how do you respond? Fear? Anger? Tears? What about when you don’t feel well or you’re really tired? What are the emotions? Sadness? Depression?
Psychologists would probably tell us that we develop “emotional habits” meaning we establish certain patterns in how we respond to various events in our lives. I suspect that many of those patterns or habits were established as reactions to events in our childhood. Then they stay with us, maybe forever, unless we purpose to change them.
How does this concept manifest in autism?
I’ll bet you can describe in clear detail some of the emotional or behavioral responses of your child (for parents) or your students (for educators). It goes kind of like this . . . ”Every time we ________ , he ________.”
Every time we go to the doctor he cries.
Every time we go to get a haircut he _____.
Whenever another child ______ he ________.
When _____happens, this child does _____.
I’ll bet you could help me write a really long list.
Why the default triggers?
I wonder if the first time or the first few times that thing happened, it was horrible (from the child’s point of view). Maybe he remembers a shot that hurt at the doctor’s office. Perhaps it was sensory overload at the barbershop. It could be the anxiety and fear of the unknown that he felt when experiencing a new life circumstance.
Those events may not be traumatic anymore
One bad experience is all it takes to set up a default response to an event or an incident. That’s all it takes. Just one. The result can be future behavioral responses that don’t seem to match the situations that exist.
So what do you do?
First, recognize what you are dealing with. Are you observing a true emotion related to a current situation or a “pattern” behavior that occurs with a specific event?
Create change
Here’s a concept I like to teach in my workshops.
It’s easier to teach a NEW ROUTINE . . .
. . . than it is to change an OLD BEHAVIOR™
Default responses are hard to change. In comparison, new routines are easier to teach.
How do you teach a new routine?
Visual strategies work really well. Think about how you teach any new routine. Here is a short list of possibilities.
• Create a mini-schedule for a specific time frame
• Write a social story about how to handle an event
• Make a video to demonstrate appropriate behavior for a situation
• Present a rule for a location or activity
• Provide some visual choices that will require appropriate behavior or appropriate responses
• Use a visual tool to assist communication in a difficult situation One more thing
 It is often useful or necessary to create change in some element of the problem situation. For example, if going to the hairdresser is a problem, teach the new routine at a different hairdresser. If going to the doctor is the problem, try entering through a different door or waiting in a different room or going just before a favored activity.
Changing the time or location or routine as much a possible helps. Altering what the student is supposed to do to participate is another option.
Recognize default behaviors
Once we identify that default behaviors are the reason for a situation, creating solutions becomes much easier.
P.S. This concept of default emotions or behaviors is not limited to children with autism. We all may fit this pattern from time to time. The autism difference is frequency and intensity.
A story about newsletter change The internet is a good place to get information.
I have favorite newsletters that I like to read.
I like to read Linda Hodgdon’s newsletter.
Sometimes people who write newsletters make them look different.
Next month, Linda Hodgdon’s newsletter might look different.
If the newsletter looks different, that is OK.
Even if the newsletter looks different, it still has lots of good information in it.
I will still enjoy Linda’s newsletter if it looks different.
About Linda
 Linda Hodgdon, M.Ed., CCC-SLP is a Speech-Language Pathologist and a Consultant for Autism Spectrum Disorders. She is the author of the bestseller, Visual Strategies for Improving Communication, one of the most recommended books in the field of autism. Internationally recognized as a powerful and informative speaker and consultant, Linda has presented her insightful and dynamic workshops to audiences of educators and parents worldwide.
Click here for more information about Linda's programs
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