January 21, 2018

Identifying Pain in Nonverbal Children on the Spectrum

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I have a Super Cooper update. He’s been ‘off’ for a few days. Protesting school, quick to meltdown, not communicating. When this happens with my nonverbal child I know something is probably wrong.

As Cooper’s mom, I’ve learned that when behaviors change in a child on the spectrum, finding the reasons why can feel like trying to find a needle in a haystack. They can’t verbally tell you something hurts or feels weird. Nor can they always process it. In my son’s case, he shows us pain with increased or new behaviors. As we say in our world, ‘He’s dialing it up to a ten.’

He did something unbelievably amazing this morning. He communicated pain to me in two different ways. He used his speech device to say, ‘I want doctor.’ Then, when I didn’t immediately call off school and take him to the doctor he found a picture of me in labor that ‘showed’ pain and communicated that he wanted to go to the hospital.

I thought he was crying wolf. I was wrong. That poor kid has another ear infection, less than a month after getting his sixth set of ear tubes.

Take a listen as  I discuss how frustrating it can be to identify pain in nonverbal children on the spectrum.

https://youtu.be/PxbfMe1bDFo

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Kate Swenson

Kate Swenson lives in Minnesota with her husband Jamie, and four children, Cooper, Sawyer, Harbor and Wynnie. Kate launched Finding Cooper's Voice from her couch while her now 11-year-old son Cooper was being diagnosed with autism. Back then it was a place to write. Today it is a living, thriving community of people who want to not only advocate for autism, but also make the world a better place for individuals with disabilities and their families. Her first book, Forever Boy, will be released, April 5, 2022.

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2 Comments

  1. Susan on January 22, 2018 at 7:33 pm

    This is huge.



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