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Tonysenna
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Joined: 11 Sep 2016
Gender: Male
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Location: Sweden

11 Sep 2016, 12:07 pm

Hi,
New here and need some advice. Just undergoing an evaluation with my 4 year old autistic son and not interested in using ABA.
Our son stims quite a bit with his hands flapping and when very happy, interested or tired flaps so fast he clicks his wrists. Two questions I have are: 1) Can he get an injury for later in life like arthritis or nerve problems in the wrist due to the clicking ? ( Never shown any signs it hurts hurts up to now).
and 2) Do you think the evaluators might use the risk of an injury as an excuse to initiate ABA to stop him stimming (for the good of his health you know!)
Regarding stimming my view is taking it away, is taking away part of the person/personality.
Thanks in advance for any feedback
Tony



the_phoenix
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Joined: 30 Jan 2008
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Posts: 2,489
Location: up from the ashes

11 Sep 2016, 12:42 pm

I do not have medical answers for you.
I just hope the doctors can provide you with good, honest answers.

As for taking away stims,
I used to rock in the back seat of the family car.
Eventually, I got so big that the rocking ended up shaking the whole car.
My father told me to stop, so I did.
Stopped that habit immediately.
Two reasons why:
1) Anyone could see how unsafe it was, even me.
2) My father and I had a wonderfully close and loving relationship, and he treated me in a gentle, respectful manner.

Yes, my rocking in the car was "part of the person" ...
and it was a "part of the person"
that needed to change.

I was older than 4 at the time,
old enough to understand.



Voynich
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Joined: 31 Oct 2013
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12 Sep 2016, 2:23 pm

What is ABA? I click my wrists a lot, and have done since childhood, but that isn't from a high force motion. It doesn't hurt and hasn't led to anything, but from forceful flapping perhaps it could. I don't think arthritis type conditions are associated with that sort of behaviour, but who knows.

Quote:
Regarding stimming my view is taking it away, is taking away part of the person/personality.

My view is that it is utterly separate from personality, since I see it is as a compulsive use of giant energy excess in response to something. More or less. So if it can be redirected into any other response that serves a comparable purpose it is irrelevant to the personality. Unless I'm in private, I see some 'stim' reactions as very invasive - more of an outside force than a part of character.