Autism Treatment Center of America Forum

[sarah]

William has very recently become sound sensitive to the vaccum cleaner, hair dryer and electric toothbrush. He screams, jumps and cries inconsolably whilst they are used and for some time afterwards.
Try to use them when he is asleep but not always able to when he finds it difficult to go to bed. I like to use the vacuum everyday especially as the house has people coming and going all day to run his program.
He currently does around 40hour a week in his playroom.

thanks Sarah x

[CarolinaKaiser]

Hi Sarah -
Great question - I'm so glad you asked. Many of our children develop sound sensitivities at some point in their program - and I would be happy to support you and help William.

First, do you have William on any special diet? We have seen that it's possible for a child's food allergies can result in sensitivities to sound - so if you're not doing so already, you might want to look in to a gluten- and casein-free diet. Sometimes this has an impact.

If you're already doing a diet, it's very possible that William's sound sensitivity is a great sign that you're really helping him emerge from his autism. It's so fantastic that you're doing so many hours in the playroom - and I'll bet that you have seen many ways that your son has started to connect more (more eye contact, more verbalization, a longer attention span, etc.). We often see that as children begin to emerge more into our world, they begin to hear sounds they've never heard before, because they were so zoned out into their ism, they were blocking out everything, including sound. So, this may mean that your son is opening up more to the world around him - and that's very exciting.

Now, how to help him - because we definitely want to help him have a more comfortable experience. First - I want to applaud you for keeping such a clean house. And then I want to suggest that it's time to let go of your house being so clean. I promise you - having volunteered personally in three Son-Rise Programs - and having spoken with hundreds of volunteers - they will completely understand if you have a little bit of dirt lying around - and won't even notice it. It would be really helpful to vacuum much less - to give William more of a sense of control and ease around sounds. If he's constantly hearing the noise, it's going to be more challenging for him. So - while I am incredibly impressed with your commitment to vacuuming, I think it's time for you to join the ranks of the other Son-Rise Program moms who have decided to let the house get a little dirty - and have time for other things.

Second, I think it would be really useful for you to look into some sort of auditory integration program for William. This is a program that helps the ear re-adjust to sound - involving listening to music (that's been slightly altered) to help his ears learn how to handle sound more easily. There are several different options available to you. Many of our families use the Listening Program - something that you can do from home - and other parents use another type of Auditory Integration Training (AIT) where you actually visit their center for a week or two to receive treatment. I would suggest researching your options online and choosing the one that feels best for you.

And, offering William time in the playroom - where he's in control of his environment - and in control of the sounds he hears - will be helpful to him also - because it will give his brain time to not be overwhelmed and to more easily grow new neural pathways to handle sounds.

I hope this is helpful! Let me know if you want any more support.

Warmest wishes,
Carolina