Autistic??

Question

my 5 year old cousin is autistic, and i fly out at 6 AM tomorrow morning to spend 2 weeks with them. i've only spent about 2 days with them since he was diagnosed... what should i expect?

Answer 1

The most important thing to remember is to let your cousin come to you. Often times children with autism have a hard time adapting to change, and having you visit may be a bit disruptive. I would greet him and his family warmly and then not approach him directly.  Let him take his time to come see you. Bring some playdoh or bubbles with you and start playing and see if he would like to join you. If he does great, take it slow, if he would rather not, don't take it personally. Give him the space and time he needs to approach you.

Answer 2

The defining characteristics of autism is a lack of interest in other people. So in other words, he/she won't care that you are there.

Answer 3

Talk to his parents first. Ask them what to expect and what his likes/dislikes are.   Every child with autism is different, so your question can have an infinite number of answers.

Generally children with autism "don't get" social situations. He may completly withdraw because you're unfamiliar and his routine has been disrupted.  

His communication skills will be impaired, and his understanding of what you say will likely not be that of a typical 5 yr old.  In that same vein, he may communicate with "scripts", pre-set lines of speech either learned from home or from cartoons, videos, movies, that he uses to communicate.  Unless you're familiar with his style, it might not make sense.  Example: my daughter, when she was mad, sad, or hurt,  would say "I need to go to the hospital"  It took me a month to figure out she was referencing Roller Coaster Tycoon II. When people went into the hospital, they would come out with a happy face!  She was trying to communicate but I had to decode the message.

Finally he might repeat the same actions over and over, whether it's lining up his hot wheels cars in endless lines around the house, or performing the same sequence from a movie over and over. These are usually "stimming" type activities. Just like typical people do things to relax or feel a sense of control, like chew gum, doodle while on the phone,  twirl their hair,  or clean the kitchen (regaining control)  so do people with autism.  When my daughter was having anxiety about changes around her, she would start obsessively lining things up. Her way of gaining control of her environment.  

Good luck and have a great visit.  His parents and any siblings should be able to help you navigate anything that comes up.

Answer 4

Autism is a spectrum disorder so without knowing anything more about his situation it is impossible to know.  But you may want to bring him a small present.  Nothing big but find out from his parents something he is interested in.  This will get the visit off to a good start.

Other than that just be patient, and understanding.  As others have said Autistics have a difficult time with social interactions.  He will probably know that you are there and want to interact with you but won't really know how.  So you'll have to help him.  Be patient give him time to respond to you don't pepper him with questions.  Ask and then wait for him to respond.

One other thing, did you spend time with him before diagnosis, because he's still the same kid.

Mostly just be nice and try to be a friend.  He probably dosen't have many