My little brother is 5,and autistic. i am 14,and lately I have been having a tough time,so I get irritated very easily.
Don't get me wrong, I love my brother to death,but I have to babysit him so often.
I can't get him to listen,settle down,lower his voice-anything. His mind is always set to one thing and if his goals are not achieved he has a major melt down. If anything is out of place he flips out. And plus added to that he just repeats over and over and over and over and over very loudly....its driving me crazy. I am trying to be really nice and considerate of his mental state but due to my mental state I do not know how to handle him right now with out cracking. It just gets worse. I'm trying to understand his little world but I have been brought to tears a few times.Please,parents what do I do?
2007-03-28 09:52:42 · 8 answers · asked by Myaloo 5 in Family & Relationships ➔ Family
I was a Long Term Single Parent of TWO disabled children ... and one of them was High Functioning Autistic (Asperger's Syndrome).
What helps is this ...
I would have structure .. each and every day was scheduled, everything was at the same time, and yes, there were activities that were ONCE a week 'fun' for the child ... all because without STRUCTURE and PREDICTABILITY they can't cope with changes ... (and this includes the fact that you are left to watch your brother and really have no clue to what to do with him at that time.
IS there some activity (like building blocks -- my own Autistic Child LOVED to build with Legos/MegaBloks and the like) ... and could sit there for hours building new and interesting things .. and would also make up stories for the world that they were building out of the blocks.
THAT would be a "REWARD" for doing all their REQUIRED Homework, therapy exercises, making sure that the bed was made, the laundry was in the laundry bin, etc etc etc.
I also added 'NEW' activities (step by step) every few weeks. That way, by the time they were able to live independently (and yes, FINALLY I am an Empty-Nesting Single Retiree), they were able to take care of their own needs by KNOWING what to do ... Even if it means taking a TV Dinner out of the Fridge, reading the instructions on the box, using the Microwave, and then putting things in the trash and taking the trash out when the bag was filled.
Same with Laundry. I taught the child to recognize colors v whites, and to know that when the bin was filled, that was the right size to do a LOAD of laundry. So they learned how to measure the detergent, set the controls, and yes, start the laundry machines and listen for it to end.
It is something that YOUR Parents, your brother, and his THERAPIST need to work on with you too (of course). Does your brother have a therapist at this time? That would be the best place to start.
2007-03-28 10:25:09 · answer #1 · answered by sglmom 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It sounds like you really care about your little brother alot, but being a teenager is hard all on its own and then to have to babysit your brother all the time has got to make it worse. I can understand your parents needing you to help out occasionally, but why do you have to watch him all the time? I think they maybe should look into some other type of babysitter for him. I know they have funding for autistic children, for centers, or home help. I hope things get better.
April
2007-04-02 16:28:37 · answer #2 · answered by Momof4kiddos 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You're too young to deal with an autistic child by yourself. He can become uncontrollable for you and from what you state in the description, you cannot handle this. It's hard for my fifteen year old son to handle my 16 month old daughter so I know what you are feeling.
Talk with your parents and let them know how you feel. Is there someone else older that can help you when you are babysitting?
2007-04-05 09:50:01 · answer #3 · answered by lwheavenlyangel 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Is there someone professional in your family's life that could advise you?
That would be best.
Also, you could do some searches such as "coping with autistic child".
Have you asked your parents what to do to keep him busy and happy?
How much time do you have to sit with him?
It may be that you need some breaks -- maybe they can find someone to take some of this time, if it's a lot.
2007-03-28 16:06:46 · answer #4 · answered by tehabwa 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I really cant blame u for how u feellll.... i actually think that ur so good to ur brother and it is just normal to feel that way cause u also have ur life and sometimes u want to enjoy but you feel that ur parents are counting on u.... mayb u should tell ur parents that u need some time to relax and stuff like that.....
2007-04-05 09:44:27 · answer #5 · answered by sapphire 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my wife and I were taking care of her autistic nephew for about a year. he was what they call high functioning autistic. from what we learned from his special ed teacher, autistic children need structure. they need to get up every morning and do the same thing day after day. when they get thrown off their path it's hard for them to adjust and they don't deal well with it.
gw
2007-03-28 10:03:23 · answer #6 · answered by georgewallace78 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well it is NOT fair that you are burdened with looking after him so much. It should be your parents, and you have enough to do IF YOU ARE DOING YOUR HOMEWORK every night. You must talk to your parets, seriously and tell them what you have written to us. If not your school adviser may be able to get through to them. Best of luck!
2007-04-04 18:01:25 · answer #7 · answered by Tinribs 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have 3 autistic children in my family, you should be entitled to funding for after school care and weekend care
2007-03-28 10:01:30 · answer #8 · answered by lezzers2004 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋