Sunglasses!
They were not one of the suggestions or points the Peadiatrician referred to, four years ago, when we all sat around the table.
The words Autism Spectrum Disorder were said and the diagnosis finalised. The answer to my son’s differences was given a name, and I was meant to feel better about it. But the words were not what mattered to me. What mattered was the support it would give him, to be himself, in a world that made it hard to.
“We need to put in place the strategies, the scaffolding, to support Rhys and allow him to gain his independence” were the words spoken by the Peadiatrician, once the diagnosis had been confirmed by a inking on her lined pad.
And so I learnt the strategies and I started to build the metaphoric scaffolding.
I listened to the professionals, and Rhys met milestones in his own way.
But no one mentioned sunglasses.
It happened by accident. The way a lot of successes have happened on my parenting journey. The push to have one last go, or just winging it at times in hope for a breakthrough.
When I placed sunglasses on my son’s face one hot, sunny, bright day at the age of four, a calmness overcame him.
It was a few months later when I spoke to a woman who was autistic, and it all made sense.
The bright summer light was too much for my son, and the glasses were doing their job in dulling it down. A sensory overload that diminished instantly through the shades.
But even more interesting, she told me how sunglasses provided her with a comfort. A safety barrier from the expected social eye contact. She could be herself behind them.
So every summer the sunglasses come out of the drawer and are placed on my son’s ears. The sensory tension from the eyewear is tolerable, because of the advantages they give him.
So remember. When you hear strategies and tools for coping in this scary world. It is often the things you least expect.
We see ear defenders and fidget toys, but often the coolest gadget of all is the one that is most needed…
… a pair of sunnies to frame a blonde mop of hair!
#autism