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HELP! My Child Won’t Sleep! What do I do?

May 08, 2023 Posted by: CareGen Ltd Autism, CareGen

I can imagine the parents that are reading this haven’t had a good night sleep in years and are pulling their hair out to find solutions. Well, you’ve come to the right place! Sleep difficulties is something that is heavily linked with children with Autism, so it is crucial that parents have the strategies to support in this area. In this article, we’ll be giving you 3 strategies that could help your child get a better night sleep (which in turn means that you’ll finally get a good night sleep).

As always, if you still feel like you need more support, you can always book one of our FREE Clinical Appointments by clicking here.

Bedroom Environment

Ok so the first thing that you need to consider when supporting your child in getting a good night sleep, is the environment in which they sleep in. This includes things like room temperature, how bright/dark the room is etc. This is the first thing that parents should be analysing and there are a few helpful questions that might support you in getting a better understanding of this. The first is, does my child struggle in falling asleep? If this is the case then it may be due to the next strategy below. However, if your child is ok at falling asleep but struggles in staying asleep, then it is most likely due to the environment.

The best thing to do in this situation is to seek advice from an occupational therapist, as they have a good understanding of senses. Ultimately, if your child has specific sensory sensitivities (such as sensitivities to sounds), then this will have a knock-on effect on their sleep. There could also be simple strategies that could be implemented, such as installing black out curtains if your child is sensitive to light (e.g., daylight). Nevertheless, an Occupational Therapist would be able to advise you on the different sensory needs your child may have which could support them in having a better night sleep.

Bedtime routine

Every single person on the planet has a bedtime routine! Whether we are conscious of it or not, there are certain things that we might do every evening before we go to sleep. These rituals or routines are a way for our brain telling the rest of our body that we are winding down and about to sleep. This is the same with our children. Now, there is a difference between a helpful bedtime routine and a not so helpful bedtime routine, which is most likely why a lot of parents are struggling.

Now, all children are different, and some may have different needs than others, so there may be a lot of trial and error involved in developing a helpful bedtime routine for your child. For example, if your child is generally very hyperactive and struggles to drift off to sleep, in many cases, this means that they haven’t gotten all their energy out. It may be worth implementing a family walk (or jog for some children) a few hours before bed to really tire them out. In addition, it may be that after the walk, there is a period of relaxation which doesn’t involve over-stimulating activities in low level light. This will hopefully send the message that it is nearly time for bed and for the brain to naturally produce melatonin for sleep.

Worry Box

There are a lot of children (especially with Autism) that may internally worry about things which keeps them up at night. You might notice that your child finally tells you what was bothering them all day, right before bedtime, which keeps them awake for several hours. In this case, bedtime routines and environments may not be working until those anxieties are addressed. Think about it! There have probably been lots of times where you haven’t been able to sleep due to having things on your mind. This could be the case for your children.

This is where the worry box comes in. It may be difficult for your child to communicate their worries to you verbally, which is probably why they struggle in telling you what they are worried about. By having a worry box, this provides that safe place for them to vent their worries and frustrations, whilst giving you access to the source of their anxieties. There are many families who discuss the contents of the worry box at regular times and is something that the whole family uses. By doing this, you can support your child in processing their worries and possible finding tangible solutions. This may alleviate some of their anxieties and support them in being able to have a good night sleep.

Still need support. Why not book one of CareGen’s FREE Clinical Appointments to speak with an Autism Specialist to see if we can support you further with your child’s sleep? Just click here to book a date and time that suits you!

3 FREE Services you can Access WITHOUT a Diagnosis!

Mar 28, 2023 Posted by: CareGen Ltd Autism, CareGen

One thing that parents always ask us is…where can they go to find support? Especially whilst waiting on a waiting list for an Autism Assessment! There appears to be very little support services in the UK even after getting the diagnosis, however there are even less services available for families that are still waiting for an assessment. This is why we at CareGen have compiled 3 services that you can access without a Diagnosis.

Need support? Why not book into one of our FREE Clinical Appointments at CareGen to speak with an Autism Specialist? Just click here!

SENDIASS

SENDIASS are an amazing service and have supported lots of families in getting support at school. They are a nationwide service so there should be a branch within your local authority that you can access. Many families access this service if they feel like their child is struggling at school. This is regardless of if they have a diagnosis or not as it is based on the child’s needs. Therefore, this is a service that we always recommend to families if they are struggling with getting the support they need for their child at school.

The main thing about accessing support from SENDIASS is that if your child is recognised by school as having additional needs (not diagnosis specific) then you can access this service. If you’re finding it difficult to get school to listen to your concerns then it might be time to get SENDIASS involved by accessing their website and finding your local branch.

Clinical Appointments with CareGen

This is a relatively new service that we at CareGen have started offering. As we are a clinician led service, we have always wanted to be as accessible to families as possible. This is why we started offering FREE Clinical Appointments with an Autism Specialist to families that are struggling. Families get a 30-minute appointment with a specialist at CareGen where they can discuss any concerns they may have, like your GP’s telephone clinic. All you need to do is go on the CareGen website, go to the make a booking page and choose a date and time that suits you for a clinician to call you.

These appointments could be used to talk about any difficulties that you may be experiencing with your child. This can range from sensory difficulties to emotional regulation issues. All our clinicians work within Autism service in both NHS and private services so have the experience and knowledge to help you in whatever you need. The only requirements are that you are UK based and your child is over 4 years old.

National Autistic Society Helplines

This is another service that you can access that could offer support. At the time of writing this article, there were a lot of helplines that had been shut down, however they are still running in some areas of the UK. Nevertheless, you don’t need a diagnosis to access the support offered by the National Autistic Society, especially within their website.

We always recommend exploring the events that the National Autistic Society put on in different areas of the UK. This offers parents access to speak with other families in similar situations and to get that sense of community that can almost be lost whilst fighting for your child. In addition, we always find that by having a network of other families in your situation, this provides some level of comfort as the worst part about being on a waiting list for your child is feeling alone. By accessing support from the National Autistic Society, these feelings will hopefully subside.

Need support? Why not book into one of our FREE Clinical Appointments at CareGen to speak with an Autism Specialist? Just click here!

What happens in an ADOS Assessment?

Mar 21, 2023 Posted by: CareGen Ltd Autism, Autism Assessment, CareGen

This is a question that every parent asks when coming for an Autism Assessment! What happens in the ADOS part of the assessment? Well, we at CareGen are here to give you the inside scoop on what to expect in this assessment. And for those that don’t know what an ADOS is, it’s basically the part where the clinician will need to speak with the individual completing the Autism assessment. In fact, ADOS stands for Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, which mean that there are a series of tasks that we as clinicians will ask you to complete.

Need more support? Why not book into a FREE Clinical Appointment to speak with an Autism Specialist at CareGen? Just click here

Conversational Interaction

Now one element of the ADOS is for the clinician to get to know you a bit better and this is usually done through chit chat conversation. Within this part of the assessment, we just want to see how your child copes with conversing with a new person in a social environment. Of course, we don’t just look for how well your child can verbally articulate themselves, but we also explore their non-verbal social skills. Clinicians may look out for appropriate eye contact usage and if the individual uses gestures during conversations.

Conversations aren’t always focused solely on your child. The clinician may attempt to engage your child in different activities and weave in conversations whilst focusing on these tasks. This might help your child become more relaxed during interactions rather than being an intense 1-1 conversation.

Exploration of Friendships

This is a very important part of the ADOS, as the clinician will attempt to understand your child’s friendships and how they feel within these environments. The clinician may explore how your child develops friendship or what their definition of a friend is. All of this is to better understand how your child views these relationships and how they navigate themselves within these situations.

Within this area, the clinician may also ask questions about future relationships and why these may be important. This is to explore whether your child has some insight into different social relationships and if they believe that these are important. The clinician may attempt to explore what your child hopes and aspirations are for the future within this element of the ADOS assessment.

Creativity

This is another element of the ADOS that is crucial. Within this part of the ADOS, the clinician may ask your child to complete a series of tasks that explores your child’s creativity. This may be in the form of playing with some toys or developing a story from different items. All of this is to gain a better understanding of your child and the different difficulties they may be exhibiting.

Now it must be noted that the ADOS should never be seen as a stand-alone assessment. Clinicians will take all the information gathered from the ADOS and add this to the information gathered from different areas. These include, the developmental history gathered from parents and information gathered from different environments such as school. Once the clinician has all this information, they will then be able to make an accurate decision of whether your child meets the diagnostic criteria for Autism or not.

Need more support? Why not book into a FREE Clinical Appointment to speak with an Autism Specialist at CareGen? Just click here

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