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Low functioning autism

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paula67215
paula67215

my grandson is 4 years old and has been diagnosed for 2 years now with low functioning none verbal autism, times can be hard but also very rewarding we are lucky he loves his kissed and cuddles but on his terms lol , the meltdowns can be mild but also very severe especially when it comes to cutting his hair , we are unable to put scissors near him for fear he will get hurt so we use clippers it is torture to see him in such a state , has anyone got any tips of how best to get this done without having to use so much force and upset on him any tips will be welcome

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3 Replies

  • rigbytowers
    rigbytowers paula67215

    Posted

    Haircuts were a nightmare until my son was about 8 - he was able to tell me that he couldn't bear the clippers because of the noise - it was very frightening for him.

    He couldn't tolerate going to a hairdresser. So we got some hairdressing scissors with blunt ends, watched a hairdressing video and did haircuts at home in the kitchen! We kept haircuts to the minimum number of snips, my husband worked hard on distracting him and gave him something to hold so his hands weren't grabbing at the scissors.

    And we gave him a favourite sweet (he didn't get sweets very often) every minute (as long as he'd tolerated a snip or two) - and kept the rest of the sweets in his sight to remind him there were more treats coming.

    My mother in law told me "the difference in a good haircut and a bad one is 2 weeks" and she was right - so we didn't worry if it didn't look perfect. I got much better after a few practises, and he started to see haircuts as a chance to get sweets and tolerated them better.

    I hope this helps. If he really can't take it at all, why not have no haircut for 6 months, let him have longer hair, until he has forgotten that he doesn't like them, and then try again? Good luck.

  • Autismmom222
    Autismmom222 paula67215

    Posted

    Yes!! I have a five year old with severe Autism. Wait until he is asleep. Get some help and have someone hold him up once he is out. It may take a few tries, but gotta get it done.
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