The nine household items responsible for meltdowns in my autistic children.

Don’t they look so sweet and happy?

That’s because they usually are!

Yet all that can change in an instant when they see or hear certain household items. There are certain things pretty much every home has that cause both of these little angels to go into complete sensory meltdown in the blink of an eye. They become terrified, traumatised and tearful and we often end up exhausted.

So what could be the cause of such fear you may ask?

Here are the top household items that cause meltdowns in my children with autism (in no particular order).

1. The vacuum cleaner.

Just the very appearance of this cleaner causes both children to run for the hills with their ears covered! It’s noisy, smelly, changes the carpets and moves their toys. Wisdom has taught me to keep this machine firmly in the cupboard until the kids are out of the way.

2. The hairdryer.

I have tried to get them to hold it, turn it on and off and even use it on me but no, this item is more like a raoring lion than a plastic air blower to them. Every single time it is needed to be used they fight it even if it is only for my hair. I doubt either of them has a future in hairdressing!

3. Nail clippers.

Oh boy you have never seen a meltdown until you see my children react to these little things! They run, hide and scream so loud I am surprised my neighbours have never called the police to us. They would rather have nails jagging into them or so long their shoes no longer fit than have me take five minutes to gently use nail clippers. Even the highest trained manicurist would struggle to contain the fear my kids have for nail trimming.

4. The shower.

We are blessed to have a bath (in which my kids would happily spend all night in) but sometimes for speed it would be lovely to have them step into the shower quickly before school or after garden play. I may as well suggest being eaten alive by a crocodile! Showers in swimming pools, caravans and hotels are avoided like the plague!

5. A hair brush.

I am a gentle parent, that much I promise you! I brush their hair slowly and calmly and never pull or tug but we still have a huge daily battle to get hair brushed or combed. Gel, spray or mouse is never well recieved so I settle for a basic brush most days. I pray they never ever get the dreaded head lice!

6. The hair trimmer.

 

I dread the time we have to use these. We have tried barbers and hairdressers but after badly cut ears, and even being banned from one local barbers we decided to try doing it ourselves. It gets so bad I find myself using a number one so that we can go a lot longer before it is required again. It takes days for my son to recover from a hair cut of any sort.

7. Toothpaste and toothbrush.

I don’t think there is a brand of toothpaste we haven’t tried in a vain attempt to get my children to brush their teeth. They are too strong, too minty, too lumpy or too colourful! It never ceases to amaze me that my child chews everything he can get his hands on yet goes crazy at the sight of a toothbrush…something that is actually designed to go in his mouth! We have tried apps on the iPad, songs, timers, character toothpaste and brushes and visual timetables but the sensory overload of brushing seems to cause us to hit a brick wall every night. Dentistry is another career choice I reckon I can score off the list for them both!

8. The food mixer.

Thankfully this gadget isn’t used as often as the others but every time it is used we have meltdown city. It is loud, it vibrates and it makes it impossible for them to stay in the same room. I am eternally grateful it is only ever used for a few minutes although the calming down of the children takes so much longer!

9. Socks.

Yes you read that right! Socks! They don’t make noise, or make them wet or even go in their mouths yet socks drive my children nuts! We have tried the seemless variety and every colour under the sun but it seems anything that covers their feet is unbearable and ought to be binned. We have had socks thrown out of car windows, left in school, flushed down the toilet and hidden at the bottom of the toy box. They are the last item of clothing put on before school and the first items to come off. Cold feet (with uncut nails!) is the way forward apparently!

As long as my children have no shower, long nails with no socks on, wet (uncut) hair that hasn’t been brushed and unclean teeth and my carpets are not vacuumed all is happy in my household!

They don’t seem to see the problems…unfortunately I do!

If you happen to walk past my house and hears screaming you can take a bet on which household item of these I tried using.

While the kids are at school I am off to have a shower, brush my teeth, dry my hair and trim my nails…and put socks on. It will be nice to do them all meltdowns free for once!