Archive for October, 2010

Did you know that lack of sleep, or insomnia, is one of the signs of depression? Lack of sleep alone can’t cause depression, but it can make it worse. Now take into account that many children with autism sleep poorly.

A study by the UC Davis Mind Institute found that children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) woke up in the middle of the night way more than typically developing kids regardless of their cognitive ability (Krakowiak P, Goodlin-Jones B, Hertz-Picciotto I, Croen LA, Hansen RL).

At one point I figured I had not slept through the night in over five years. When my son started sleeping through the night I still couldn’t. It was like my body had become hyper vigilant. I could wake up at the slightest sound. For several years I would wake up and do work, think, or read. I started to rationalize this behavior as my alone time. My time to be productive. However, the truth was my poor sleep was escalating my depression and making it difficult for me to be productive during the day.

So with the encouragement of a therapist I began a journey to learn to sleep again. I began by exercising good sleep hygiene:

• I started to go to bed at the same time every night.
• I stopped drinking caffeine after lunch.
• I started to read before I went to sleep. Did you know most people only need to read for about 15 minutes and then they fall asleep? However, TV can actually keep you awake. The theory is the lights from the TV actually stimulates your brain.
• I made sure to have dinner at a regular time well before I went to sleep (around 6:00).
• I made sure the bedroom temperature felt comfortable.
• To help keep the noise level low I started sleeping with a fan. At first this made me uncomfortable. I thought what if my son did get up I couldn’t hear him? So I bought a baby monitor and set the volume on high. If my son did get up I would hear him over the white noise.
• Some nights I couldn’t stop thinking about things. I would work out problems in my head, make lists and think of them over and over again. I started keeping a small notepad by my bed. When my thoughts were keeping me awake, I would write them down. This helped me to relax and go to sleep.
• I also had to stop taking naps during the day.

At first I had to use drugs to go to sleep. After I got into a pattern I began to wean myself off them. It took almost a year, but it was really worth it. If you are not getting sleep, and your kid is sleeping through the night, please take care of yourself and make a commitment to retrain your body to sleep again.

Auditory processing is a term used to describe what happens when your brain recognizes and interprets the sounds around you. Humans hear when energy that we recognize as sound travels through the ear and is changed into electrical information that can be interpreted by the brain. The “disorder” part of auditory processing disorder means that something is adversely affecting the processing or interpretation of the information.

Children with APD often do not recognize subtle differences between sounds in words, even though the sounds themselves are loud and clear. For example, the request “Tell me how a chair and a couch are alike” may sound to a child with APD like “Tell me how a couch and a chair are alike.” It can even be understood by the child as “Tell me how a cow and a hair are alike.” These kinds of problems are more likely to occur when a person with APD is in a noisy environment or when he or she is listening to complex information.

So you can see how auditory processing can be a big challenge in the classroom.  If a student has auditory processing issues the following strategies might help

• Gain student’s attention prior to delivery of information.
• Use attention devices such as calling the child’s name, saying “listen” and “Are you ready?” before giving assignments;
• Check the child’s comprehension of auditory information by asking the child to re-tell the instruction.
• Rephrase and restate important information to provide auditory redundancy.
• Use outlines, organizers, and study guides.
• Emphasize critical information
• Monitor student’s attending skills; provide breaks if necessary
• Provide visual supports, daily schedule and calendars, overheads, or a computer.
• Let the student use noise reduction ear muffs or ear plugs to reduce distractions.
• Allow a “buddy system” that the child can use to check on homework assignments or other instructions.
• Consider the use of tape recorders for some children who need a repetition of directions, spelling words, or lectures.
• Watch for unexpected answers or a limited response to questions. Remember auditory processing will become more pronounced in a noisy environment.