Stress and anxiety

Assignment 5 – forum discussion

What are the key points in reducing stress? https://ndsa.uk/forum/threads/how-to-deal-with-mentees-stress-and-anxiety.169/

Key points in reducing stress

• Acceptance of the autistic way of being, work with the autistic person and not against their autism.
• Watch out for ‘triggers’ in the environment. •Explore interests and fascinations together.
• Having strong rapport and building mutually fulfilling and trusting relationships.
• Encourage autistic companionship.
• Encourage understanding of non-autistic people and culture, rather then teaching how to poorly mimic being what one is not.
• ‘Low arousal’ is not ‘no arousal’ – many sensory experiences are fun!

Universal design

“Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.”

In order to make design, whether bespoke or universal in orientation, one must endeavour to understand the needs of autistic people.

Five key points

• Respect the autistic way of being – work with it, not against it
• Always consider sensory issues
• Always consider how you process information may be very different to that of the person in your care (utilise interests)
• Stress is a key issue – reduce input when people are over stressed
• Collaborate for consistency in approach

Useful resources and further reading

Autism, Stress and Anxiety online training – National Autistic Society: https://www.autism.org.uk/professionals/training-consultancy/online/stress-anxiety.aspx

McDonnell, A., and D. Milton. 2014. “Going with the Flow: Reconsidering ‘Repetitive Behaviour’…” In Good Autism Practice: Autism, Happiness and Wellbeing, edited by G Jones and E. Hurley, 58–63. Edgbaston: British Institute of Learning Disabilities.

Milton, D. (2012). So what exactly is autism?http://www.aettraininghubs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/1_So-what-exactly-is-autism.pdf . Chapter one in: Milton, D. (2017). A Mismatch of Salience: Explorations of the nature of autism from theory to practice. Hove: Pavilion.  

Martin, N., Milton, D. E. M., Sims, T., Dawkins, G., Baron-Cohen, S., & Mills, R. (2017). Does “mentoring” offer effective support to autistic adults? A mixed-methods pilot study. Advances in Autism, 3(4), 229-239.