大龄自闭症儿童干预措施
Many types of interventions for younger children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can also help older children and teenagers – for example, interventions based on the principles ofApplied Behaviour Analysis (ABA).
许多针对自闭症幼儿的干预措施同样也有助于大龄自闭症儿童,比如基于应用行为分析法(ABA)的干预措施。
Programs that have been developed specifically for older children and teenagers should take into account the fact that there’s often a mismatch between an older child’s cognitive or developmental age and her age in years. For example, your child might be 13 but be more like a nine-year-old in emotional development and behaviour.
那些专门为青少年设置的训练项目应该考虑到一个实际因素,即在大龄孩童的认知或发育年龄与她的实际年龄间总是存在着不平衡。比如,你的孩子实际年龄可能是13岁,但在情感和行为发展方面可能更像9岁的孩子。
These therapies and interventions should also help your child with the skills and understanding he needs to go through puberty, build healthy self-esteem and social relationships, manage romantic and sexual feelings and deal with any adolescent low moods and mood changes.
治疗和干预方法也应该能够帮助孩子提高技能,懂得他必须经历青春期,建立良好的自信心和社交关系,情感管理及处理与情绪低落或情绪变化中的青少年的关系。
Below we list some types of interventions you might want to think about for your older child with ASD.
接下来我们将会介绍一些可能对大龄自闭症儿童有帮助的干预方法。
You’ll want to make sure that the time, energy and money you invest in interventions are worth it. Two key questions can help you choose worthwhile interventions: is the intervention supported by reliable evidence? Will it be a good fit for my family? Your state or territory autism association can help you find local interventions.
你肯定希望你在干预治疗方面所付出的时间,精力及财力是值得的。有两个关键问题有助于你选择有何时何地的治疗方法:该治疗方法是否有可靠的理论和例证支持?对于你的家庭而言是否合适?你所在地区的自闭症协会或机构可以帮助你寻找合适的干预措施。
Social skills training
社交技能的训练
Social skills training can include teaching children and teenagers to read non-verbal cues such as eye contact, body language, tone of voice and facial expression. It often includes skills such as seeing things from other people’s perspectives, solving social problems and understanding social and emotional rules.
社交技能训练包括教给青少年识别非言语信号,如眼神、膨体语言、声音及面部表情。通常包括换位思考,解决社交问题及理解社交情感线索。
Your child might be able to do some social skills training one on one with a therapist or teacher, or as part of a group. Some programs include outings so your child can try out her new skills in the community. This helps her apply the skills she’s learned in one setting to other settings, situations and people.
你的孩子可能具备一些与治疗师或老师或小组间的一对一社交能力。有些项目包括短途旅行活动,所以孩子可以在团队中锻炼她新学到的社交技能。这也有助于她在一种环境或多种环境中运用她所学的技能。
Some social skills programs are designed by a therapist or a teacher for a specific child or group of children. Others might be run by someone who is trained to use a particular program, such as the Secret Agent Society program, the Social Thinking Program or Stop Think Do.
一些社交技能训练是由治疗师或老师专门为某个孩子或某类孩子设置的。其它的训练可能会由相应项目的专业人员负责,比如Secret Agent Society(SAS)项目,Social Thinking项目或者Stop Think Do项目。
Cognitive behavioural therapy
认知行为治疗方法
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is based on the idea that how we think, how we feel and how we act are all related. That is, the way we think about something will shape our feelings and our behaviour. For example, negative or unrealistic thoughts can cause us to feel bad, which in turn affects how we behave, and the choices we make.
认知行为疗法(CBT)是基于认知、感觉和行为相互联系的观点。也就是说我们的思维方式会塑造我们的感受和行为。比如消极的或不切实际的想法会令人受挫,而这种感受也会反过来影响我们的行为和所做出的选择。
For example, if your child thinks, ‘Nobody likes me and I’m never going to have any friends’, he’s likely to feel sad and lonely, and his actions will reflect this. He might hang out by himself or close himself off to opportunities to mix with other children.
比如,如果孩子认为“没人喜欢我,我不可能有朋友”,他很可能会感到沮丧和孤独,同时他的行为也会反映出这些感受。他很可能选择独处或尽可能地减少与其它孩子相处的机会。
CBT could teach your child to replace this negative thinking with something more positive and realistic. This could be, ‘It’s hard to make friends but I’m a good person and I’m going to keep trying’. This will help your child feel better about herself, so she’s more likely to try to socialise with her peers.
认知行为疗法可以教给孩子用积极的实际的想法来替代消极的观念。可以这样想“虽然交朋友很难,但我是一个善良的人而且并不放弃去尝试”。这有助于孩子对自己形成较正面的认知,从而她很可能会尝试着与同龄人交往。
CBT programs also often teach relaxation strategies that your child can use to reduce and manage anxiety associated with ASD.
认知行为疗法也可以教授孩子放松技巧,从而有助于孩子减少和管理由自闭症引起的焦虑情绪。
Cartooning strategies
漫画策略
Cartooning strategies use visual symbols to help children and teenagers with ASD understand social situations. By drawing cartoons, children can turn abstract or confusing events into pictures that they can understand and think about with the help of an adult.
漫画利用其视觉特征帮助自闭症孩子理解社会情境。孩子可以通过画画将抽象的或令人困扰的事情变成在成人的帮助下他们能够理解的图画。
For example, your child is sent to the principal’s office after a playground conflict. Your child could draw the situation as a cartoon, using speech bubbles. An adult could then talk about what happened with your child.
比如,孩子由于一场操场冲突被送到校长办公室,孩子可以将当时的情景以漫画的形式画出来,附加上语言注释。然后成人可能告诉孩子到底发什么了。
Peer training
同伴交往
Interventions that use peer training teach typically developing children – for example, siblings or classmates – strategies for playing and interacting with children who have trouble with social skills. This means that when your child plays and socialises with the typically developing kids, your child has more and better opportunities to develop social skills.
同伴交往的干预方法是教给普通儿童(如:兄弟姐妹或同班同学)与有社交困难的孩子玩耍和相处的策略。这样当孩子与普通儿童相处时能够有更多机会更好的发展自身的社交技能。
For example, classmates might be taught to appreciate how everybody is different, how to start an interaction with a child with ASD and how to keep that interaction going.
比如,同学们可能被教授过如何欣赏每个人的不同之处,如何与自闭症儿童交往并顺利进行。
Self-management techniques
自我管理技巧
Children with ASD can develop independence by learning to regulate their own behaviour.
自闭症儿童可以通过学习管理他们自己的行为培养自理能力。
One way for them to do this is by recording how often a particular behaviour happens using tick sheets, stickers or a wrist counter. For example, your child’s goal might be to stay sitting down until he’s finished eating. If he does this, he puts a sticker in his book.
其中一个方法就是通过计时表、贴纸或手表记录某特殊行为的发生次数。比如,孩子的目标是直到他吃完饭才可以不用继续坐。如果他做到了就可以在他的小本上贴一张贴画。