What is Severe Autism with Self-Injurious Behaviors?

[joe23ba]

hand cuffs behind his back :) did it with my brother and the first time we did he never touch his head again

[CDFoakley]

@joe23ba We tried cuffs in past. He broke them. He's extremely strong. Police cuffs are too hard on his wrists. I did go to a "special shop" to get soft furry cuffs. It was very embarassing:, "no really, they REALLY are for my autistic son"--they didn't believe me. We tried the cuffs and he broke them too. It really is a strange life we've lived. The things you'll try to protect your child from hurting themselves.

[aledoux5]

Mom, you are so strong, it's frustrating when there is help out there and red tape and government puts up barriers to slow down the process of getting the aid needed. I understand your days and nights, not knowing how each day will be. good day with no seizure, bad day with an outing. Patience come thin on worse days.Our boys need us & depend on us to save their lives from self injurious behavior, over sensitized. My heart goes out to you. And if anyone thinks you're rude, to hell with them.

[EAGLEuyaGAMER]

Why let him stay like that the rest of his life untill he passes away wow what a life that is should have done something when you were knocked up i know it sounds fucked up but it wouldnt 23 years ago

[CDFoakley]

@EAGLEuyaGAMER First, there is NO in utero test for autism and even if there was I wouldn't have got an abortion. Autistic people may have many challenges, but they are capable of improving and living a better life. Yes, it involves a lot of help in some cases, but they are worth it.

[scheib1584]

I'm guessing your behavioral therapist wasn't following behavioral principals. If your son is hitting himself for attention or to communicate, you are reinforcing the behavior every time you attend to him. I can help you reduce the SIB if you want and you won't need any of those crazy interventions like weighted vests, blankets, and all those "theraputic" things. Contact me if you want.

[WerdyBirdy]

Does he also have cerebral palsy?

[CDFoakley]

@WerdyBirdy No, he doesn't have CP, he has drug induced ataxia caused by chronic anticonvulsant treatment, which I'm happy to say is improving with B-vitamin shots and folate therapy. He began large doses of Depakote as a toddler, so these drugs have really taken a toll but we are slowly but surely making radical improvement with super nutrition and supplements. It's not going to cure his autism, but is improving the drug induced ataxia.

[mebeAbigblackdragon3]

hey I just wanted to say this, for you and James (is it Jamie or James?) and the whole family... GOD BLESS YOU!!! I hope James has a wonderfull life and well your a GREAT NO NO AWSOME-EPIC MOTHER!!! :D

[christopherironyokes]

Working in a special needs classroom for years has led me to the wonderful truth that nobody knows exactly what they're doing whatsoever. Being a teacher, and having conflicting opinions by professionals whom all believe they're way is the correct way, hinders children from making any progress in any aspect. We all need to be reminded that there is no one real way to deal with the developmentally disabled, before we can help these children.

[thewasp3498]

Why dose he hit himself i want to know more due to that my freind has it and i would like to understand why they do that

[vjohanna5]

i know how you feel about it coz i can relate with your experience,i have a brother who is autistic hes 16 yrs old., with the same behavior sometimes he punches his head or his chest.. and everyday he has a tantrums..and now hes in occupational therapy twice a week..

[momadukie]

A big soft singing any plush toy its one of many SIB stops, plastic snow globes, one time even my daughter's barbie glitter purse, he carried it around and no SIB for days. I could list hundreds of things I have used that really work.

[danielismiracle]

Such a hansome looking young lad!

[CJEB4]

This is the autism I am advocating a cure for, my son is so unhappy and this is brutal. God forbid I am sick for even 5 minutes! Who is there to support us? Nobody. When my son has a week off I feel like killing myself, sad but true. I can't handle this, and I try to take it one day at a time, but my mind is filled with thoughts off this is not a one day thing that will be better tomorrow, this is my life, this is Colby's life. These are the struggles we deal with every minute of every day.

[CDFoakley]

@CJEB4 I KNOW how you feel. It is normal to feel like this. But you must stay strong. No matter how awful it gets you can't let life defeat you or drive you to kill yourself. But it is totally understandable how we ALL can feel this way, sometimes daily, when you are dealing with INSANE situations like constant medical and behavioral issues in the midst of chronically inept systems and professionals who don't seem to care or know how to help.

[Nancyportilla]

@CJEB4 no ha pensado en nir a pisina con el es buena terapia mi hermano el autista le gusta... ponerlo en un colegio de enfermos eso tambien ayuda... el estubo por vario tiempo

[crazyboafrog1986]

i continuing to pray for you Jamey and your family especially you and your mom

sends my unconditional love.

[CDFoakley]

@crazyboafrog1986 Thank you!

[crazyboafrog1986]

@CDFoakley  your welcome

[lacadams]

Thank you for sharing this! You are doing a great service to share this with others! My 11 year old son does not have self injurious behavior, but I can relate to what you are going through because he has explosive meltdowns. These have become a real issue in our household the past few months as I drop everything to direct him to a "take-a-break" area when he has one.

[christschool]

You may have answered this in another video and I'm sorry to ask this, but has your son ever had an MRI scan? I'm not asking this to expect there to be an explanation, but to find out if his disability can be "seen" in an MRI.

About being out of school: Does California have extended school years because he would seem to qualify.

Different by hour. Yes, we see this even in my moderate autistic son. It can be different from hour to hour. Yet, even with his language, he cannot tell us why.

[CDFoakley]

@christschool. Yes, he's had multiple MRI"s of brain and spine, and ironically, nothing ever comes up to explain what he does or how he acts. I think a portable pet scan would probably tell us more....yes, he has summer school, but only half days and next year no more school so I am totally panicking, thinking, omg, what then? He's so used to school rountine, he's going to need highly structured rountine and continuity of care...yikes...summer school starts in August....

[christschool]

@CDFoakley Yes, we have the same challenges. If he even misses a single day, my son cannot cope with school when he returns the day after being out, except for the weekends which is odd. We have him sent to "camp" now, but its his same classroom where he normally goes at the moment, they just call it "camp" because the schedule is relaxed.

[CDFoakley]

@christschool . And how interesting the hour to hour change with language! Makes you wonder if the brain is going through periods where it's got enough of one neurotransmitter(s) to process language, then, for reasons not yet known, the next can...oh the mysteries of autism!!!

[christschool]

@CDFoakley It is like there is a chemical released, almost like a diabetic reaction. One moment fine, the next moment, lots of yelling, uncontrollable giggling and a glassy eye almost not there. I understand from parents with children that just have learning disabilities that this is similar too as far as how their children are. There is something going on in the brain here and it would be good to do a blood or Pet scan test during this time.

[christschool]

@christschool I hate to put it in this way but it is like he is extremely drunk during these episodes. We have some days when everything seems to click. Its rare but when it happens, we notice it. It is like there are brief periods when everything seems to be working fine (good short term memory, follow up with tasks etc.) I'd say about 1-3 times a month for an entire day is like this.

Weather also can affect his functioning ability greatly and you can often predict rain by his reactions.

[rqshepherd]

I LOVE YOUR VIDEOS. THEY ARE HOW IT REALLY IS. YOU ARE A VERY GOOD MOM.