I really need help/adivice

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My brother has autism I'm talking about low- medium functioning. I have been really trying to understand him and find a way to help him out of "the maze" you could say. He has a lot of trouble talking and can only do a few broken phrases and stutters a lot when he does.

My parents have tried their best throughout the years with the amount of time and budget that we have and its hard and well..... that's another story. Because of this, while they have been focused on his education and try to keep him active with some extracuriculars and the other things he needs. And we can't do therapy's they are too expensive.

With them being so focused on all of that, both having jobs that leaves me to try to help him with communication.

But I don't know what to do! I can do only so much reading, observing, researching, and talking to teachers. I try talking with him and play with him and his interest, but he is interested in only a few selected things and I wish to help him see there is so much in the world. I don't want him to be limited.

I want to be able to talk with my brother and I want to help him cause I can tell he is frustrated and he has a hard time expressing himself, I see that in his face and in his eyes.

I just don't know what to do? Can anyone help me to at least try to understand.

You sound like a wonderful sibling and advocate for your brother. How old is he?

When my son was young we used laminated pictures of faces showing different types of emothons. He could present them to us to show us how he was feeling if he wasn't able to express how he was feeling verbally.

he is 16 years old.

1. This is the website of a teenager with autism who doesn't talk:

Carly's Voice

You might find some insights there.

2. The best way to develop communication skills for someone with autism is around special interests. Work with him on the words for things that he is excited about.

3. I agree-- you sound like a wonderful sibling. Be nice to yourself.

Is he able to communicate via email or texts? It may seem silly, but it might well be easier for him to do, if he's able. It's important to start where he is and build from there.

There is a system called PECS that uses cards - http://www.pecsusa.com/pecs.php (I don't think you have to buy the whole program to figure out a similar system on your own -you can get similar cards in the kids' section at bookstores) If written words aren't a useful tool, pictures may help.

A couple of things that I would read - this e-book by a member, which is geared towards parents but might help you understand your brother: http://www.asdstuff.com/ and somewhere around here, I'll post it when I find it, was a list a young autistic member wrote about things she thought it would be good for people to know about communicating with her.

My heart goes out to your family, and I think you're a pretty terrific sister.

I just want to say how wonderful it is to hear of such a devoted sibling! It is heartwarming and brings tears to my eyes! (I only hope my NT son will be as sweet with his brother)

One thing in your email kind of struck me....when you said you don't want your brother to be limited. Please keep in mind that focusing on his interest is probably enough. Expanding his view will probably best start from what his interest is and incorporating that into whatever you are trying to show him.

If you want to let us know what his interests are, maybe we can come up with some ideas of ways to engage around those interests.

The others have addressed some great tools, but I'll note one thing: the way to reach your brother will be through joining with him in his limited interests. You really can't expand that for him; going beyond the limited interests will have to be something he will choose on his own, assuming he ever does. Channeling those interests into skills he can use to build a life is much more productive than trying to expand his horizons; he doesn't want his horizons expanded, and the pressure to do so not only frustrates him but may also make him feel that being who he is is not good enough. It's just one of those twists you have to learn when dealing with someone on the spectrum; because their brains work differently, the goals we encourage for them have to be different.

I am glad to hear you care so much about your brother. He is lucky to have you.

I get the impression here that most parents and caregivers who post on this forum deal with people with AF or HFA. I think low to moderate functioning autism is quite a different story, so I'm not sure you will find what you are looking for here.

However I do know that many people with non-verbal children have had great success with picture based communication systems. Has your bother been taught to use one of those?

You sound like an awesome sibling to have I bet your brother feels really lucky to have you around.

You didn't say how old your brother is, or how old you are. As others have said here, low-medium functionality presents sets of problems which are not present in the Aspergers part of the spectrum. Non-verbality, however, does NOT equal non-thinking. On the contrary, the thought process within can sometimes be far, far advanced!

A very good friend of mine has a 13 year-old, moderate-to-severe autistic son. He was non-verbal since birth, and has only started talking verbally a year or so ago. When he was age 8, my hubby and I gave him an old smartphone, and he immediately took the phone and started typing simple words. Within a week, it was his main way of communicating with his mother. As a matter of fact, the first time he told his mother "I love you" wasn't verbally...It was typed on that smartphone's screen.

If he's old enough, you can put up a word processing app on the computer you are using, and ask him to type his answers. Ask him questions only about his interests. Chances are, if he is even remotely familiar with a keyboard, he might try to 'talk' that way.