Does anyone have problems with going down stairs?

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Well, I do. I feel like I'm falling into an abyss when I have to descend a staircase.

Escalators are a real problem. Just can't do it. I Have to take an elevator instead or avoid places that have them.

Is there anybody else with this problem?

I've always had poor balance. I once tripped and fell down a small "flight" of three stairs and broke my foot, and I have trouble even standing on a short stool to change a light bulb.

My son can do escalators most of the time without too much fear. But stairs.... we really need to avoid them for now. I think we need to do some home therapy around that.

How do you deal with stairs? What about stairs at a friend or relative's house? Regardless of how many, my son does not want to do them. If it's only like 5 or so, he will, but won't like it. Much more than that, well, I just pick him up.

I hold onto the railing or walk along the wall very slowly if there is no railing. I don't care if people are laughing at me but I often trip on the stairs if I am not careful. Worst of all are the narrow stairs that can't accommodate the full length of a foot properly. [Don't know why they think such stairs would be of any use]

I've no problem with escalators but I take a long time to place my foot on the starting step of an escalator.

Yes from me too - I need to hold on firmly with both hands to feel safe!

The same here!

When I was a kid I went from tread to tread by sitting on my bottom. I did that for a really long time, untill I was 12 years old or so.

I can descend a staircase now but my heartbeat still accelerates everytime I have to do it.
I have to descend very slowly and carefully because I know that I'm going to trip and fall if I don't. I know that I look like a dork in the eyes of others but that doesn't bother me, it's better than breaking a leg, dislocating a shoulder and that sort of thing.

Changing a light bulb is a bit of a problem for me as well but I'm able to do it.
You guys are right, it's all a matter of balance. I trip over everything and sometimes I almost fall sideways when I'm standing on both my legs on solid ground.

I have poor balance, but I seem to be OK with stairs.

I suspect that having problems with stairs might have something to do with some sort of visual problem as well. I haven't worked it out yet. Can somebody enlighten me?

Ya I have trouble initiating the journey down the steps. I find it hard to judge how far the step is away from me. Once I've got past the first few steps it's usually ok because I start to remember how far each step goes. Some days I'm worse than on other days. I'm slower at getting onto escalators too. I get nervous about it actually! And I don't like the feeling of transitioning from ordinary floor under my feet to moving staircase instead!! Some days I find stairs to be hard work. Just coordinating my feet to move up to the right height and then forward and then down takes a whole heap of thinking sometimes. Something similar happens when I'm swimming too... I'm not a great swimmer but I love it and I love being in water, but sometimes I try to swim another lap and my arms will move but not my legs, or vice versa, or else I swim one or two strokes then can't manage to get my limbs to do it again after that. It's like my brain goes out of gear or something, haha...

I recall falling down stairs somewhat frequently as a child. Not really a problem any longer.

I always have to turn my whole body sideways when I go down stairs. It used to bother me because my so called "therapists" wanted to correct it. Why? What was wrong with it? Today if people ask me why I walk down stairs like this I tell them, "Because that's how I roll!" If they are mean about it, I just flip them the social finger.

Escalators are not a huge issue for me anymore. I just focus on the one step I am aiming for, rather than the set of steps as a whole. Stairs are another story, though. I have fallen UP stairs, and I have fallen down stairs. Down is the worst, and since my "accident", I am sometimes even afraid to go downstairs, though I try to force myself. I don't know why...if it is related to autism or not...but sometimes I am going down the steps, and it is as though my brain forgets how to do it. I momentarily freeze as my brain and my feet try to make some sort of sense about what I originally started to do (descend the steps). I don't forget I am going down the steps, but it is as though my brain simply forgets how they work. If I can quickly remember, I am fine. If it doesn't click, I have an accident. Also, if I am not literally staring at the steps, I have a very poor judgement of when I get to the bottom, and I will "miss" a step, and fall hard. And I always fall hard.

One day close to 10 years ago now, I'd say (8-10), I was going into my unfinished, cement-floored basement. I missed the last step thinking I was at the bottom and wasn't, and tore the skin off my right knee, and my left elbow entirely. It looked more like I was just pulled out of a car accident than having fallen down one step. That was NOTHING compared to just before Christmas 2007, though. Everybody was trying to make excuses for me, "the steps were icy" (um...no they were not); "she tripped over her skirt" (nope, that did not happen). Let's just tell it how it is: I just stupidly was not looking and not paying attention, I missed the last two steps and fell HARD on the cement landing below. I ripped the ligaments off both my ankles. An ambulance had to come because I could not move. My feet were so swollen: I remember hearing them call in that I likely had two severely broken feet (everyone was shocked when the xrays showed no breaks...so I must have really strong bones--especially because of the position I was stuck in when I landed and while waiting for the ambulance). I was practically bed-ridden for about 3 months, and had to do about 3 months of physio. Nearly four years later, I can walk yes.... but I can't run like before, I can't jump even lightly, I cannot get down on the floor and back up again, my poor balance is even worse, and my ankles are still really stiff (and sore if I stretch them far enough). I HATE steps!

I'm bad with stairs. I absolutely must hold the handrail or I will fall. I also have kinda big feet, so it really bothers me when the stairs are narrower than my foot. I think that's the reason going up is easier than going down, because going up I can get the ball of my foot on the stair without having to turn sideways. It also really bugs me when on a really wide staircase, someone who doesn't need the handrail is coming up the wrong side and just keeps walking up towards me while I'm clinging to the rail for dear life. Escalators aren't my friends either. It takes me a good 15-20 seconds to finally get up the nerve to get on, and I get anxious when stepping off. Elevators make me nervous too, because I've heard a lot of people at my school say that certain ones get stuck a lot. I'm definitely going to always have a one story house.

I am psychically unable to go down stairs at more then regular walking speed. People have to go around me often. It has been like this as long as I can remember. I have no problem going up stairs or using elevators.

Whatever the balance/motor coordination issue is, it has caused me to fall on infrequent occasions. The reason I became the latest WP member to resurrect an ancient thread is because this almost got me killed today.
I guess my legs we tired from walking in hard packed bumpy snow/ice. I tried to sprint across an parkway exit ramp(there is no other way to go in that location) and fell on my stomach. This exit is u shaped so you do not see the cars coming off the parkway or going around the bend. I had to crawl to the other side. I figured crawling was better because I did not know if I had broken anything and thus would fall right back down. I did get up once I got to the other side but was understandably shaken up and wobbly for the next hour. So far from what I feel no more damage then sore calves and the side of one hand. I seem to not have lost any movement was able to carry something and put glove on hand with no problem.

I am lucky lucky lucky that during the evening rush hour, I was not run over during the 10 or 15 seconds it took me to get to the other side . Cars speeding around the bend would not have had time to stop. Yikes. I have never been more glad to communicate with all of you then tonight.