Forcing children into noisy environments

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I registered specifically to ask this question because I'm not sure if I'm over-reacting or not, so thanks in advance for opinions even though you don't "know" me on this board!

I am an OT at a school that utilizes a lot of ABA techniques. We had a couple of autism classrooms out on a field trip to the circus, and one little girl is very noise sensitive. I sat with her and gave her a few distractor objects, put a little cotton in her ears and earphones on top of that, and she did very well - we were actually able to take the earphones off except for a few of the louder moments. She was laughing and engaged and having a good time.

One of the autism teachers noticed this partway through and was adamant about this being bad for her and said that she must be exposed to sounds in the world and not "baby-ed". So she moves the girl next to her, takes the cotton out of her ears, and forced her to put her hands down when she tried to cover her ears. The little girl did not have an all-out meltdown but she curled into a ball, got tearful, and kept saying "I want to go home" over and over.

In the teacher's eyes, this was a success, because although she uncomfortable she didn't melt down, she dealt with it, and got through it. In my eyes, I feel that it was going overboard. Desensitization training is one thing but you don't start with the loudest, craziest environment possible. And the fact that she withdrew might mean that all we've done is created a negative memory about the world being overwhelming.

I'm feeling pretty mad about the entire incident and am thinking of addressing it with our administration, but I don't know if I'm over-reacting. I can understand the teachers line of thinking but my gut says it was wrong and I don't want it to happen again, but then, I may be wrong as well. Any thoughts?

She "got through it" because of your intervention earlier, she had already been eased into the environment, and shown that all of the stimulation wasn't to much for her to handle, just some of it.



The right way to desensitize was to encourage participation in the field trip and the stressful environment was with a coping mechanisms, and the important part and the reason I feel the other teach was cruel in her "kindness" was that you weren't coddling the student, allowing them to remain immune to the stimulation with noise canceling headphones the whole time, but helped gently push them to at least try without the crutches, and encourage that behavior and create good memories, not "negative" ones.

Its a fine line to walk, I needed to be pushed outside of my comfortable zone for me to be a healthy member of society, and it was done in a constructive, gentle way so as not to "scar" me from overly traumatic experiences.

As for your last paragraph, yes I would bring it up at least with someone informally (formally if this is a recurring theme in the past or future). What she caused with her "intervention" wasn't a melt down, but an utter shut down by the student, and to be honest her "strategy" was the problem, you both were essentially trying to do the same thing, she just went about it differently and had a completely different criteria for what success was.

Hope my rambling helps, and welcome to WP

I personally have had trouble with loud noises and from experience I will say that what you did was clearly the best choice. By engaging the girl in the activity you are showing her that even though the event is cery loud, she can still enjoy herself and have fun. I feel that the best way to help achild like this is to slowlydesensitize them to the loud noises by engaging them in the activity which is what you were doing. You said that some of the time she didn't even have the earphones on clearly showing that she was slowly becoming accustomed to the noises at her own pace. The other teacher, by quickly engaging her in all the outside noises only caused her to feel disstressed, which will most likelt create a bad memory of the exprience and making her even morw relucetent to do anything similar. She does need to become accustomed to louder noises because things in life can be loud, especially high scool, but I think that your methoed was much more effiecient and would have a better outcome. I definately think yoy should bring this up, especially if it happens more in the future.

Sorry for any typos. I was typing quickly and I'm awful at spelling.

I suggest placing a large tin pot over that other teachers head and banging on it with a large metal serving spoon. How long did the girl need to sit without the cotton to protect her ears... bang on it that long.

Sound sensitivity isn't about being skittish like a frightened puppy. It is physically painful. Loud sounds hurt. Some describe it like being punched in the face, others like a bullet to the brain. The only way to 'desensitize' her is to damage her hearing so she doesn't hear as well.

You can't teach a blind person to see. You can't teach the deaf to hear. You can't teach the sensory sensitive to not use their senses. You can't teach the autistic to 'just be normal'. You can teach how to adapt to the 'normal' world while still respecting the individual.

You did a wonderful job and, I feel, it was the most sensitive approach. You are what I would call 'a teacher' - someone willing to find what works for your student and work with their challenges and limitations. Not trying to change the student into something they are not.

That teacher was a witch for doing that.

+1



You can't teach a blind person to see - but that didn't stop one teacher of mine from trying. I was born legally blind, but she got it into her head I was faking and she and the school nurse tried to force me to read while holding the book at a normal distance from my face. In front of the whole class. Guess how that worked out?

I agree with the point you made above, of course. I'm only adding that I have literal, personal experience with that very thing. And, yes, it was very much like all the times someone has tried to force me to be "normal". (I grew up before autism was known as anything but something kids who never spoke and always stared into space had, so they didn't know what I was. But they knew they wanted it to change.)

So, as a legally blind person who was - unjustly and publicly - accused of lying and forced to attempt to read at a distance at which I could not, and an Aspergers / HFA person who considers certain sounds equivalent to physical blows and has been told, many times, to "just get over it", I'd say those two experiences were equally brutal and uncalled for. And, personally, I'd say the teacher whose actions the OP describes was guilty of child abuse.

I am also an OT and would never do this to my children. My daughter has come a long way and can go into loud environments but was unable when she was younger. It has taken years to come this far. I think a teenager who still is wearing earphones has not had OT or started late. I started when she was born and she is 9 now.

I'm sorry to hear you ran into such an incident. I would definitely bring it up with someone of a higher authority, as it should not be repeated.

that's torture, like putting someone in a ww1 trench to desensitise them from shell shock

People need to understand that environment is the problem, change the environment, change society to allow more people to fit in comfortably, don't try to force people into it like an idiot trying to put a triangle through a square in one of those children's toys.

Hmm I'm feeling analogical today

I've improved much since, but when I was 5 I went to a science center called COSI. At one point, my mom did a simalar technique by making me watch a show were this guy was popping balloons and using small explosives. The noise was so physically painfully I think it actually set me back. And I had pretty much the exact same reaction, curled up and crying that I wanted my toy "security" cat Lucky. Even now when I go see fireworks or hear loud explosions, I think of that pain from COSI and it hurts again. And I'm terrified of balloons to the point where I avoided birthday parties until I was 15 (a year ago). This was a terrible experiment.

And welcome to WP.

Welcome to Wrong Planet!

I am an adult with Asperger's, I teach sensory integration to people on the spectrum, and I am in training to become an OT. I am also an autism consultant and do workshops, trainings, and lectures for schools.

Your reading of this situation is correct. The only thing that this teacher accomplished by forcing this little girl to be exposed to the sensory overload of the circus was to classically condition her to have a panic attack (my word for meltdown) whenever she goes on a field trip.

Autistic people habituate to stimuli MUCH more slowly than NT people. We are also classically conditioned MUCH more quickly than NTs. If you force an autistic person into an overwhelming sensory environment all at once (like this teacher did), they will overload quickly and form a negative association with that environment that is often remembered for decades after the event. Because of this, people on the spectrum frequently develop PTSD.

Further, sensory supports, like earplugs, are NOT a form of babying, no more than a wheelchair is a form of babying for a person who doesn't have use of their legs. You would never talk about "fading" a wheelchair for a paraplegic person, yet teachers talk about fading supports for people with autism. These supports are no less necessary than the wheelchair.

The little girl that you have described will likely always need some form of ear protection (for instance, I always wear ear plugs whenever I go to the movies or the symphony). This is something that her school should never deny her. Again, would you take away leg braces or crutches from a person with cerebral palsy so that they would seem more normal? Of course not. Similarly, you should never take away an autistic person's sensory support. Just because NT people are able to tolerate (and sometimes enjoy) intense noises, lights, smells, and tactile experiences does not mean that autistic people can tolerate these experiences.

I will tell you that I have little regard for ABA. It started as a form of experimental child abuse in a lab in UCLA, and has evolved little since then -- though I will say that most (though not all) ABA therapists have abandoned electric shock as a form of punishment for children with autism (yes, that was sarcasm, and not optimism). If you are interested in learning more about ABA's origins, please read the article "Screams, Slap & Love," which was published in Life Magazine in 1965 and describes Dr. Lovaas' treatment. Here is the link to the article:

http://www.neurodiversity.com/library_screams_1965.html

If you are interested in learning about integrated and healthy social/behavioral therapies for people with autism, I would recommend that you look at play therapies, such as DIR/Floortime and RDI. Please PM me if you have any questions about this.

Thank you for sticking up for this little girl, and for seeking out information to make her life better. Those of us with autism need more people like you advocating for us!

Best wishes, and good luck.

Caitlin

Last edited by Caterina on 15 Apr 2011, 11:40 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I agree that you can't teach a sensory sensitive person not to use their senses. In the right settings, with the right socialization opportunities and acclimatization experiences, I believe that people can adapt and increase their tolerance of the busy, noisy and fast world we find ourselves living in, and even come to enjoy being a part of it.




I agree with this too the world is in dire need of teachers who really care. Pardon my asking, but what's an OT?

OT = occupational therapist

It's amazing to me, the tendency of parents and educators, to think that anything good will come from forcing things on Autistic children which make them miserable. I've read stories of this kind of "success" that that b*tch teacher spoke of- it results in Autistic adults in psych institutions rocking back and forth covering their ears with their eyes shut.

The way to make Autistic children comfortable in the world is to encourage coping techniques where they apply,
and accommodations where they do not-

NOT forcing them into gratuitously abrasive and terrifying situations.

This. Except that I'd suggest repeatedly punching her in the ear instead.

I'm glad I'm old enough/big enough/strong enough to break the head of anyone who tries to force me into physically painful situations.

I was told at age 15 this is what you exactly do to autistic kids so they can get used to noisy environments. My ex aspie mate's mother told me this and she was an OT too.

My parents used to take me out a lot and leave when I get overwhelmed and they kept taking me back to them. I eventually got used to it.