How do you control your child's obsessive interest.

Page 1 of 3 [ 38 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2, 3  Next

electronic
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker

User avatar

Joined: 22 Jun 2006
Age: 34
Gender: Male
Posts: 50

08 Oct 2006, 1:09 pm

Does your child have any problems with their obsessive interest. sorry for the misunderstanding. I really wanted to know is do you limit your child to talk about his or her's obsession. I think you should allow your son or daughter to talk about their special interests as long it's in moderation. I also do not think that autistic people are ret*d. By the way I'm a male.



Last edited by electronic on 08 Oct 2006, 5:24 pm, edited 3 times in total.

greyhelium
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 3 Oct 2006
Gender: Male
Posts: 987
Location: In ur site, spamming ur forums.

08 Oct 2006, 2:17 pm

electronic wrote:
Does your child have any problems with their obsessive interest. Like annoying others.


Am i reading correctly that you believe your childs obsessive intrest is annoying others? -_- i wouldve expected a bit more understanding than 'my child is obsessed with annoying people'... obsessions arent about annoying people. if the particular obsession annoys people, then tehre should be found a way for that obsession to be followed in a more controlled environment, whatever it is. if u are in fact saying that their intrest IS to annoy others, well thats just damn right ret*d, and you obviously know s***-all about obsessions.

special intrests are not to be 'controlled' like their on some kind of crack. intrests should be developed and encouraged, to make your child feel as if they have something of their own, which is THEIRs. dont go destroying it for them. if their intrest happens to get in the way, then find a way to carry it out in a better way, but dont just try to destroy it.


_________________
the above post is spam


jman
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 23 Oct 2004
Age: 41
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,278

08 Oct 2006, 4:02 pm

I am with the above poster on this one, if your child's interests are annoying you, thats your problem, otherwise find a way to channel the interest into something constructive.



Celeste
Tufted Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse

User avatar

Joined: 5 Oct 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 34
Location: a smalltown near you

08 Oct 2006, 4:04 pm

When my son was younger, I used to be afraid that the way my son would go on and on about his intrests would annoy people. It turns out that most people see my son as very delighful and bright, and that my fear had been from my own insecurities.

If you try and control his intrests, it will end up frustrating him and causing further problems. I say, just let it be. It's part of his personality, and personality is something that no one can control.



fernando
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 22 Feb 2006
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Posts: 616
Location: Mayan grounds

08 Oct 2006, 4:13 pm

LOL. That's got to be the biggest misunderstanding i've seen in wrongplanet.

Back on topic, how annoying are his obsessions? because i had a lot when i was a kid and people used to find me funny and leave me alone.


_________________
"Whatever you do in life will be insignificant but it's very important that you do it because no one else will."


KimJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 10 Jun 2006
Age: 55
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,418
Location: Arizona

08 Oct 2006, 4:31 pm

The fact that Electronic's post is a bit vague (what exactly is the habit/obsession?) doesn't change the fact that greyhelium's reply is "reverse discrimination". Electronic is asking a question, she may not be right in her language, but it's not fair to call her "ret*d".
If you don't get something that NT's all understand, is it okay to call you "ret*d"?

It reads to me, that her son's obsession seems to be "annoying others". Which is probably a misinterpretation of what her son is actually trying to do. One of the deficits of autistics is being able to read nonverbal language. So, an autistic child that is social may become very interested in people's expressions. NT toddlers do it for a while, until they memorize their meanings. But subtle facial cues aren't as easy to read for autistics. So, the child may not be trying to "annoy" someone but trying to study a grimace, or voice pitch, tone, the meanings of volume.
I certainly wouldn't "stop" the behavior, but perhaps create a special time where you concentrate on it. Like a special session for voice tone, arguing, joking, affection.



greyhelium
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 3 Oct 2006
Gender: Male
Posts: 987
Location: In ur site, spamming ur forums.

08 Oct 2006, 4:34 pm

KimJ wrote:
The fact that Electronic's post is a bit vague (what exactly is the habit/obsession?) doesn't change the fact that greyhelium's reply is "reverse discrimination". Electronic is asking a question, she may not be right in her language, but it's not fair to call her "ret*d".
If you don't get something that NT's all understand, is it okay to call you "ret*d"?

It reads to me, that her son's obsession seems to be "annoying others". Which is probably a misinterpretation of what her son is actually trying to do. One of the deficits of autistics is being able to read nonverbal language. So, an autistic child that is social may become very interested in people's expressions. NT toddlers do it for a while, until they memorize their meanings. But subtle facial cues aren't as easy to read for autistics. So, the child may not be trying to "annoy" someone but trying to study a grimace, or voice pitch, tone, the meanings of volume.
I certainly wouldn't "stop" the behavior, but perhaps create a special time where you concentrate on it. Like a special session for voice tone, arguing, joking, affection.


the difference is, when i dont get something an NT does, i dont accuse them of deliberately trying to annoy me. in that way that particular opinion is ridiculous, whether in the context of AS or NT or whatever

/pwnt


_________________
the above post is spam


KimJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 10 Jun 2006
Age: 55
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,418
Location: Arizona

08 Oct 2006, 4:48 pm

No, you are saying because she doesn't get something that autistics do, her opinion is "ret*d". She is misinterpreting autistic behavior (it seems to me), just like autistics misinterpret voice pitch and idiomatic speech.
There are people with degrees in education and special ed at that, and they don't get autistic behavior at all-even with my shoving the information down their collective throats. Calling them ret*d isn't going to help them understand any better.



CockneyRebel
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 17 Jul 2004
Age: 50
Gender: Male
Posts: 117,079
Location: In my little Olympic World of peace and love

08 Oct 2006, 5:20 pm

I was always told that my Obsessions were annoying, as a child. My Mom was always down my throat about my talking about them. I'd love to talk to her about Routemasters for two hours. I don't, because I don't want to be "Annoying". :cry:



walk-in-the-rain
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 11 Mar 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 928

08 Oct 2006, 5:21 pm

I take this as her son is literally obsessed with bothering other people or pressing their buttons - not that his obsession is annoying TO other people. Until that point is clarified and other information is given it is hard to decipher.

That being said if it is a scenario like this - little brother with ASD KNOWS that doing "blank" will make older NT sister scream and he ENJOYS that and seems to focus on wanting that reaction all the time - then this is "typical" little brother/kid behavior with a ASD spin. People also have to remember that those on the spectrum have typical behaviors too - and not simply everything needs to be explained away or due to the ASD. Now understanding why this is wrong or refocusing behavior can be much more difficult because the child may enjoy the interaction and not realize how much they are bothering the other person. That is where the ASD comes into play more. Also depending on how limited their interactions are this may seem like play to them because they are provoking some sort of response from the person where they otherwise might just be ignored.



en_una_isla
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 31 Oct 2005
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,876

08 Oct 2006, 5:21 pm

To be blunt... we don't socialize much. I couldn't even send my son to Sunday school because he won't stop talking about the Roman Empire when they mention anything about Palestine during the Jesus era. That is one small example but it happens constantly... it just has gotten to the point where we avoid other people.



walk-in-the-rain
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 11 Mar 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 928

08 Oct 2006, 5:50 pm

electronic wrote:
Does your child have any problems with their obsessive interest. sorry for the misunderstanding. I really wanted to know is do you limit your child to talk about his or her's obsession. I think you should allow your son or daughter to talk about their special interests as long it's in moderation. I also do not think that autistic people are ret*d. By the way I'm a male.


Since the questions has been rewritten :) I'll say that it may be helpful to explain to your son about how social cues work - much like showing him a road map. You can not assume he is aware of what is socially acceptable and you can not use vague terms expecting that he will understand them. I would say to study the art of conversation like you would study reptiles or astronomy. That way you are not focusing on him having shortcomings or implying that he is doing things wrong. Perhaps show him examples through books about how conversations go back and forth, ect. And realize that this is something that most likely will not come naturally to him and that is OK. If he is too young though to grasp this very well then this is something that will come with more self awareness and maturity.



KimJ
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 10 Jun 2006
Age: 55
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,418
Location: Arizona

08 Oct 2006, 6:07 pm

That's a lot more clear.
I don't limit the time my son wants to obsess on something, but he does have to do other things. I do limit the amount of talking because I have my own sensory issues and I will start covering my ears and screaming if faced with too much high-pitched chatter.
He also shares my bad habit of starting conversations in the middle of the topic/thought and assuming everyone knows what he is talking about.
I also let him channel his interests into his everyday hobbies, like videogames, watching movies and let him write about them for his writing assignments.



Celeste
Tufted Titmouse
Tufted Titmouse

User avatar

Joined: 5 Oct 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 34
Location: a smalltown near you

08 Oct 2006, 6:37 pm

Quote:
I think you should allow your son or daughter to talk about their special interests as long it's in moderation.


I think that this is true with all children. A child does not know about limitations untill you set some for them. Moderation is the key word here.

Back when I was growing up, my parents lived by the motto "children should be seen but not heard". This was realy tough on me. It was hard to learn how to communicate when the only thing I was allowed to say was "yes, sir" and "no, sir". In other words, I had too many limitations (which is interesting considering my father was a special ed teacher). :roll:



bigbear
Blue Jay
Blue Jay

User avatar

Joined: 25 Jan 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 75

10 Oct 2006, 11:56 am

Sometimes its not okay to talk about your special interests. My son pushes my limits when I've asked him to do something and he is trying to repeat a yu-gi-oh cartoon scene for scene. But I also give him a lot of time to talk about things... one day about a month before his birthday he was so excited about what he was getting for his birthday that we talked about it for a couple of hours while we were driving home from a trip. When someone changed the subject I brought it right back.... its one of his favorite memories... remember when we made a birthday list and talked about it "forever"!



aspiesmom1
Velociraptor
Velociraptor

User avatar

Joined: 19 Jan 2006
Gender: Female
Posts: 498
Location: Texas

10 Oct 2006, 1:39 pm

Our DS used to be famous for breaking out into a monologue to random people - for some reason though he liked the bag boys at the grocery store. He'd start in with a scientific description of why the sky is blue, or question why his deoderant wasn't working on a 112 degree day.

We had discussions with him that went nowhere. Then I had an idea. I bought him a small, hand-held tape recorder. Now when he feels the need to expound on a theory in physics or some other topic he'll first talk about it into his tape recorder. Our deal is that after he finishes it, he rewinds it and listens to it. If he listens to the whole thing intently, then he can talk to me about it. Generally he doesn't make it two minutes, the topics don't even interest him that much - it's just a need to say it.

His other obsessions are mostly of the collecting type, and they don't bother a soul.


_________________
Mean what you say, say what you mean -
The new golden rule in our household!
http://asdgestalt.com An Autism and psychology discussion forum.