How to handle screaming (verbal stimming)?

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My 5YO DD verbally stims by screaming as loud as she can. It is deafening to everyone around her. She is especially having trouble at social functions and school since she is regularly screaming. She thinks it's funny and doesn't respond to redirection or discipline. How do I help her understand that there is a time and place for screaming (outside, in her room)? I especially want her to not scream at school...she keeps getting in trouble.

I wonder if it might be a way of overloading herself, blocking lesser annoying/irritating sensory input, in much the same way some Aspies LOVE roller coasters. In which case, maybe addressing the underlying sensory irritation might help. Irlen glasses, noise-cancelling head phones, different clothes, stuff like that.

I agree with Donkeybuster. It is hard to tell what is a vocal stim vs. needing to drown out distracting or loud noises. With us it is (mostly) a result of a communication lag. He does it when he is unable to communicate how angry he is about something in actual language.

It has gotten better as he has gotten slightly more accommodating, and more communicative, which basically means much improved at home and horrendous at school where there is more he can't control and more that fights against his rigidity. We have not been able to do much about it until his communication skills started to improve enough. When we tried, he would revert to behaviors even worse than the shrieking. At school they punish, which is of no help because the problem is that he thinks they do not understand what is upsetting him. Mostly it is because in his naive mind he feels like if they only knew they would fix it (like mom.) The only time he does it at home more than as a short impulse, is when I won't fix whatever it is (because it is not really good for him, which he does not understand) to his satisfaction.

I do not know if any of this resonates for you. If it is more of a vocal stim, then you might be able to get your child to talk softer as a replacement. If it is to drown out other noises, a headset might help. The cause is always crucial to figuring out a solution. If the issues is sensory an OT at the school should be able to help work out something that will hopefully work.

She giggles and laughs afterward, which is why I was leaning more toward stimming. She does have some noise cancelling headphones, but she usually asks for those when she thinks she needs them. Any attempts at redirecting or asking her to use her inside voice triggers more screaming and laughing.

Then again, she could just be enjoying the discovery of CONTROL...5 YO seems about the time to start exerting control over one's environment & the people in it. Do you think she could be enjoying manipulating you? AKA attention seeking behavior?

I'm sorry, I just can't imagine screaming as a kind of stimming. But I'm a rocker, & my brother's an oo-oo-oo-er & finger flapper...maybe there's somebody else here who did scream as a stim.

My son has the sillies, too, and it also gets him in trouble. Given that in your child's case it appears to be a stim, I would try to involve the district/school occupational therapist to find a substitute for it that will sufficiently amuse her, but will be acceptable to the school. If it is more the silliness she needs as opposed to a stim, I am not much help, as we have this issue and it appears to be more developmental than anything and will need to be outgrown, if things like bribes or reward charts do not work.

Perhaps some oral sensory-motor stimulation would help replace the screaming? Chewlery (like this http://www.nationalautismresources.com/chewelry.html) would be an option for something that she could have with her all the time. Other oral sensory activities that might help if the issue is a need for sensory: Drink thick liquids (as in milkshake, applesauce, or smootie) through a straw. The thickness of the straw and the thickness of the liquid can be varied to change the degree of heavy work (sucking) required. Allow child to chew gum, eat chewy or crunchy foods, or sip water from a water bottle with a straw while doing homework.

Just some thoughts. If the root of the problem is not due to sensory seeking needs, these ideas probably won't help.

I also want to say that it is not uncommon for autistic people to laugh or giggle inappropriately, like when they are very nervous or overwhelmed. Laughing is not necessarily a sign that she thinks something is funny or that she is happy.

Thank! I ordered her some of the chewelry, so we'll wait and see if that helps. It's hard with the giggling since it seems to bother people further.

I agree it is hard with the giggling, my husband (likely Aspie) does it sometimes when I am angry and he is really overloaded. It used to make me absolutely furious. DS does it occasionally but not very often. The only things you can really do are let people who interact with her on a regular basis know that her giggling might actually be a result of high stress or anxiety and do what you can to address her stress and anxiety. I tell you, this year DS has received a lot of support at school that he was not getting last year and the amount of challenging behavior we have to deal with has just reduced dramatically. His stress and anxiety is so much less due to this support that he has the capacity to cope with a lot of stuff that he just couldn't before. Supporting our kids by reducing their stress and anxiety is the best thing we can do IMHO. The difficult part of that is that every kid is unique and what causes each of them anxiety is different so it can take a lot of detective work. Good luck to you! I hope you can find some relief for both of you!