Everyone experiences stress at one time or another and it's likely that you have ways to relieve that stress. You might relax with a nice glass of red wine in the evening or perhaps working out at the gym. There are many different ways to relax and calm down, which is great as no one method works for everyone. We are all different people so its only natural we use different things for sources of enjoyment and relaxation.
Two very important skills, of many skills, that children can learn in ABA therapy is calm down techniques and self regulation. Calm down techniques and self-regulation skills are vital for them to manage stress and even help understand what causes them to feel that way. As many studies have shown, high levels of stress can impact our physical and mental health as well as our quality of life. The first thing that's often taught is calm down techniques.
Calm down techniques are simply as their name states, they are simple techniques used to help calm the child down when upset or overwhelmed.Common examples are giving themselves a hug, different kinds of breathing exercises, closing their eyes, or looking at books to name a few. These techniques give the child a way to relax and help settle their stress whether its from simply being upset or from being overwhelmed due to their environment or demands placed on them. Having calm down techniques at their disposal helps them manage some of their stress which could otherwise manifest in many different types of problematic ways such as aggressive behaviors or problems with their bowels. Along with learning these helpful techniques ABA can also help facilitate learning self regulation.
Self regulation programs help the child identify how they fell and know when their calm down techniques might be needed before a meltdown or shutdown occurs. These programs can be presented in many ways such as learning "my zones". Zones refer to Green Zone, Yellow Zone, and Red Zone. The green zone means their happy, smiling, feel good. If they are in the green zone they are just fine and don't need calm down techniques. Yellow Zone means they might need their calm down techniques because they are getting a little upset or overwhelmed. Red Zone is when they are very upset or overwhelmed and may need help to calm down like reminding them of their calm down techniques, hugs from caregivers, or just time alone to calm down depending on the needs of that particular child and what works for them.
Calm down techniques and self-regulation programs are just another part of ABA therapy that helps the child to be the best they can be and live a happy and less stressful life. Children with Autism and the adults they will eventually grow to be can be overwhelmed by many different kinds of things and it's important they are helped to learn the skills they need to cope with these feelings.
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