Three Tips For Dealing With Elopement In Autistic Individuals

Three Tips For Dealing With Elopement In Autistic Individuals by Kadin McElwain: When I was only four years old, I snuck out of the house while my Dad was asleep after a long day at work. When I left the house, I immediately jumped into the Hudson River and rode down it on a log like a cowboy. Thankfully, the police and my mother were able to find me that afternoon and rescue me from going down a rough part of the river and drowning. But this scenario is an example of elopement, which is when those on the spectrum may wander off from their safe place or guardian, sometimes going to dangerous locations. This can result in anxiety in parents who want their child to be safe. But following these three tips on how to deal with elopement can help eliminate that anxiety and keep your child safe in the process. Tip One: Be Patient And Be Prepared: Elopement can be extremely stressful for the caregiver of an autistic individual. They may not know where the individual is and be confused about what to do if an elopement episode happens. As a result, both the autistic individual and the caregiver are likely to exhibit stress and it results in a disaster for everyone. So what would the solution to this problem be? How can the caregiver of the autistic individual ensure that they are prepared to deal with an elopement episode? Being patient and prepared is the key to successfully dealing with an elopement episode. In the sense of being prepared, the most important step is to have a list of five contacts you can call if an elopement episode happens. This can be two close family members, a close friend of the individual, and two emergency services that can help ensure your child’s safety, such as a police officer and a paramedic. In the sense of being patient, you should try not to worry about the individual or whether or not you are responsible for that elopement episode. These episodes are neither the fault of the caregiver nor the autistic individual. So be patient and trust that the contacts you have will ensure the safety of your child. Tip Two: Learn About Elopement Episodes: Research has shown that half of all individuals diagnosed with autism have elopement episodes. For those 50 percent, the thought of the autistic individual running away from them could not only worry the caregiver but also confuse them as well. Why do autistic individuals have elopement episodes? How can the caregiver know what to do if such an episode happens? The key to answering these questions is to take the initiative to learn why elopement episodes happen and what to do during them. This can be accomplished easily by a quick Google search or a night of researching facts on autism and elopement. However, the best way to learn about elopement episodes is to talk with experts in the field of autism and get professional opinions on what works best for elopement. If the expert is autistic, that can be a bonus as well. The best learning experiences come from those who have been in your shoes before or who have lived through these experiences. This can ensure that you know what you’re doing when handling an elopement episode, to ensure that things are calm and comfortable for yourself and the individual. It may not be easy taking care of autistic individuals, but having experts who know what works best or who have lived through experiences helps in the long run. Tip Three: Calm Down The Individual And Let Them Know That They’re Safe With You: One of the main reasons that elopement episodes happen in autistic individuals is because of overstimulating environments. By this, I mean that some environments can be too loud, too bright, or too overwhelming for autistic individuals. As a result of this stress, they tend to try to get away from that environment. Some strategies used to calm down autistic individuals, such as pinning the individual down if they start to get physical during these meltdowns, are completely outdated at best and dangerous at worst. So how can the caregiver make sure the situation deescalates efficiently, without anyone getting hurt physically or mentally? The most impactful thing you can do as a caregiver during meltdowns is to be calm and calm down the autistic individual in a humane way. Let them know that they’re safe with you and that you’re someone they can always trust. Instead of making the situation worse by using outdated calming methods, use your words in a calm and collected way when helping an autistic individual. This will let the autistic individual know that they’re safe, calm them down, and help avoid elopement episodes. Then, they will have someone in their corner to turn to during stressful moments. Elopement can be stressful for both the autistic individual and caregiver. Not knowing what to do during such episodes can make the situation even more overwhelming for everyone involved. But following these three tips for ensuring things go smoothly can make a huge impact on these episodes. Once you get these tips down, you and your child can have an enjoyable experience, no matter the situation. It’s always helpful to have tools in your toolbox to help out both you and the autistic individual