How to Support Autistic People with Sensory Difficulties

“If you experience the world differently to others you will think, live and behave differently”
- Geoff Evans

Processing everyday sensory information can be difficult for autistic people.

For example, they may experience difficulties interpreting and organising input from what they see, taste, touch, hear and smell.

Often, autistic individuals can be overwhelmed by one (or more) of these senses, which can lead to a range of reactions, from anxiety to total distress.

So, what can we do to help?

Here’s some great tips from Geoff Evans, Medica CPD speaker/trainer, to help support autistic individuals with sensory difficulties:

• Try to provide warning of loud noises
• Ensure that you have the child’s attention before giving important information
• Provide a visual cue when you want the child to listen
• Don’t presume that the child can look and listen
• Provide a quiet place for the child to retreat to
• Provide the child with a means of indicating that they can’t cope with sounds/noise
• Provide the child with earphones
• Only have one person at a time speaking
• Don’t have TV, music on at the same time

(*Geoff Evans, Annual Autism Conference 2022) *

While some of these acts may seem small, they can make a huge impact. Don’t allow the simplicity to take away the significance.

This is why it’s important that we find and use strategies, to ease these difficulties for autistic people.

Being aware of how your actions can negatively affect someone else, and implementing changes to avoid this, is a simple and wonderful way to make the world an easier place for everyone to navigate.

To find out more
Call us: 0141 638 4098
Socials: @MedicaCPD
Email: carolyn@medicacpd.com