Ever wondered what Interactive Metronome (IM) therapy is or how it might benefit your child or client with an Autism Spectrum Disorder? This guest blog, written by Mary Jones, shares the story of a boy named Ryan who experienced great progress through the help of IM in a private therapy setting and within the home. Our thanks to Mary for sharing Ryan’s story.
RYAN’S JOURNEY THROUGH ASD
By Mary Jones
Ryan is an 8-year-old boy with an energetic, all-encompassing, endearing personality paired with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Raised by his grandmother, Ryan had been seeing me for conventional Occupational Therapy sessions for several years. He loved, craved, sought out and engaged in movement activities at every given opportunity and playing freely within a Sensory Gym was the highlight of his week. He could spin and not get dizzy, climb with never a sign of fear, crash with no sense of danger and his ‘engine’ continued apace from dawn to dusk. I had tried, using all of the clinical management and traditional therapy tools to influence Ryan’s control of his regulation and behavioral skills, with limited to inconsistent results.

Does your child cringe at the thought of getting his hair cut? Does he cry, or in some cases scream, when the razor touches the back of his neck, or when the barber runs the comb through his hair? For many children with tactile sensitivities, something so simple as going to the barber shop can be a very unpleasant, or even a painful experience, and it's one that they may rather avoid at all costs! And who can blame them?!

In her first guest blog for us, Stacy Baugh shares about her daughter's very first sleepover. So many parts of Stacy's post ring very true for me; I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I have and find many things with which you can relate, too. Please help me in welcoming Stacy as our newest Guest Blogger! ~Leigh
TO PREPARE, OR NOT TO PREPARE
By Stacy Baugh
Recently our 7 1/2 year old daughter, Emily, had an opportunity to have a sleepover with a friend. It would be her first one ever. I have to say that I’m not a huge fan of the idea of sleepovers that are held away from our own house, but this was with some very dear friends who we knew well and who we completely trusted with our precious child. I wasn’t nervous about her safety, but I was incredibly nervous about how she would handle such a new and different situation. Emily has Asperger’s & Sensory Processing Disorder and is a true creature of habit. She likes to do things a certain way and do them the same way every time. She’s not a fan of unexpected changes, and when she’s out of sync her SPD is more pronounced. It’s one thing to go to someone’s house to play for a few hours, but to spend the night?

Today I'm pleased to share a fun and humorous yet informative and helpful guest post from Maureen Bordelon, who, througout the month of April is sharing installments from her Autism Hat Rack about rasing a child with autism. Last week's post - The Siblings' Hat - and her first post with us, The Good Luck Hat are well worth reading if you haven't yet. I hope you enjoy reading Maureen's post today about how and why her Wonder Woman "hat" has been a vital part of her wardrobe since she became an autism Mama! Leave us a comment to let us know which part of Wonder Woman's uniform YOU most use (or could use) in your day-to-day adventures with autism. ~Leigh
THE "WONDER WOMAN HEADBAND" - Cuffs, Lasso, Boots, Airplane - It Takes the Whole Outfit!
By Maureen Bordelon
Technically, Wonder Woman wears a metal headband/crown on her head, but since I find myself transforming into Wonder Woman to play an occasional Super Hero for all 3 of our kids…it is a definite “Hat” on My Autism Hat Rack.
Wonder Woman uses her pair of indestructible bracelet cuffs, an invisible airplane, a Lasso of Truth (which forces those bound by it to tell the truth), Rockin’ Red Boots, and a Golden Headband which serves as a tiara.

Vocabulary, print awareness, letter knowledge, sound awareness and narrative skills are just a few pre-literacy skills that most preschool and kindergarten classrooms focus on each day. But how do you teach a child with autism, hyperlexia, and/or language disorders, these pre-literacy skills? This week we wanted to focus on just that. Here are the first things you need to know before working on pre-literacy skills at home:

If you missed Part1 or Part 2 of my interview with Virgina G. Breen, I would encourage you to take a few minutes to read them before reading the final installment of our conversation about the book she co-wrote with her daughter, Elizabeth M. Bonker. I AM IN HERE: The Jouney of a Child with Autism Who Cannot Speak but Finds Her Voice is one of my favorite books about autism and hope! I want to extend my appreciation to Virgina & Elizabeth for working with me on this interview and for sharing their wonderful story with the world. ~Leigh
LAW: Finding joy is something you write about eloquently in the book. Raising a child with autism is not easy. It can be downright painful to watch our children suffer, and like in Elizabeth’s case, to watch them physically harm themselves. Would you share a little about how you work to find joy rather than dwelling in dark moments and depression?

We are very proud to announce the addition of our two newest SensorySpot bloggers – Kera McHale and Dana Rooney! Kera and Dana are certified Occupational therapists, and come to us with a wealth of knowledge, expertise and experience. In future posts, Kera and Dana will share tips and strategies for parents, teachers and therapists, and will also be writing many product reviews for both SensorySpot and AutismSpot (our flagship site)!
To learn a little more about Kera McHale and Dana Rooney, please read on…

This is a post I added on AutismSpot in February, 2011 - however, at that time, I didn't have a picture to accompany it (which I thought was very important)! However, now I do, which is why I've decided to post it again! Should you decide to give this strategy a try, I'd love to know how it went! -Craig

This guest blog, written by Nicole Wallace, shares information about autism as a complex medical issue as viewed by the Stop Calling It Autism! (SCIA) organization. SCIA believes that children with ASD can recover and offer a treatment protocol for parents and doctors to utilize!
STOP CALLING IT AUTISM
By Nicole Wallace
Autism is diagnosed based on a set of symptoms. It is considered a mental illness caused by moms being too fat, dads being too old, both parents being geeks, having kids too close together, living too close to a freeway, or watching too much TV. At least that what you'd assume if you read the latest studies. There is no blood test to determine if a child has autism. The Stop Calling It Autism! (SCIA) organization wants to change the way the public and doctors look at autism.