Why Use Stress Reduction Techniques?

Children and adolescents with ASD tend to have multiple problems related to stress and anxiety issues. Stress can be caused from such things as social confusion, changes in the schedule or environment, miscommunication, or a sense of loss of control. These problems can include external symptoms such as tantrums, screaming, aggression towards others, self-aggression, destruction of property, or social withdrawal. These behaviors may appear to ‘come out of nowhere’ to the parent or teacher who is not aware that the student is under stress. It is important to remember that behavior happens for a reason and that stress and anxiety can play a significant role in triggering unwanted behavior.

If we know that most children with ASD have problems with high levels of stress and anxiety, and if we know that varied forms of stress reduction can release physical tension caused by stress and anxiety thereby increasing physical control, then it seems logical that we should attempt to teach the person with ASD to relax when they encounter frustrating situations. The Groden Center has had success in teaching relaxation routines to children with ASD (Groden, et al. 1994) and such routines have been used as part of a successful behavior management program to reduce aggressive behavior (Gerdtz, J. 2000).

When deciding whether or not to use stress reduction techniques, consider the ‘fight or flight’ response. If a person with ASD is confronted with a situation he does not understand, a disappointment he finds intolerable or an unusual fear, it is likely that he will have a physical response that puts his body on high alert. He may feel that he must either flee the situation or fight back. When a person reaches a state of rage (Smith Myles, 2002) or explosion, they have little control over their behavioral response. It is difficult for anyone to relax when they are in a state of rage or fear particularly if that person has little control over impulsivity and limited understanding of his own emotional feelings. Stress reduction routines or exercises are meant to proactively help the person with ASD to reduce their levels of anxiety across environments.

How to Teach Stress Reduction

Stress reduction routines should be taught in a repetitive way so that the activity becomes second nature to the person with ASD, making it easier to carry out the strategies under duress. Once learned, the routine should be practiced under mildly stressful conditions to assess its carry over value.

It is also important to recognize early symptoms of stress and anxiety, such as repetitive movement, perseverative talking, swearing, oppositional behavior, inattention or escape behavior. Stress reduction strategies can then be introduced on the person’s schedule prior to any predictably stressful situation.

Visual cues can be coupled with the stress reduction routines to make them easier to understand and practice. Visual cues can also be used by caregivers to prompt the routines in natural settings. For example, if a child has learned a muscle relaxation routine that begins with the word‘stop’, the teacher can use a small stop sign to prompt the child to begin using the relaxation progression when she is in a natural environment such as the lunch room or an assembly.