Autism, SPD & spitting

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Autism, SPD & spitting

by Tiffany. A
(Stockton, Ca)

My son has Autism. He is 5 & I'm pretty sure he also has SPD. He has a lot of issues w/ mouthing objects, but his greatest joy is playing w/ his spit & trying to spit . His special needs teachers are not sure how to get him to stop. I have no answers either. He has an O/T & speech therapist, we are meeting today to discuss his "behaviors". Any ideas on how to help stop his spitting would be greatly appreciated.

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Autism, SPD & spitting

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Oct 24, 2010
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spitting
by: Anonymous

I take care of foster boys that are severely autistic. My youngest is 9 and spits many many times a day. He has used pee poop vomit spit pinching and kicking as a weapon. We have gradually gotten rid of most of the issues except spitting. At home he doesn't spit unless he is bored and wants attention, but at school he has targeted one teacher to spit in her face. He spits in her face EVERY day!! we have tried everything!!! we have tried everything!! he is non verbal, and severely autistic. Any suggestions would be helpful. americaone1776@aol.com thanks jan

we are always very consistent, after 20 years of working with autism this one is a tough one. He is sooooo stubborn.

Sep 24, 2010
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Our remedy to Spitting and feces smearing
by: Shannon

My son is now 12. He is actually my step-son. We have had custody of him for 4 years. Since he was little, 2-3 yrs old. He has spit and/or played with his spit. Drawing with spit on the tv, car windows, table etc. He would also spit at people when he did not like something, was made to complete a task. He also had other behaviors such as hitting, kicking, throwing things, pushing others, all of which are NOT ACCEPTABLE. But the spitting was one of the worst. We tried so many things to stop the spitting and nothing seemed to work. He has changed and grown a great deal with consistency.

We follow a behavior support plan and everyone in his life also follows it when helping him deal with his behaviors. When he is upset and spits, he is told "NO SPIT" and is taken to time-out and has to sit, for one minute. (designated area in classroom, chair in the kitchen at home)If he continues, he has to sit longer. Usually only takes 2 minutes total, till he is calm. Then he is reminded again NO SPIT and he is given a paper towel to clean up the spit, and then taken to the sink to wash his hands. Time-out and clean up and consistency of everyone doing the same thing, EVERY TIME HE SPIT, have helped tremendously. We have not had any spitting at home for like 2 years. The school still has incidents, but NOTHING like they use to see it (couple times a day) Now maybe a couple times a month.

His new one-on-one aide is wonderful and I think once he realized that she is going to be consistent with assisting him deal with his behaviors, it will hopefully cease. It has already decreased with just having her as his aide. (he went through 5 aides before we found a keeper....our Miss Katie is WONDERFUL)
For Spit drawing / playing with spit... he is reminded one time...NO SPIT, and then offered something that is appropriate to play with. (sensory toy, water paints,) If he spit draws again, he is reminded again NO SPIT and taken to time out, one minute and then he has to clean it up and go wash his hands.

He also use to smear feces. With this, we cleaned him up first...in a cool bath, not COLD, but barely warm. Warm water opens the pores and it also is rewarding since he loves water/swimming/baths/showers. He was washed quickly and not permitted to play in water. Washed, dried, dressed. Then he was taken back to where he made the mess and he had to help clean. We would tell him "scrub." Most of the actual feces was actually cleaned by my husband and I, but the entire time we were cleaning, he was also going through some of the cleaning motions. After about 3 times of this, we did not see it for about a year. We did the same thing when it happened again and KNOCK ON WOOD, he has not smeared feces in like 3 years.

I hope this is helpful to others.
Thank you for reading.

Jul 01, 2010
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THANK YOU!!!
by: Anonymous

My son is 7 and has traden hangers for spitting. I'm at my wits end with it. It's so gross! I'm going to try Candy and see what happens. Thank you soooo much!

Sep 01, 2009
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Extreme Flavors
by: Anonymous

Extreme flavors, like spicy or strong sour. The spitting is a sensory need. Altoid sours work wonders for my 7 yr old. It is an oral need. Go ahead and give it to him. They come sugar free too. I really hope this helps lots of people out.

Sep 01, 2009
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My Question Exactly
by: Kim Sullivan

I just got an E-mail from my son's first grade teacher with the same issue. I just finished E-mailing the OT for help with this one. I couldn't believe my E-mail when I opened it up. At least we aren't alone. I will try the sugar free suckers and see what happens. Thanks for the post.

Sep 01, 2009
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Ideas To Deter Spitting
by: Anonymous

Candy can help. Hard candy to suck on. My son gets sugar free ones. A lot of times ones with extreme sour or extreme mint like Altoids. Maybe as a reward. It helps my son to always have a snack. Sometimes popcorn, sometimes gum. Trying to stop him is going to be impossible. Let him choose something that works well.

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Autism, SPD & spitting

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Autism, SPD & spitting