I have been living in Autism City for many years (And moving out isn’t an option 
) You can say I am half-human and sort of half-octopus…trying to cater for the needs of three completely different kings with a completely different set of rules and demands. You know kings aren’t easy to please. You get something wrong and blast…hell goes loose. Oh come on…you know you want to say it: “What the… How do you it?”
Well, welcome to Autism City where your reward for doing a good job at the end of the day is….*drum rolls* A trip to the……BATHROOM! Congratulations Autism Parent! Yes, you and ONLY YOU can now enjoy the most relaxing experience in your own toilet! Without little hands crawling under the bathroom door! The added bonus is a trip to the…..SHOWER for longer than 5 minutes! Don’t miss this amazing opportunity!
Joke aside, let me tell you a bit about what has been going on with King #2. So even though Autism and I met a long time ago…I feel someone should have warned me strongly about echolalia and repetitive behavior. My goodness, I swear it leaves your brain fried at the end of the day. For those who aren’t very familiar with the term, echolalia is defined as “the repetition of phrases, words or parts of words”, a common occurrence among some individuals on the spectrum.
Well, King #2 has it but…not quite like you think. What he has been doing for months is repeat the same questions over and over hundreds of times a day until yes…you feel like your brain has become (Literally) strawberry jelly.
During all these questions (And answers) he has a huge smile on his face for the entire time. Yup, he loves it. He loves asking the same questions over and over again because he knows the answers are going to be the same. But wait; don’t think he does it only for that purpose. Nope, the kiddo knows exactly what he is doing.
He enjoys seeing you getting frustrated during the entire process (who wouldn’t? Unless you have the patience of Mother Theresa) so when you say: “But I just answered that question!” his reaction comes in the form of a very loud laugh…and I mean a super laugh straight AT you, for walking directly into his trap. In other words ladies and gentlemen, King #2 loves teasing a.k.a. Trolling. He is very good at it and he admits he loves it.
Even though it is frustrating at times, seeing him teasing in that way (A form of playing to him) makes you realize that just because someone is on the spectrum and they are not very verbal, it doesn’t mean they don’t understand what is going on around them or don’t know how to make jokes, etc. They have their own way to do it. Through teasing, King #2 wants to communicate with others. He doesn’t know how to reach out in many other ways yet but through playing in this manner, it gives him a sense of belonging…like he is part of something and no one has issues understanding him. It is his way to “Converse”.
Did I mention he beat King #3 and me today at playing Uno? I am telling you…the kid is a genius…all this “I can’t talk, I can’t talk” and then BAM he has you on his feet at awe, worshiping him like the true king he is.
How are your kings and queens doing? Please leave a comment below and let me know!
