Running and Autism?

SunnyDaysDontLie · October 2010

This is for those of you who have a mildly Autistic sibling, preferably one with Asbergers. Two school years ago [3rd grade], my brother loved school. He loved his school, the programs, everything. And then they replaced the principal and the vice principal and several staff members, and the new administrators aren't trained to deal with special education children, more specifically S.E. children with mental disabilities such as Autism, schizophrenia, etc. Well, that was last year that they replaced the old admins. And now, my brother has awful school days. I actually, shame on me, eavesdropped in on a conversation between either the principal or the VP today, and the woman sounds very... "I'm holier than thou". We'll put it that way. And, judging by the way I heard her [and the teacher] handle my brother a few times before, she has no idea what she's doing. Period. He throws more and more fits now, refuses to do his homework, whatever, and I think it's because he's overly stressed out. He's got this one Autistic kid that is new in his class, that's a bit more severely Autistic than he is, threatening to kick his ass/kill him daily, and then his teachers are the overly sympathetic. You know, the ones who think "better me than you, but I'm going to throw a huge pity party for you anyways" teacher? That's his teacher. And it pisses him off to no end, because he just likes to be left alone and do his own thing. He's also got a bit of a weight issue, because he sits in his room and either plays with Legos or on his xBox. He doesn't know how to ride a bike, or even throw a ball in a way that isn't like a girl. I was wondering, would some form of a sport, using running as the basis [soccer, baseball, softball, basketball, or just plain running], help him out a bit? I know he doesn't sleep well at night, and maybe it'll cheer him up? I was talking to him about this last night, sports release endorphins that make one happy [serotonin sounds right..], and running will basically help with any sport, swimming, biking, running, you name it. Which is why I started running, because next year I want to do three sports, cross country, swimming, and then softball or soccer. Anyhow. What do you guys think of that?

Kazuko · October 2010

Asperger's. Not Asberger's. Really, with Asperger's, the hard part is finding an activity that he'll like. If he likes video games, try DDR? I myself hate exercise, and will do it as sparingly as I possibly can, but DDR is a passion of mine. It's fun, but it's work too. It's also very exhausting, contrary to popular belief. My friend and I would go to the arcade three or four times a week and spend 5+ hours playing DDR, and we were always -exhausted- by the time we were done, to the point of falling asleep on the two minute ride home.

Mileysmybaby · October 2010

:arrow: bump want to read this later =]

Sea Oats · October 2010

Physical activities can help, but as Kyt said, it's a matter of finding something he enjoys. My cousin has Asperger's, and she rides horses, that's her sport. It's something she has always enjoyed and has been doing it since she was little.

SunnyDaysDontLie · October 2010

Sea Oats wrote:

Physical activities can help, but as Kyt said, it's a matter of finding something he enjoys. My cousin has Asperger's, and she rides horses, that's her sport. It's something she has always enjoyed and has been doing it since she was little.

Sorry for the misspelling, Kaz. Firefox didn't catch it. D; Well, the thing is, my parents gave both Brian and I a choice of whether or not we wanted to do a sport. We both chose no, and I regret that decision, just because it'd be easier to lose weight if I didn't have much to lose in the first place, plus it'd give me something to do, and maybe if I had chosen a different answer, the past 6 years of my life would've gone by better had I done something active that would relieve anger and stress and whatever I was feeling in my preteen angst. Thing is, I don't want my brother to turn out like me. I know I complain about him a lot, but he's my brother, and blood is thicker than water, and I'd protect him with my life if I had to. I don't want him to end up negative and pessimistic, I don't want him to get fat, and I don't want him to constantly go through that whole "I don't belong here" phase. I want him to fix whatever mistakes he's making now, so he doesn't make them where they really count, such as high school an middle school. So I've decided I'll start spending more time with him. I need to get closer to my brother, because I don't want to lose him at all. And, since I go for runs, I figured that'd be a good time, since I enjoy it with my mom and dad. When he was younger, I was the only one that could understand his toddler babble, and I'm still the only one that can talk some sense into him without him breaking down crying, because I treat him like he's my age and not 11.

Mileysmybaby · October 2010

cross country as in horse jumping?

Kazuko · October 2010

Mysterous Love wrote:

cross country as in horse jumping?

Cross country running, I'm fairly certain. As in "HAIGAIZ. Let's run 5miles in the BLISTERING HEAT over changing terrain!" It's hard. I tried it. Lasted two weeks and decided this was just. No. Anyway, Sunny, like I said, the hard part is going to be finding something he'll like to do. Asperger kids will more often than not ONLY do what they enjoy. They don't like it, it won't get done, or they'll throw a fit, or they'll do a crap job.

SunnyDaysDontLie · October 2010

Kazuko wrote:

Mysterous Love wrote:

cross country as in horse jumping?

 Cross country running, I'm fairly certain. As in "HAIGAIZ. Let's run 5miles in the BLISTERING HEAT over changing terrain!" It's hard. I tried it. Lasted two weeks and decided this was just. No. Anyway, Sunny, like I said, the hard part is going to be finding something he'll like to do. Asperger kids will more often than not ONLY do what they enjoy. They don't like it, it won't get done, or they'll throw a fit, or they'll do a crap job.

Yus, cross country RUNNING. As in, "HAIGAIZ! Let's go run 6.5 miles in the blistering heat over changing terrain!" Hell, I can barely run 2.5...Good thing I'm not joining until next fall! ;D

UnknownDreamland · October 2010

I agree with Kaz on this. She helped me out when I used to babysit for a kids with aspergers(When I vented about it xD). Any physically demanding activity(and also mentally demanding.. persistence wise, etc.) would be good for him, I think. It gets him tired, it gives him something to do, and if he likes it a lot, it gives him something to look forward to, which is great! My brother was born with a defect of some sort, I can't remember what, we don't talk about it much, but because of it he is severely delayed in maturity, focus, he went to speech therapy for years since he couldn't say certain words.. And I'll tell you, putting him in soccer improved his attitude, temper(he would kick, bite, scream hit, shove, throw things at people, etc.), and tolerance. He was also a lot happier. I was also the only on that could understand him and would often translate to my parents. Once he quit soccer he got worse again and is getting physical again with his temper. Long story short, I'm sure if you can find an activity your brother will do and/or enjoy that helps him physically(weight, energy..) as well as mentally(looking forward to something, happier, healthier, etc.) then I bet he'd be a lot happier in the long run.

Celia_1234321 · October 2010

Dreamland wrote:

I agree with Kaz on this. She helped me out when I used to babysit for a kids with aspergers(When I vented about it xD). Any physically demanding activity(and also mentally demanding.. persistence wise, etc.) would be good for him, I think. It gets him tired, it gives him something to do, and if he likes it a lot, it gives him something to look forward to, which is great! My brother was born with a defect of some sort, I can't remember what, we don't talk about it much, but because of it he is severely delayed in maturity, focus, he went to speech therapy for years since he couldn't say certain words.. And I'll tell you, putting him in soccer improved his attitude, temper(he would kick, bite, scream hit, shove, throw things at people, etc.), and tolerance. He was also a lot happier. I was also the only on that could understand him and would often translate to my parents. Once he quit soccer he got worse again and is getting physical again with his temper. Long story short, I'm sure if you can find an activity your brother will do and/or enjoy that helps him physically(weight, energy..) as well as mentally(looking forward to something, happier, healthier, etc.) then I bet he'd be a lot happier in the long run.

i agree 100%. My mom teaches an autistic class and they have a wii in their class room. The kids love playing it and always behave so that they are allowed to.

SunnyDaysDontLie · October 2010

I really just don't know what to do with him. My parents have taken to bribing him, he misbehaves so often, which, in my opinion, is wrong. It's okay to bribe OCCASIONALLY, but not every single day of the week for the entire school year. He's constantly whiny. When I was eleven, I did not whine that much. And he's annoying as HELL. Funny thing is, I babysit this kid that's a year or two younger than my brother, and my brother HATES him. Why? Because the child babbles his ears off and asks questions about things that my brother doesn't know! I started laughing when Brian told me this, and told him that he was getting a taste of his own medicine, which caused my parents to laugh. xD

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Running and Autism?

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