HOW TO SUPPORT TEENAGERS WITH AUTISM THROUGH TRANSITIONS
怎样帮助自闭症孩子度过青春期
In recent months, I’ve been approached by more than a few parents seeking to support their autistic children through challenges that come in the teen years.For any kid, the changes that come with this phase of life can be difficult todeal with. For those of us on the autism spectrum, it can be even more so.
最近几个月，我遇见了许多寻求帮助自闭症孩子适应青春期变化方法的家长们。对每一个孩子来说，这个时期的各种变化都是比较棘手的。对于自闭症孩子们来说，就会更加困难了。
ManageYour Expectations
管理你的期望
WhenI’m asked about the topic, there are a few key points that I like to talkabout. First, as a parent, it’s important to manage your own expectations. It’snatural for parents to worry about their kids, and the “gloom and doom”messages that often surround autism can amplify this tendency in ways that canbecome problematic.
当我在被问到这类问题时，我有几个重点要讲。第一，作为一个父母，你需要学会管理自己的期望。父母担心自己的孩子是很正常的，而自闭症孩子常常面对的负面信息会加大孩子们出现问题的可能性。
Teenagerhoodis a particularly vulnerable time, and kids with autism can be more vulnerablethan other kids. As you watch that vulnerability in action, you may be temptedto latch onto certain traits or accomplishments you observe in your child thatgive you hope for the future. That can be a mistake.
青春期是一个非常脆弱的时期，自闭症孩子在这个时期甚至比其他孩子更脆弱。在这个脆弱的时期，你可能会把孩子展现的一些特点或成就当成未来的希望。这可能是个错误。
Whatdo I mean by that? Am I telling you that it’s wrong to have hope? No, of coursenot! But, focusing on a single trait, accomplishment or skill as an assuranceof future success can be damaging. Responding to fears of your child’s future,you may be tempted to think something like, “Well, as long as he keeps doingwell academically, maybe he’ll be okay.” It’s a natural response to anxietyabout the future, but it can unintentionally result in additional pressure onyour child.
我想表达的是什么呢？我是在说有希望是不对的么？当然不是。但是，把一个独立的特点、成果或是技巧当作未来成功的保证是很危险的。面对对孩子未来的担忧，你很容易有类似的想法：“只要他成绩好，也许他以后不会遇到什么问题”。这是为未来焦虑时自然的反应，但这可能无意间对孩子造成更多的压力。
TheProblem of Pressure
关于压力的问题
Whyis additional pressure a problem? Well, at a time when you want to be supportingyour child to expand his or her scope of control and learn new skills,additional pressure may have the opposite effect. A common expectation amongparents and caretakers who aren’t on the spectrum is that once a skill isattained it will remain, and that a profile of skills growth, if mapped on anaxis, should point steadily upward. Unfortunately, that’s not how it works formany of us.
为什么额外的压力会是个问题呢？在你想要支持你的孩子去探索去学习新的技巧时，过多的压力可能会适得其反。许多家长和监护人会认为孩子一旦学会一个技能，就一直都具有这项技能，孩子的各项能力也应该一直呈提高趋势的。不幸的是，大多数人的情况都不是这样的。
Kidson the spectrum tend to develop asynchronously: “later” skills may developearlier, “earlier” skills may develop later and skill level in one area willoften be vastly out of sync with skill level in another. A child may haveadvanced skills in memorization or certain areas of academics, yet stillstruggle to cross the street safely or order his or her own meal in arestaurant.
自闭症孩子会有不同步的发展：自闭症孩子可能很早学会其他孩子晚些才学会的技能，而其他孩子早期就能学会技能，自闭症孩子可能晚些才能学会。自闭症孩子在每个领域能力的强弱也可能有很大差别。一个孩子在学术方面可能很在行记忆，但是却不能安全地过马路或成功地在餐厅里给自己点菜。
AVOID OVERLOAD
避免过度
Another aspect of this is that skills that havebeen already attained can be variable as well. Why is this? Well, every personhas a finite amount of cognitive resources at any point in time to use forthings like problem-solving, navigating barriers and making sense of the inputfrom the senses. In most people, a lot of these tasks, such as managing sensoryinput, are done almost completely subconsciously. In contrast, those of us onthe autism spectrum have to utilize a lot more conscious thought and workingmemory to deal with such things. Because of that, navigating a new situationcan easily tax our resources beyond what we can handle.
这个问题的另一方面是已经获得的技能也会改变。为什么会这样？因为在某个特定的时间点每个人会绕过障碍，用有限的认知资源来解决问题。对于大多数的人来说，大部分挑战，比如管理情感输入，是潜意识里完成的。然而，自闭症儿童必须下意识或用记忆去处理这些挑战。因而，开始一个新的任务会轻易的耗尽我们现有的认知资源。
It’s like the brain is a bucket that fills withtoo much water: something winds up going over the side, and what “goes over theside” may vary. In my case, what went “over the side” first were executiveprocessing skills. I had trouble getting organized, I’d get lost inenvironments that should be familiar and worse, I began to lose things. Ididn’t know why. Difficulties with academics soon followed.
对于自闭症儿童来说，大脑就像一个装的太满的水桶。某件事结束了就是溢出水桶，至于是什么“溢出了水桶”也分不同的情况。在我看来，最初溢出的是执行处理能力。我很难让事情变得有组织，我在本应熟悉的环境中迷失了，更糟糕的是，我开始忘记东西。我也不知道为什么。紧接着到来的就是学术学习上的困难。
As is the case with many mothers in suchsituations, my mother didn’t understand the dynamics I just described. To her,it appeared that I wasn’t trying. Clearly, I knew how to “be responsible” and get good grades, so whywasn’t I doing so? Her response was to discipline me and pressure me to“straighten up.” Unfortunately, this had the exact opposite effect from whatshe desired.
很多母亲面临类似的情况。我母亲就很难理解我的比喻。对她来说，我只是不够努力。我很明白该怎样“对自己负责”，怎样得到高分，但为什么我没有这么做呢。对此，她采取的措施只是对我施加更多的管教和压力，让我“紧绷”起来。很不幸，这样只会适得其反。
This additional pressure only added to thecognitive load that I was struggling with every day. It was pouring still morewater in the bucket, and thus caused more water to go over the side. I didn’tunderstand why, so I couldn’t explain it to others. Today, I can tell you thatI was facing massive sensory overload every day: I was struggling to adapt tothe differences in my school environments–the culture, people and rules.Everything was new, and I was on overload nearly all day, every day.
我每天都在认知负荷中挣扎，额外的压力只会让这种情况更糟糕。就像把水倒进这个已经装满的水桶，只会让更多水溢出。我不明白这是为什么，所以向其他人解释。今天，我可以告诉大家，当时我每天都面临巨大的感官负荷：我竭尽全力地想要适应学校环境中不同的东西：不同的文化，不同的人，不同的规矩。每件事情对我来说都是全新的，因此，我每天，每个小时都处于超负荷状态。
Practical Tips
What do I think can have help in suchsituations? A few things:
实用的建议
该如何应对这种状况？以下是几项我认为有效的建议：
Prepare Early: Prepare your child fortransitions before they happen, and even before you might think it would benecessary. Help them understand what will happen and what expectations will be,and discuss how to respond to specific challenges.
提前准备：在变化发生前，甚至在你认为有必要这么做前，给孩子做好心理准备。帮助他们理解将会发生什么，和他讨论怎么样应对这些变化。
Do a “Dry Run” When You Can: No one learns wellwhen they’re in “fight or flight” mode. Putting your child in a situation inwhich their only chance for learning skills is when they are under this type ofstress sets them up for failure. Instead, try to find ways to allow them topractice skills under less stressful conditions, when the “bucket” is closer toempty and can hold the water that’s being poured into it.
有可能的话，进行模拟场景演练：谁在“或战或逃”的心理状态下都难以学好某件事情。使孩子处在只能在强压下学习的情况，事实上就是预设了失败的结局。相反，想办法让孩子在相对压力较小的情境中练习，这就好比在水桶几乎没有水的时候倒水，水桶才能装下倒入的水。
Recognize Setbacks in Skills as Warning Signs:Teenagers on the spectrum may not recognize how or when to ask for help. Learnto look for signs of struggle and ask some questions. You may have to be adetective, as they may not make the connections themselves. Are they strugglingwith sensory issues? Executive skills? Are they being bullied? If you canaddress these root causes of stress and overload, setbacks often resolvethemselves.
捕捉孩子感到挫败的信号：患有自闭症的青少年可能不知道在何时、如何寻求帮助。试着观察孩子并且在适当的时候进行询问。你必须像一个侦探一样，因为孩子们不会主动寻求帮助。比如，他们是否面临感官上的困难，他们是否很难执行一些技能，他们是否陷入困境。如果你能知道具体哪个地方有问题，你就可以帮孩子走出困难。
Learn to Tolerate Vulnerability: It’s naturalfor teenagers to look for additional autonomy, and teenagers with autism are noexception. Letting go may be scary, and there will be bumps along the way. It’simportant to give them the space to learn and the support to grow.
试着容忍孩子易受伤的特性。对于青少年来说，他们会自然的寻求自主的空间，自闭症儿童也不例外。完全放手可能听起来有些可怕，因为成长路上会有各种未知的曲折。但是，给他们足够的空间和支持对孩子的成长十分重要。
对本文的特别申明:由于我们的医学专业知识和翻译水平有限，译文可能会有瑕疵，欢迎大家提出宝贵的意见和建议，以便帮助豆苗计划翻译小组更好地开展工作。
豆苗计划翻译小组
翻译：牛 。。。 梦缘
复核：William Sunny Rexx
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发表于 2016-5-11 17:13:23
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