Aversive Activities of Health and Wellness

Activities, objects, and settings that are routine and mundane for typically developing children and adults, are often highly aversive for children with autism spectrum disorder or that may have other sensory processing issues. Visits to the dentist, doctor, and barber shop can be met with resistance due to the sensory experience such as noises, interacting with strangers, and pain associated with the procedures.

Desensitization programs are conducted by reinforcing positive behaviors and eliminating challenging behaviors through a systematic process that begins with introducing the least aversive aspects of the activity and working up the hierarchy until the child can successfully complete the activity in question.

Children first demonstrate safe and contextually appropriate behavior for health and wellness visits. Visits are conducted in the clinic setting with actual providers and students in fields such as dentistry to provide the real service. Eventually, children generalize and repeat their successful visits out in the community.