*Sigh* She's Wandering Off Again
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| Fri, 03-16-2007 - 9:56am |
I'm not sure what to do...Claire's started wandering off again, and now it's both at home AND at school.
Last Saturday, when the weather had finally warmed up, her brother and sister were in and out of the house. Claire was happily watching a Care Bears video one minute and the next thing we know she's nowhere to be found. She'd crossed the street and walked right into the neighbors house. Luckily Emma had watched her going over there and followed her. But then Em wasn't sure how to handle the situation. She knew she wouldn't be able to convince Claire to come home, but she also wasn't sure how to go about asking the neighbors to call us to help her.
At school, when her 1:1 takes a break (which she undoubtedly needs to do) Claire will just up and leave the classroom. This week they had a substitute for 1.5 days and at one point when her 1:1 returned and asked, "Where's Claire?" The sub replies, "Um...I'm not sure. I think she went to Mr. W's room." OMFG!
I think it's time we invest in a Medic Alert bracelet. Anybody got any experience with these things? What you have engraved on it other than "autism"?
Ugh...time to make myself sick with worry again.
Amy


Hi Amy,
I sympathize. Eric is a wanderer/runner too. He's getting better, but you never know when it will happen.
We have a bracelet. It's not medic alert, but a boutiquish online company that has lots of cool for boys and pretty for girls different options. Actually now that I look, they have the medic alert bracelets too.
We have Eric's name, autism, I have his dairy and wheat allergies on there, my cell phone number, the neurologists name and number. His name and autism are on the front, all else on back. I guess you might want to put meds if you can fit it too.
Here's the site:
www.n-styleid.com
HTH,
Katherine
(((AMY))))
What a difficult thing. Yes I would definitely go at least medic alert bracelet. Perhaps also have a talk with your neighbors to fill them in on the situation and to call you if they ever see Clair out alone. Maybe if Emma had your cellphone with her when she was outside? That may be over kill.
I would also come up with a plan with the kids of what to do if it happens again. Help them role play it. Which neighbors they can approach for help, etc.
I would make sure to address it with the school as well and how it would be managed there. Someone should always be in charge of knowing where she is. If there is a sub this should be part of the information she is given. They are definitely the responsible party there and have to keep her safe.
Finally, now that you have these safety features in place, I would design some sort of program, social story, what ever to begin teaching Clair not to wander off. Where she can go outside, etc. So she can gain some independence in a safe way.
We had a bit of trouble with this until Cait was in 5th grade but fortunately not anymore. They do grow up thankfully!
Renee
((((Amy))))
Dontcha
visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com
As an update...
I spoke to the mom of one of Em's friends (her DD has Type 1 diabetes) and she advised me to actually use Medic Alert directly. Yeah, it's got a minimal annual fee...but at least they'll have her information on file, several different contact people, etc. In the end, I think we'll both feel better knowing that if she ever does get lost, the police can call a number and have all her information right there.
You know Paula, I had completely forgotten about the fact that we HAVE a flippin' Firefly! We just use it for Noah, and it never dawned on me to clip it to Em when she and Claire go outside! Great idea!
Thanks for the suggestions and support everybody.
Amy
Hi,
I completely sympathize with your situation b/c my DD is a bolter/runner. She is only 2 1/2 right now, so a lot of it is her age. However, I know her wandering will most likely remain an issue. She is always on the go and I am hesitant to take her outside lately unless I have someone else to help me. We live in a condo complex and the units are not fenced-in. Just going for a walk or to the car (parked 20 feet away from our door), usually involves a chase of some sort. I am absolutely terrified of her running into the street (happened twice), or even worse, losing her somewhere.
I've tried getting her to hold my hand with only partial success so far. However, once she gets something in her head, there is almost no stopping her other than physical restraint.
I very much understand that she could one day just open the door and walk out of the house. Our Ped. suggested putting deadbolts at the top of all the doors eventually. Maybe this would be an option for you as well?
I will definitely look into getting a medicalert bracelet. I just hope she won't try to rip it off her wrist!
BIG HUGS!
Dizzy
Just our of curiosity, how old is Claire and at what age did the wandering begin?
Hi Dizzy! I don't think I've properly welcomed you yet, so...WELCOME!!!
Claire is 6...will be 7 in August. Her wandering began around age 3. Because of hypotonia (low tone) she's never been an actual runner. She just walks off without thought of danger, etc.
We've had special locks on the doors for quite a while now. But she's old enough/big enough to "beat the locks" now. We even have little siren-like alarms. They worked great when she was younger because the loud noise they made caused her to slam the doors shut as soon as the siren was engaged. But now that she's on medication for anxiety, that noise doesn't bother her anymore. (Plus they wouldn't help address the school/playground wandering.)
The real problem comes from her language skills. While she is very verbal, her language is often non-functional. Especially in situations where the anxiety kicks in. She typically just starts scripting and refuses to acknowledge that a person is speaking to her. (She does a great blank face stare.)
I will say that I was impressed with the way the Medic Alert handles customer service, the options the provide, etc.
Amy