badlotus

Environmental changes such as blackout curtains, a humidifier (at least in dry climates), complete silence/soothing music (depending on your personal preference), weighted or warming blankets have helped my son who is on the autism spectrum.

This is a great reply! Good sleep habits can be hard for everyone, neurotypical or autistic. My son was having trouble sleeping due to a medication he was prescribed by his doctor. We reviewed this at a recent med check and the doctor changed the schedule so the meds would wear off a few hours before bedtime and he’s sleeping much better now. He has fewer headaches, fewer nightmares, better emotional regulation, and better focus. It’s hard to parse which of these are due to the medication change and which are due to better sleep, but better sleep is always a good thing.

This is very a very important distinction, thank you for this reply. Melatonin in high doses administered for a long time has also been loosely correlated with delayed puberty. There are no clinical studies I am aware of that prove this but something I have been concerned about for my children. It’s scary giving any type of medication or supplement to my kids, even those that have decades of research. I’m not advocating for anyone to start or stop taking melatonin but it’s good to be informed about the possible effects. Here’s the journal article I read: Could long-term administration of melatonin to prepubertal children affect timing of puberty? A clinician’s perspective

No, I would not say it helped with his anxiety. He does not have clinically diagnosed anxiety. Although he does have anxiety episodes now and then. He’s also taking a stimulant for ADHD and that seems to help regulate a lot of his ADHD/impulse control/anxious behaviors. He has an inverse reaction to stimulants like many on the autism spectrum.

Aside from melatonin or other supplements/medications, have you tried any type of therapeutic activities? Brushing, deep pressure, exercise like lifting weights, or joint compression have helped my son when he has an anxiety episode or is feeling very hyperactive.

My son takes it and says it helps him sleep much better at nights.

Thanks for the info. I’ll have to try one out!

How is this scrubby better than others that are available? I’m curious because I can’t say that I have ever used one, but I have seen in several stores.

Interesting to hear that you’ve never owned a garbage disposal. It’s quite the opposite for me. I’ve never lived anywhere without a garbage disposal in the kitchen sink however, I’ve always used the garbage disposal as more of a preventive tool. Composting kitchen scraps (or feeding my chickens kitchen scraps) has always been my preferred method of organic waste disposal. I’ve been raised, and I’ve raised my children to use the garbage disposal to grind food waste that is not suitable for composting, and would otherwise simply fill my bin with methane and other unpleasant decomposition by products. For example, we feed our dogs boiled chicken. Inevitably, some of the pieces of chicken get stuck to the bottom of the pot and have to be scraped off while washing. I wouldn’t feed my chickens anything with soap on it nor would I compost this as the soap may have a detrimental effect on the microbes that are breaking down my compost.

Garbage disposals are motorized shredders that fit into the drain on a kitchen sink. It allows you to grind any waist that falls into the . While the benefits of composting definitely outweigh the potential benefits of grinding all your food waste, I still think there is benefit in having a garbage disposal. Some food waste will inevitably fall through to the drain and can cause buildup in the drain pipe, which will result in costly repairs at some point.

Garbage disposal parts diagram

Every place I’ve ever lived has always had a garbage disposal. This is definitely more common in the US, particularly in urban areas so I recognize that not everyone may have one. However, this sink looks exactly like my current kitchen sink so I subconsciously assumed there would be one.

Which side has your garbage disposal? You may want to avoid using the side without the disposal for washing so you don’t accidentally wash down large food waste that will clog your drain.

Seems like AI wrote this. And did a good job!