Literal Translation

I have come to learn that one common characteristic of people with autism is that they process what you say into a literal translation. And this has caught me off guard many times.....and I have had to re-think how I say certain things. Here are a few common phrases that we have had to re-word in order to help Ethan's understanding of what we are trying to say.....as well as prevent Ethan from being very upset......

1. "We are going to drop off Grandma." - I said this one day when Ethan & I were out shopping with my mom. I was in the process of telling Ethan our next few steps....including taking Grandma home....when I said this common phrase. As soon as I said it, Ethan began crying. When I finally realized what I had LITERALLY said, I had to rephrase it to, "We are going to take Grandma to her house." Immediately, he calmed down.

2. "Your nose is running." - I said this one day, and he started quickly moving his head back & forth....making his nose run. After I stopped laughing at his literal translation, I rephrased to, "Your nose is drippy." Then, I was able to show him how to wipe his nose with a tissue. That was so funny.

3. "Sit right here."....while patting the tabletop - I meant for Ethan to sit on the picnic table BENCH, but because I tapped the TOP of the table, he climbed up & sat "right here".....on top of the table. So, I reached my arm even farther, and pointed to the bench. Then, I restated, "Sit right here." And he crawled down & sat on the bench.

4. "The batteries are dead." - This phrase spun him into a meltdown so fast, I hardly had time to realize what had happened. He just kept saying, "Oh no, no, no!" over & over again. Once I could reason with him, I said, "Mommy has to fix it," and then I took him with me to help me change the batteries. I had him help me in using the screwdriver, throwing away the newly labeled "broken" batteries, & pick out the 2 new batteries. Once the toy began to work again, the smiled returned to his face, and all was well. So, now we just say that a toy needs "fixed".....nothing is dead. Yowza!

This week I have discovered a TV show called BONES. My husband & I are a bit squeemish when it comes to viewing skeletal remains as well as images that come up during the investigations. However, we have absolutely fallen in love with this show. Most of these characters are extremely brilliant but lack social skills. We joke that there are signs of autism in some of these characters including the lead female role of Dr. Brennan or "Bones" as her FBI agent partner calls her. They keep saying that she interprets things very literal......just like Ethan. During one episode, they open with Dr. Brennan doing a TV interview. Later that same day, a woman asks Dr. Brennan, "Did I see you on TV this morning?"......to which Dr. Brennan replied, "I have no idea what you saw on TV this morning." VERY literal......and so endearing!

Last week was a very difficult week. This week is already showing signs of improving, although he isn't feeling well AGAIN. When the hard days come, I just need to remind myself of the traits Ethan has that I cherish. And this characteristic of interpreting things literally is one of them.......just one of many.