How Can ABA Help Autistic Children Prepare for Dental Visits?

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can face many unique challenges because of their neurodevelopmental disorder. In addition to having deficits in communication and social interactions, children may also have restrictive interests, exhibit repetitive behaviors and experience sensory sensitivities.

These common symptoms can cause children with autism to feel anxious or overwhelmed in certain situations. Even routine things such as a visit to the dentist can be extremely difficult for a child with autism.

It’s not uncommon for children with autism to have trouble visiting the dentist or doctor. Luckily, applied behavior analysis (ABA therapy) can help children prepare for dental visits and other necessary medical appointments.

Here’s how.

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Why Do Children with ASD Have Trouble with Dental Visits?

There are many hurdles children with autism face with visits to the dentists and other health-care providers. A common challenge relates to communication.

There aren’t many dentists who specialize in serving children on the autism spectrum, which means they may not be able to effectively communicate with the child. The child might not be able to effectively express what they need or how they feel, and the dentist in turn may not be able to answer questions or ease any concerns they may have.

Sensory sensitivities can also cause major challenges. A dentist’s office has bright lights, different textures and touches — all of which are not common things that people come in contact with every day. Any of these things can cause a child with autism to become easily overwhelmed and anxious if they suffer from related sensory challenges.

Because dental visits are not an everyday thing, they can cause extra anxiety for children with autism, who tend to thrive on routines and predictability. This can cause them to be very resistant to going to the dentist or to complying and listening to instructions once they’re there.

Can ABA Therapy Help Autistic Children Prepare for Dental Visits?

ABA therapy takes a tailored approach to every aspect of treatment, regardless of what skills or behaviors are being targeted. This means that specific strategies are designed to address each subject, and they are based upon the individual challenges, strengths and preferences of the patient.

This applies to dental visits as well. Parents can inform ABA therapists that their child has an upcoming appointment with the dentist so that the therapy team can help the child properly prepare.

With advanced preparation, the child can gain information and insight about what to expect so that a visit to the dentist doesn’t seem that foreign.

The therapy team will come up with a strategic plan for what the ABA therapy will look like to target dental visits, and then administer that plan over multiple sessions.

What Are Some Ways ABA Therapy Can Prepare Autistic Children for Dental Visits?

There are many different tools that therapists have at their disposal that apply well to helping support autistic children for dental visits.

A very successful strategy is to use social stories. These are personalized stories that often integrate the child’s name, as well as the names and locations of real things that are going to do or about to visit.

By walking the child through the social stories, they can see themselves visiting the dentist’s office, and understand what is going to happen and what’s expected of them. In a way, social stories serve as a simulation of a real-world event, which helps to ease some anxiety and worry.

Therapists may also role play, using visual aids to provide additional support. The child will act as the patient and the therapist as the dentist, which allows the child to actually act out the different steps involved in going to the dentist.

ABA therapy can also teach children with autism various coping skills they can turn to in case they feel overwhelmed or anxious while at the dentist’s office. This could include deep breathing techniques, using an object that calms them or request a break if they need it.

The ultimate goal of any strategy the therapist will follow is to ease the child’s mind and help them be more familiar with a visit to the dentist’s office so they feel more comfortable when the actual visit occurs.

 Blue Gems ABA Helps Children Prepare for Many Things in Life

ABA therapy can help children with ASD prepare for dental visits and other health-care visits by following similar strategies to other targeted skills or behaviors.

At Blue Gems ABA, we help to prepare children for as much as we possibly can, including visits to the dentist’s office, other health-care providers, school, work and more. By creating individualized treatment plans that are catered to the child’s unique strengths, challenges and preferences, we can more effectively help them live happy, healthy and fulfilling lives, as independently as possible.

To learn more, please contact us today.