Heather Dukes-Murray – High-Functioning Autism Proven & Practical Interventions

This intensive, full day seminar provides proven intervention strategies, essential treatment tools, and behavioral techniques to help you analyze behaviors and actions, identify consequences for behaviors, and teach new skills to children, adolescents and young adults with high-functioning autism (HFA). Walk away with practical intervention techniques for social success, behavior changes and overcoming challenging co-occurring behaviors that deliver success through adulthood. The challenging co-occurring issues to be addressed are:

• Social and communication
• Sensory
• Anxiety/Rigidity/Non-compliance
• ADHD/ADD
• OCD
• Psychotropic medications

Gain valuable insight into common psychotropic medications, including both the helpful effects and potentially problematic side effects, that these individuals are prescribed. We will explore the advantage of pro-social punishment as a new idea to target and help make changes to difficult behaviors.

You will receive the tools necessary to gain effective collaboration between clinicians, educators and parents. Through case studies, video clips and class participation you will leave this seminar with the confidence to identify actions that cause impediments in change, utilize more successful consequences for behaviors, and teach new skills to children, adolescents, and young adults with HFA. Don’t just manage these individuals; provide interventions that can lead to successful independence into their adult years!

Implement interventions to teach children/adolescents diagnosed with High-Functioning Autism (HFA) the skills to independently manage their own regulation, anxiety and fears.
Design effective strategies to approach transitions and routine life challenges for children/adolescents diagnosed with HFA.
Utilize specific interventions to improve long-term social-emotional success for children/adolescents diagnosed with HFA.
Suggest specific sensory-based calming techniques to reduce anxiety for children/adolescents diagnosed with HFA.
Recognize the potential side effects of psychotropic medication that can mimic or cause behavioral issues related to HFA.
Design specific behavioral interventions to reduce frequency, intensity and duration of difficult behaviors in children/adolescents with HFA.

Would you like to receive Heather Dukes-Murray – High-Functioning Autism Proven & Practical Interventions ?
DSM-5® Changes & Autism

DSM-IV® and DSM-5®criteria comparisons
Social (pragmatic) communication disorder
Impact on service delivery (school/community)
Successfully link the home, school and therapist
IEP/504/Do they qualify for school services?
Co-morbid disorders: Why the difference is important
Social Skills Interventions

Improve social skill deficits “Kid Cop” behaviors and why other kids get angry How to get peers to recognize them in positive ways Group activities Early intervention programs that can deliver long-term success
Communication Interventions

Ways to work out conflicts that are effective in multiple settings
Help peers, siblings and parents relate
Verbal interventions that overload processing
Sensory Interventions

Self-stimulation (appropriate & inappropriate)
Sensory strategies to avoid
Coping/calming techniques that reduce melt downs
Sensory Diet
Anxiety Interventions

Anxiety reducing activities
How anxiety impacts rigidity
Help them “self-regulate”
Successful transitions
ADHD Interventions

ADHD vs. hyper-focus
Commonly prescribed medications and possible benefits and side effects
Specific triggers and what fuels the rage
Reduce aggressive and disruptive behaviors
Mistakes that escalate defiant behaviors
Overcome refusals to comply with even simple requests
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Interventions

What to do when they become stuck on high interest areas
Specific medication interventions
Impact on socialization and behaviors
Interventions for Specific Difficult Behaviors

Reduce Internet and electronic addictions
Changes in technology, school systems and mental health delivery
Psychopharmacological Interventions

Differentiate among common medications
Medications that mimic difficult behaviors
Side effects and off label use
Impact of eating, sleeping and hormones on medication effectiveness
Case Studies, Demonstrations & Activities

Case studies that demonstrate specific interventions for aggressive and non-complaint behaviors
“Reminder video” technique: A way to facilitate behavioral rehearsal
iPad® apps for social success, behavioral changes and speech and language
Staff training techniques to experience what an individual on the spectrum might