As a parent you want to provide for your children as best you can. It’s your role to keep them happy, healthy, and safe from harm. However, what happens when your child simply cannot communicate the pain they are experiencing? There’s no worse feeling than knowing your child is suffering is silence and being powerless to stop it. This is a very real problem for parents of children with autism. Chronic pain can be difficult to identify and manage in nonverbal children. All of their torment is happening below the surface. As a parent you might not even be aware that it is happening at all. At Monarch House, we help nonverbal children with autism learn how to communicate with the outside world, and offer strategies to help you interpret the pain they are trying to express. Since nonverbal children cannot easily communicate their discomfort, it’s up to parents and caregivers to learn how to read behavioural cues. From there these symptoms can be relayed to medical professionals who will know how to properly address the pain. At Monarch House, we can work closely with you and your child to make sure that communication happens in one form or another. 

Here are nine helpful strategies to address chronic pain in nonverbal children with autism in Toronto.

1. Recognizing Nonverbal Pain Cues

Look for sudden shifts in mood or emotion. Nonverbal children often express pain through behavioural changes. Keep an eye out for signs such as increased irritability, withdrawal, changes in sleeping or eating patterns, self-injury (e.g., head banging, biting), and sensitivity to touch. Caregivers should track these behaviours to identify patterns and potential triggers.

2. Using Pain Assessment Tools

At Monarch House, we identify ways to support children who are nonspeaking to participate in personal and medical care with others. This may include practicing and preparing for an upcoming doctor’s visit with a child so that they are able to participate in the appointment with less distress. We are experts at monitoring changes, and can support tracking of behaviours identified as part of your child’s pain response that you can provide to your physician. This practice and preparation can support your doctor’s ability to assess your child for pain, and complete routine procedures.

There are sometimes reasons other than pain which may result in changes in mood and behaviour for children. At Monarch House, we are experts in Functional Behaviour Assessment and are able to identify environmental reasons for behaviour change in children, and provide you with strategies to support these behaviours.  

3. Consulting With Healthcare Professionals

It helps to have professionals on staff that can help you interpret any pain or unpleasant emotion your nonverbal child may be experiencing. A pediatrician, pain specialist, or one of Monarch House’s occupational therapists can help diagnose and treat underlying conditions causing pain. Conditions like gastrointestinal issues, migraines, or musculoskeletal problems are common in children with disabilities and require professional intervention.

4. Implementing Sensory-Based Strategies

Children with autism sometimes have acute sensitivities to external stimuli such as bright lights or loud sounds. Some nonverbal children experience chronic pain due to sensory processing difficulties. At Monarch House, we have ways to address this. Behavioural and occupational therapy techniques, such as deep pressure stimulation, weighted blankets, and sensory-friendly environments, can help reduce discomfort.

5. Exploring Nonverbal Communication Methods

If your child with autism cannot effectively communicate their pain or discomfort through words, there are other means they can use to get a message across. Teaching children alternative communication methods, such as picture exchange communication systems (PECS), sign language, or electronic communication devices, can help them express pain more effectively. Encouraging self-advocacy in any form can lead to quicker intervention.

6. Providing Gentle Physical Therapy

Touch can be incredibly healing. If your child has a condition like cerebral palsy or joint hypermobility, they may experience chronic musculoskeletal pain. Being hands-on with your child can make a world of difference. At Monarch House, we can work with physical therapists to create gentle stretching and strengthening exercises for your child. These can help to relieve discomfort and improve their mobility.

7. Using Heat And Cold Therapy

Adjusting the temperature can go a long way toward alleviating certain types of pain that nonverbal children may be experiencing. One of the ways to do this is by making use of warm compresses or heating pads. This can help to soothe muscle pain. Conversely, cold packs can help to reduce inflammation. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to closely monitor the child’s response as they are applied. It’s important to be gradual and gentle with these treatments to prevent burns or frostbite.

8. Incorporating Relaxation Techniques

One of the best ways to adjust to pain is by learning ways to relax the mind and body and take yourself elsewhere. Massage therapy, guided breathing exercises, and mindfulness techniques adapted for children can help reduce tension and pain. Take note of your child’s favourite music and incorporate that into a home healing session. Some children respond well to music therapy or visual relaxation aids to promote a calming effect.

10. Managing Pain With Medication (When Necessary)

It’s one thing to know if your child is in pain or not, and another thing to know the extent. If you discover that your nonverbal child is in fact in an extreme level of discomfort, it is advisable to bring in your family doctor to help address the issue. In some cases, if the pain is severe, a doctor may recommend over-the-counter or prescription medications. At Monarch House, we always caution that medication should be used sparingly and only in combination with other supportive therapies to avoid dependency or side effects.

If your child is suffering, every instinct in your being is going to want to make it stop. There’s nothing worse than being in the dark about the pain your child is going through. At our clinics, we can help you get to the bottom of what is causing their unease, so you can get it properly addressed by medical staff. At our Toronto autism clinic, we use a comprehensive approach that includes holistic interdisciplinary therapy, various sensory strategies, as well as alternative communication methods. At Monarch House we have a professional, interdisciplinary staff of occupational therapists, behavioural therapists, psychotherapists, and speech pathologists that are here to help. Armed with some professional insight and tailored approaches, we can help you learn to effectively manage chronic pain in your nonverbal child, significantly improving their quality of life by finding them the help they need.