Bathing/Showering Asperger's Child

This post is dedicated to all aspie children who just defy the idea of stepping into the tub or shower to clean themselves.  I have dealt with this issue since my son was 2 and now approaching 15 we have come so far.  I do not want to say it will take this long for you as if I had some of this knowledge in the years prior we probably would have accomplished this task a long time ago.  In a nutshell, you would think it was world war III when it came to be bath time.  I am still surprised to this day that no one ever called the police on us with the screaming from my child when he would step his big toe into the water followed by

resistance to sitting down into the tub.  A few years back after finally getting him to sit in the tub and giving him directions on how to wash himself (I am guessing he was 11 years old) I left him alone hoping he would do the job all by himself and be done with it.  I heard him running the water while I was in the other room but he seemed to be doing fine so I went on with my business in cleaning up the house.  I go in to check on him about 15 mins later and OMG - no where to be found was Noah's Ark but I had gallons and gallons of water on my floor and bubbles bursting over the top of the tub.  Knowing I did not have any bubble bath I took a deep breath and in the most calmly voice asked what happened in here.  He was in his own world and it took a few times to get his attention. Rolling up my jeans so I am not knee deep in water (well not really but almost) I calmly asked What happened in here and where did all these bubbles come from?  (As I completed that sentence I see my body wash bottle is completely empty)  As he catches the bubbles that are flying in the air he responds: "Mom, did you know bubbles are made up of air surrounded by a thin film of water which traps the air in it." I respond "Wow, I never knew that" - trying to keep the mood in the room as pleasant as possible.  He then follows through with: "Did you know the biggest bubble ever blown could have held over 750 gallons of water". (In my mind I am calculating that is probably how much I have on my floor).   OK - the whole purpose of this was to get my son clean not learn facts but it didn't surprise me for him to past this information onto me. The biggest surprise of all was He Was Clean  even his toes and fingers were wrinkled which told me he sat in the tub long enough! (Except for his hair which at this time I am still doing for him).  The  light went on - he will take a bath with bubbles and get clean.

At this age of 11 he still had his bath toys which he happily played with.  I did not have a concern in the world that at this age he still needs to play in tub as long as he was getting clean.  I did find out using a wash cloth is still the best method of actually cleaning the body as the scrubbies always 'hurt' him.  Even the softest ones out there caused problems at this age.  Slowly over time we would just do a leg or arm with the scrubby and eventually he was using a scrubby to do his whole body.

To sum it up:

Set a time and be consistent that bath will take place a few times each week.  During the summer it is easier as swimming can replace it until he/she feels more comfortable in the tub.  Still to this day he knows he must be going in for his shower at 7pm each night.  He has no electronics if he does not go in for his shower by this time.  His reward is back on the computer for an hour if he initiated the bath/shower on his own.

Make bath time fun (no matter the age of the child). My son loves frogs so of course bath toys included plenty of these.  I now have bubble bath on hand.

Goggles:  This is the only way he would go swimming in the pool so why not allow it in the tub.  It keeps the water out of the eyes and helps when it comes time to wash hair.

Charts:  This never helped my son but many swear by showing the steps needed to wash the body and laminate the chart so it stays dry.

Slowly introduce the shower:  With goggles donned and a soap lathered boy, I would have him stand up and I would direct the shower over his body to rinse off the soap. We then introduced the shower to just wash trunk of body and allow him to sit in the water for the remainder of the bath.  Continue to add parts of the body that will be washed and rinsed.  Eventually it came time when he had to shower completely then sit in the bath and enjoy bath time.

Add Music:  Just this year (at 14) he received speakers so he can listen to his iPod while showering.  I do not think his bath toys have been touched in over a month.  He is enjoying his shower more now and actually goes in on a regular basis without being told to.  This is just music to my ears when I hear the shower going and he is not to be found.

It will come a time when you do not need to worry anymore.  There maybe setbacks when you need to start over again with step by step instructions.  Just be sure you are consistent with the rules, use the same prompts and procedures.  Be patient and remember to give positive feedback and lots and lots of praise and encouragement.