basketball

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Any suggestions for managing anxiety for my 10yr old mild aspie boy; helping him avoid distractions ( like the score! ) - any suggestions at all really involving aspies & playing basketball - he loves it

Your really lucky that he loves it -- both of my aspie boys tolerate athletics. My youngest is even fairly good at it.

Does he play on a team?

Do you as parents play basketball with him in a relaxed manner at home?

Can you play various skills that don't concentrate on a score?

Kris

Yes you are very fortunate that he has adapted to it. The only real acute issue I can see is if someone is not “following the rules”. In this case he is likely to tell the referee, so it would probably be good to let the ref know this up front so he does not get a technical foul which might well lead to some level of melt down.

bookwormde

He's been playing in a team now for several years & yes some of the refs are aware - it feels that he's an object of curiosity. Parents seem to just have a bit of a chuckle over it.
He's had some tech fouls for "grabbing" & one incident where he very obviously tried to trip another kid, but I suppose we'll just keep working at the impulsivity involved. I've also explained that not all kids will follow the rules as he see's it & if he accepts & deals with this as he gets
I'll be proud. ( not that I'm not now...)
I'm a keen basketballer, but not proficient.
Thanks for your replies - I sometimes feel all this stuff is very isolating

My brother has HFA and has been playing basketball for around 10 years (he's 21 now). He loves it and gets a real buzz out of it. It was quite difficult for him at the beginning and anxiety is still a problem for him today (he puts too much pressure on himself to score highly in every game). When he gets anxious, he tries to calm himself down by deep-breathing.

Basketball has definitely helped him socialise with others and learn how to work as part of a team. I don't have any specific advice, but I just wanted to say that, despite the issues involved (particularly when he started), basketball has really helped him in a lot of ways. I'm sure that, as your son enjoys it, it'll have positive effects for him too. My brother's even gone to Shanghai and various places in the UK to play with the Special Olympics, which was really exciting for him (and us!).