Autism In Disaster Situations-rundown

Currently being in Small Group Instructor Training with the Ohio Military Reserve, I am working diligently on a project presentation for the final day of training. What have I chosen to present on? Autism, PTSD, and SPD in disaster situations of course!

Some have expressed interest in what I am doing. I am still getting the details down pat, but I wanted to share what I have so far (copied and pasted.) This is something that I seriously believe needs to be addressed-and more and more people need to be attuned to it...especially as more and more natural and manmade disasters arise every day (is Ragnarok  on the horizon??? That's for another time...)

But anyway, copied and pasted:

First thing’s first:

Most, if not all people with autism in fact are of at least average, if not above average intelligence – many are brilliant.

*NEVER* assume limited intellect. Speak to an individual with autism in a manner befitting of their age group. Don’t infantilize – don’t treat adults and teens as children. No “dumbed down” language, address them by the name that they give you, no terms such as “sweetie” “darling” buddy,” etc.

Many will experience moderate to severe sensory overload issues – to sound, light, etc. (This is also a huge issue in the instance of disaster shelters, which are overwhelming even for neurotypicals. They would be HELL for individuals with sensory issues – what can be done in the event of someone who simply cannot go to a disaster shelter due to sensory concerns?)

Some may not communicate, or be hesitant to do so. Some may be overly compliant (this aspect is, contrary to popular belief, *not* always a part of autism per se, but rather a part of a “sheltered” upbringing – also many are trauma victims who wish to please) while others may be overly defiant!

Many with autism may experience a lower or higher pain threshold. This could also be troublesome in a disaster situation. Someone with a more serious injury may inform you that it’s “not bad, go check on the others, etc.” whereas someone with a more minor injury may make a bigger deal out of it, leading the rescuers to believe that the injury is more serious than it is, messing up the triage.

Going off of a post that I wrote on this blog a few years back, I am planning to also incorporate said post:

Over the last several years, there's been quite the surge in disasters-hurricanes, fires, disease scares, etc-often resulting in mandatory evacuation and the need for disaster shelters.

Disaster shelters are generally staged in high school gyms, churches, community shelters. As you can see, individuals are basically placed "on top" of each other, in a relatively small space.

Naturally, I would imagine that a cluttered, cramped, noisy disaster shelter would be extremely stressful even for a neurotypical individual-who's stressed out anyway worrying about their home and worldly possessions.

Add autism to that mix. In most cases, there is no way that an autistic individual with sensitivity to noise, bright lights, crowds, is going to be able to function in a disaster shelter. Look at the picture. They're all on top of each other. Stressful enough for a neurotypical person-forget someone with sensory issues!

So what can be done? FEMA and the Red Cross certainly do try their hardest, I'll give them that. However, the bottom line is that forcing individuals with autism into a mainstream disaster shelter, is, hands down, going to be disastrous.

I understand that disasters, often the wrath of nature, do happen. Evacuations are necessary. But what about individuals that will not or can not stay in a loud, crowded, disaster shelter. What do we do?

Hotels are a better enough option, as well as staying with family and friends out of the reach of the disaster. However, I do believe that FEMA, etc. should take note of this-what should be done in the event of a wide scale disaster with individuals that are unable to go to a shelter?

As a member of a state defense force whose primary mission is disaster relief, I actually got this idea during my last drill weekend. I'm planning on bringing this up to some of my superiors-and see where we can go from there. From what I can see, disaster shelters are stressful enough for neurotypicals-never mind someone with sensory issues in the first place!