autism

[lilicrose36]

any advise on how to get my autistic child to have his teeth brushed
is he has never let me since he got his teeth im worried now
he will put the brush in him self but thats all ?

[MaryannesMom]

Maybe try having him sit in front of you & let him brush your teeth while you brush his?  Try an electric tooth brush.  My kids are into Pokemon, and they love the Pikachu electric toothbrush.  

[Rachel Thompson, Ph.D., BCBA]

First, try to make the experience as pleasant as possible by buying a fun and soft toothbrush (as one mother suggested) and helping your child to select a toothpaste that he prefers. You might consider starting with a brand of training toothpaste that can be swallowed. This would make the task a bit less complicated. I also recommend setting your son up for success by requiring only very brief cooperation at first. Generally your starting point should be based on his typical level of cooperation. If he will typicall only tolerate 1 second of toothbrushing, you could start there. You could then gradually increase the duration of toothbrushing. Given that your child has never allowed you to brush his teeth, it seems reasonable to offer him some small reward if he cooperates. Your son is likely to make progress more quickly if you practice toothbrushing several times per day. This is only necessary until his full set of teeth is brushed each time. While brushing his teeth, try to just focus on the task and avoid coaxing, but do give the kind of praise that he enjoys as long as he is cooperating.