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JUMPING

Christina - posted on 12/27/2009 ( 11 moms have responded )

My 3 year old son has PDD-NOS. He goes to a wonderful school and there has been tremendous progress this year. Yet there are times I wonder how to dispose of this jumping, and have tried to substitute this behavior for others, which has been unsuccessful thus far. I'm fortunate to live in a house and not an apartment, but as he grows, the jumping gets harder and he has knocked a few ceiling tiles from his bedroom ceiling. I worry that he may destroy the floor next. HELP.

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Teresa - posted on 01/31/2010

Interesting ideal.No I hadnt thought of that. Thanks for the ideal.

Deanna - posted on 01/31/2010

TH ... have you tried ankle weights or weighted vests and belts? We use these on my son during the day when the tramp is not out. Granted he is only 3 and your son is 23 ... but the feeling of some type of weight may help fill the need to jump.

Teresa - posted on 01/31/2010

I came to this website by accident. My son who is 23 is a jumper with asperger ! I was trying to find a solutiion. It affecting our relationships with others and he jump and makes the house shakes. Our next door neighbor complains cause she can hear it even though behind my bedroom, her kids have a trampoline and they screams their little heads off. We have a truce for now. But now he is jumping while others are sleeping. No peace for the weary. Honestly I do not think the trampoline is the solution for now.But I want to give him his time but not trying on our nerves. I know this is managable. Any suggestions?T H

Renee - posted on 01/01/2010

621

This jumping behavior is "normal" for these kids. See the difference in his behavior before and after he jumps. Try to connect with him after he jumps and see the difference.

Christina - posted on 12/29/2009

Thanks for the advice...I guess I never thought of it as an outlet but rather as a effect of overstimulation. I am going to buy a trampoline today. He jumps more than 50% of most days, and the tiles came off the ceiling because we are living in a house built in 1920. I must admit that he looks very happy during the jumping and I wouldn't deem it fair to take that away, just really wondered if it was normal at the rate he is going. All the replies seem to be directed that way! Thanks again.

Belinda - posted on 12/29/2009

And if you are looking for a swing, I found one at Ikea, havent bought it yet though. good luck

Belinda - posted on 12/29/2009

I think the trampoline is a abs rocker? We got it from Amazon & we have had it for a year & 2 adults & 2 kids use it daily. So it has held up .

Belinda - posted on 12/29/2009

We have a trampoline ( that has a bar for my son to hold on & adults can use to workout on0) that folds up for storage & a Bosu ball with a bar, for a squishier walking feel he enjoys. This way he can get his jumping out safely & wont ruin a bed. highly recommend getting a trampoline & seeing if it helps & you'll have fun with it too.

Deanna - posted on 12/28/2009

My 3 year old son has PDD-NOS also and he is a jumper too. We got a mini exercise tramp at Wal-Mart for ~$37.00. It s available to him at all times and he uses it throughout the day (sometimes more than others). Also, when he is craving this deep pressure, we put his weighted vest on him. Works wonders for him.

Sheila - posted on 12/27/2009

837

Try a mini trampoline. Tell him that this is the only place he gets to jump. Reward appropriate jumping....make a huge deal over the appropriate jumping and just let him know that the more he jumps (bed/couch???) in the wrong places, it makes you sad.

Do you have a trampoline centre in your city? Let him know that if he jumps only on the little trampoline, you will take him to the big jumping centre and let him go on the big trampoline! See if you can make it into a positive for him.

He might need this jumping, so instead of substituting for something else, try to set up guidelines that will make it work for you/him.

I should ask though, how often and for how long will he jump? How high is his bed that he was able to hit the ceiling? Could you put the mattress on the floor?

Good luck!

Sheila

Renee - posted on 12/27/2009

621

My son loves to jump and it's a necessary thing for these kids. Some are swingers and some are jumpers. The jumping does something for your child and it's a positive outlet for him. I bought my son a 4 ft around trampoline that sits 8 inches off the floor, it's in his bedroom. When he is stressed he goes and jumps until he is sweating it changes him completely. I would encourage you to NOT take that away but make it a suitable activity for him. Really he's not trying to destroy the house, he's trying to cope with being in our world. It's a scary place for him, help him. Good luck to you. Oh I found my trampoline at a sporting goods store. We've gone through 3 or 4 in the past few years. They are so worth it.