Impact

Challenging behaviors can pose risks to self and others.

• Self-injury can cause localized swelling, bruising and bleeding, loss of tissue from tongue, lips, ears and nose, blindness from retinal detachment, and permanent disfigurement.
• Aggressive and disruptive behaviors can result in severe injuries to family members and care providers.
• Pica can cause poisoning, death, and/or necessitate surgery.
• Elopement can result in injury or death.

In addition to injuries, challenging behavior can:

• Result in a diminished quality of life for the individual,
• Limit access to community resources, and
• Necessitate a myriad of costly resources to manage the resulting circumstances produced by challenging behavior.

The negative impact of challenging behavior on the family unit is significant as well. In the case of individuals with ASD who exhibit aggressive behavior:

• Daily routines are regularly disrupted,
• Well-being of family members is compromised (e.g., caregivers report a high level of stress, and feeling isolated), and
• Financial resources are exhausted on extra supports, medical visits and care, crisis-related expenses, etc.
• Families have a difficult time accessing educational services and supports specific to the treatment of aggression.

Given this, there is a need to provide resources for families as well as those with an ASD diagnosis so they can effectively advocate for and access these education and clinical services.