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Our autistic child, soon to turn 19, rocks when he sits and can't see in front of him. From 6th grade to 10th grade, he rode a school bus for an hour each way. Within the first year, I was sure that his poor mood when he got home was impacted by his rocking for an hour. Wouldn't you feel sick too if you swung your body to your knees for 60 minutes?

I was confident there was a solution. I first attempted to request the front seat of the bus for him so that he could see forward because I had noticed that he did not look out the side window but rather straight ahead. When given the excuse that another child also sat at the front, and they did not want two children in the front two seats (though I am not sure why), I then went off to develop a contraption that would apply stress to his body no different than my arm yet break free in case of an accident. I purchased strapping from a climbing store and velcro from a fabric store and sewed a "secondary seatbelt" that was designed to break free in case of any real applied force. This wonderful contraption actually worked to help prompt him to stop his rocking. The only problem was that the transportation company would not allow it as they could not see past the typical setting. So, back to fighting for the front seat I went. When this was finally awarded about 6 months later, Matt came home in a better mood.

So, what's the lesson. Do not assume that your child's poor mood is related to his medication, his autism, or his age. Often, there are environmental stressors causing these children to truly feel ill. In my son's case, the solution was simple but difficult to implement with the transportation company. At home, it was easy. I gave up the front seat for a very long time to permit him the ability to sit up front and see straight forward. After years of supporting my son to stop his rocking, it is probably 10% of what it used to be. This is a good thing as it makes him more successful in social settings.