Self-injury, or challenging behaviour, is a really important issue for children with intellectual disabilities and their parents and carers.
Produced in partnership with the Cerebra Network, our new resources on ‘self-injury in children with an intellectual disability’ can help you to understand what self-injury is, what can cause self-injury and which interventions may help to reduce self-injury.
Dr Caroline Richards and the team from the Cerebra Network for Neurodevelopmental Disorders explain what the resources cover and how they can help:
Self-injury in children with intellectual disability guide
Our parent guide on ‘Self-injury in children with intellectual disability’ gives an in-depth understanding of self-injury. It:
- describes what self-injury is and how common it is
- focuses on the characteristics of children who may show self-injury
- explores some of the potential causes of self-injury
- gives guidance on assessments for self-injury that may be helpful for understanding the behaviour
- discusses some interventions that may help to reduce self-injury for some children.
P.E.A.C.E.
Where do I start if my child shows self-injury? A useful starting point for establishing cause is the PEACE acronym.
P
Pain
Children with intellectual disability are more likely to experience health problems, pain and discomfort. Consult your child’s GP, particularly if the self-injury has begun recently and suddenly, and seems unrelated to the environment around the child.
E
Environment
What happens before and after self-injury can help us to understand the meaning of behaviour. ABC charts can assess of the cause of self-injury, including its Antecedents (what happens before the self-injury), Behaviours (the self-injury) and Consequences (what happens after the self-injury).
A
Anxiety
Children with an intellectual disability may have difficulties or differences communicating their internal feelings. As such, anxiety may present as changes to behaviour, such as an increase in self-injury.
C
Control
Having difficulties controlling or stopping and starting behaviour is another important factor in understanding children’s self-injury. Children who show impulsive behaviour may show self-injury more easily in the presence of a trigger, and find it more difficult to stop their self-injury once it gets going.
E
Exhaustion
Sleep disruption or poor sleep may be a cause of self-injury. Exhaustion can make children more likely to show self-injury.
Be Well Checklist
The Cerebra Be Well Checklist is a resource that can help parents or caregivers go through this process in a structured way.
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