Preventing and Responding to Wandering and Bolting Behaviors

This program utilizes materials with permission from

The AWAARE Collaboration

Workshop Overview

Introductions

Background Information on Wandering and Bolting

Why do kids with Autism Spectrum Disorders wander and bolt?

Prevention: Safety in the home environment

Working with schools, camps, and other programs

First Responders: Getting information to the front lines

Teaching My Child

In an emergency: Steps for dealing with a crisis situation

Creating a family plan for my child

Introductions

What is wandering?

Wandering is when a person who requires some level of supervision to be safe leaves a safe and supervised place and exposes themselves to potential danger.

Potential Dangers:

WaterTrafficFalls / InjuriesExtreme temperaturesStrangers

Background Information

49% of kids with ASD engage in wandering and / or bolting behaviors.

Drowning is the #1 danger to kids 14 and under who wander / elope Wandering behavior is rated as being the most stressful ASD –

related behavior by the majority of parents whose children wander or bolt (58%)

40% of parents whose children wander or bolt report losing sleep over worrying / fear

The majority of families with children who wander or bolt report missing or purposefully abstaining from activities outside the home because of the behavior

It is important to communicate with your child’s pediatrician about wandering and bolting behaviors.

Rule out any potential medical factors contributing to wandering

You pediatrician can add a diagnostic code for wandering to your child’s diagnosis of autism.

- Insurance coverage

- May be a helpful addition to a request for an Amber Alert

- Underscores the need for separate consideration of

bolting behavior in your child’s IEP

Why People with ASD Wander?

There are two types of behaviors related to wandering, goal – directed wandering and non – goal directed wandering.

Goal Directed Wandering

Goal directed wandering refers to leaving a supervised area in order to pursue something attractive or obtain a desired item.

Examples

The child wants something

The child wants to see something (sign, water, electronics, locks)

The child receives sensory input (song, TV, sparkling body of water)

The child sees something and is distracted by it

The child seeks out attention or stimulation at a time when adults caregivers are very busy (think school parties, recess tim at school, family gatherings, siblings’ homework time, etc)

Bolting or Fleeing

Non – goal directed wandering is also referred to as bolting or fleeing. This refers to suddenly running or bolting, usually to quickly get away from something. Bolting is associated with the fight or flight response.

Examples of Triggers

Unexpected exposure to sensory overload (loud noises, camera flashes, etc)

Belief or fear that something negative will occur

Something that is negative to the child that adults might not see right away (constant exposure to social settings, work, or other expectations at school, changes in temperature, rooms with echos, bullying or teasing by peers)

People with ASD may engage in one or both of wandering and bolting behaviors.

PREVENTION

Always know who is responsible for your child.

Figure out WHEN, WHERE, AND WHY

At every step along the way in the PREVENTION process, think WHY, WHERE, HOW, WHEN, WHAT, AND

WITH WHOM?

Step #1: Secure Your Home

Visual reminders, such as stop signs on doors and windows

Double sided key lock deadbolts, hook and eye locks, and key pad exit locks

Home security system

Battery – operated window and door alarms

Window guards or protectors

Motion detectors

Baby monitors

Fenced in yard with child – proof latches

Step #2: Ensure Your Child Can Be Located and Identified

Can your child provide personally identifying information? Will they be willing to provide it to a stranger or a policeman? Will they approach a stranger? Will they run away from a community helper who asks them a question?

Examples:

Medical Alert

Wearable Tattoo

Whose Shoe? ID or Shoe Sticker

Child Locator Alarm

Wallet Cards

Eye – Zon Personal GPS

Child tracking apps found in many phones and some games

Safety Note

Many tracking devices do not work when they are submerged in water. Radio frequency trackers and some of the newer GPS trackers on the market have addressed this safety concern. This is one safety feature that varies by product and manufacturer. Do not assume that a device will work in water.

Service Dogs

Some families have been very pleased with service dogs that are trained to prevent their child from wandering.

Some families have been extremely disappointed.

Step #3: Make schools, camps, and other programs secure.

Put safety concerns about wandering / bolting into your child’s IEP

Visit program locations to look at the environment and physical structures and identify potential hazards

Review schedules and activities with staff. Discuss your safety concerns with them and work together to identify solutions.

Adding concerns to the IEP Put your request in writing.

Describe your child’s situation with detail.

Obtain medical documentation that your child wanders / bolts and is at risk.

Concerns for child safety should be directly written into the IEP.

Concerns should also be reflected in the Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)

A written plan for responding to wandering and bolting should be written into your child’s Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)

Your school should have copies of forms to provide to first responders

If you do not believe that your child is safe in a given location, then do not leave your child in that location until your safety concerns are addressed.

Communication with your child’s care providers is key.

If your child engages in wandering or bolting behaviors, it is a behavior deserving of focused attention by a team of professionals.

Parents Teachers and Principals

BCBA Occupational Therapists

Counselors Speech Therapists

Doctors Physical Therapists

The focus of the team should be both safety and education.

Devise a plan for monitoring the child and ensuring safety

Minimize or remove environmental triggers

Devise a plan for presenting children who bolt with alternatives to bolting

Devise strategies, and, if needed, objectives in a BIP or IEP to assist your child with remaining in a safe location

Step #4: Create a Safety Plan

Determine your response to bolting and wandering in advance. Decide in advance how you will respond to your child should

wandering or bolting behavior occur.

It is helpful to have an idea of the function of the behavior before determining what your response will be.

For kids who are bolting / fleeing / escaping from situations, consider that you want them to feel safe and comfortable reaching out to you or other people for help.

Even if your child tends to intentionally bolt while laughing, act in appropriately, or treat bolting like a game, consider that these might be signs of emotional dysregulation.

Step # 5: Alert Your Neighbors

Informing your neighbors is often a difficult decision

You need to decide what and how much to tell neighbors

The National Autism Association advises filling out and distributing the “Neighbor Forms”

Step # 6: Alert First Responders

Providing first responders with important information before an emergency occurs can improve response times and outcomes

Provide your local police department with a copy of your child’s first responder plan

Keep a copy of the first responder plan on hand at all times, to quick access in case of an emergency.

Your child’s school should also have a copy of the first responder plan in a convenient location.

Step #7: Educate Your Child

Helping your child learn to stay in a supervised area, regulate their emotions, and practice healthy coping skills are all necessary parts of a solid prevention program.

Never rely solely on educational methods to keep your child safe. The child’s safety is the responsibility of parents and assigned caregivers.

Educational strategies for children:

* It is important to communicate with your child at their individual level about bolting. Never ignore bolting because it is a difficult topic. Take advantage of opportunities to discuss safety, and discuss safety often.

Practice Routines

Stopping at doors.

Stopping at curbs

Keeping seatbelt on until adult gives a cue to remove.

For bolting, preteach and practice taking routes to safe places / people at home, school

Use Social Stories FREQUENTLY

Keep it simple Allow your child to assist in the creation as much as possible The story should contain: 2-5 sentences describing the appropriate behavior in a social

situation 1 sentence describing positive, observable appropriate responses 1 sentence describing the viewpoint of others as they react to

the situation 1 sentence describing a commonly shared value or opinion 1 sentence that reminds the individual of the appropriate

behavior in the social situation

Sample Social Stories

Read Social Stories OFTEN

The largest mistakes made when using social stories is that social stories are not read often enough or they are read after an undesirable behavior has occurred.

Social Stories are called an ANTECEDENT INTERVENTION. The best time to use Social Stories is BEFORE a child has engaged in wandering or bolting

Example: When going to a busy place, a parent reads a social story about staying near mom and dad to the child before getting out of the car.

Teach Coping Skills

Identify calming routines, places, people, or objects

Ensure that some of these things are available wherever your child goes, or that your child has a plan or method of accessing calming stimuli

Use social stories, cartooning, and real and fictitious problem – solving scenarios to teach coping skills before problems occur

Help your child to successfully use practiced coping skills when possible

After situations are over and your child is calm, talk to him or her about how things went. Praise any efforts that your child makes to practice the targeted skill. Revise coping strategies as needed.

Teach a Plan B

Your child or teen needs to know what to do in the event that they have already wandered or bolted.

Common strategies for helping kids with ASD navigate real world situations are social stories, child – drawn cartoon strips, and making lists of procedures. Work with your child to think about what they would do if they were out one day and got lost.

Avoid saying “if you bolt” or “if you run away”

Help your child brainstorm safe people, safe places, reasonable ways of identifying help or finding home.

Teach About Community Helpers Community helper identification is a start, but it is nowhere near

enough.

Who are they?

What does their uniform look like?

How can they help you?

Where can you find them?

Role play conversations, including approaching and

initiating conversations.

Teach About Strangers

Strangers represent a danger to children who have wandered and bolted, especially to children who have an impaired sense of danger or are overly friendly with others.

If it is age and situation appropriate, teach about public transportation .

After bolting and wandering.

Work with your team of professionals to create a plan for addressing bolting and wandering with your child after it occurs.

The response is situation specific and is linked to your child’s specific behavioral history and estimated reasons for wandering / bolting.

Teach Your Child to Swim

Even good swimmers can get hurt or drown, but knowing how to swim makes it more likely that a child who falls into water will be able to get out.

When your child has learned how to swim, inquire about the possibility of completing a lesson with their clothing on.

Dealing with a Crisis

If your child is attracted to water, search nearby water sources FIRST

After calling 911 . . .

Enact your family emergency plan and begin searching the places your child would most likely be attracted to

Contact your emergency point person so that they can help you fax your alert form to local law enforcement, contact your neighbors, and make arrangements to care for your other children

On the phone with 911 . . . Clearly state your child’s name

Tell them that your child has autism. State that they are endangered and that they have no sense of danger.

If your child has a radio frequency tracking number, provide it.

Provide your child’s date of birth, height, weight, and other unique identifiers

If your child is attracted to water, tell them to immediately dispatch personnel to nearby areas of water

Tell them when you noticed your child was missing and what clothing they were wearing

Request that an Amber Alert, Silver Alert, or Endangered Missing Advisory be issued

Request that your child’s name and identifying information immediately be entered into the National Crime Information Center’s Missing Person File

Practice Prevention.

Be Safe.

Remain Alert.