Social emotional wellness is important for every person, particularly individuals with autism, who, according to recent research, are more likely to experience isolation from their peers and suffer from depression in adulthood. Social and emotional development promotes self-confidence and the ability to engage in meaningful relationships-- skills which can be invaluable for individuals with autism. The significance of social emotional learning for school-aged children is receiving increased attention in schools, yet once students with autism transition into adulthood, the services drop off.
This panel presentation focuses on addressing the social and emotional needs of transition age youth and young adults with ASD. The expert presenters will discuss the needs for services and ongoing supports to ensure individuals with ASD emerge into adulthood with the skills and resources needed to lead healthy, productive lives.
3. During this
webinar you will:
● Learn about the social-emotional
challenges faced by young adults with
ASD
● Hear first hand from a young adult
with ASD about the challenges he
experienced transitioning into
adulthood
● Learn best practice tips for promoting
social emotional wellness for young
people with ASD as they transition into
adulthood
4. Agenda
● Taking the Temperature: What
the research tells us about social
emotional wellness for transition age
youth with ASD
● Services, Supports, Success:
Best practices for promoting social
emotional wellness among youth with
ASD
● Personal Perspectives: First-hand
perspectives from our guests on social
emotional wellness
● Q&A: A chance to asks our guests your
questions
5. Taking the
Temperature
What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
What is the most
compelling fact that
has emerged from
your research?
● 60-70% of youth and young adults
with autism have at least 1 co-
occurring health or mental health
condition
● ¾ of youth are taking at least 1
medication on regular basis for a
health or mental health condition
● what we don’t know is how mental
health conditions impact individuals
with autism
6. Taking the
Temperature
What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
What are you seeing
in your practice
arena in terms of co-
occurring
challenges?
● lots of people have a co-occurring
mental health condition diagnosis,
some b/c they have the condition,
some because they need a medication
● need to determine that which is autism
related, inclusion related, skill set
related, and that which is medical
● as families, educators, people with
autism, and clinicians, we are often
talking about the same condition/skill
set (or lack thereof), but from very
different perspectives
7. Taking the
Temperature
What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
How are mental health
and developmental
disability addressed
together?
● Where you are in the country makes a
huge difference as to coordinated
services
● California has the regional system,
which in some cases pulls together a
multidisciplinary team together via
telehealth
● Sometimes adults with autism who are
receiving disability support have
difficult getting mental health supports
too
● People don’t feel like they have a
unified system like the IEP to detail
supports
8. Taking the
Temperature
What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
What we talk about
when we talk about
the services cliff.
● There is a dramatic decline in services
once people leave the education
system and enter adult services
● Many people do not even qualify for
adult services
● about 4 of 10 adults are not connected
after high school (no job, no school
etc.) for 6/8 years outside of school
● Of those disconnected 4, about ¼
have never had any services after high
school
9. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Leaving school with a job or community is
still the best predictor of success
● Having a place to go, people they are
connected with, services committed to
maintaining that community makes the
difference for people with autism
● Not having a community or connections
before leaving school can often lead to
isolation after school
● Paying attention to the skills people with
need for successful transition, and
addressing gaps before leaving school
has lead to success.
What supports
have lead to
success?
10. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Employment during school
● Extracurricular activities can play a
positive role
● Intentional Planning
○ View transition as something that
begins at birth
● Supportive families
● Coordinated services
○ bringing systems together and
figuring our barriers in systems
● Having opportunities in the community
for students to transition to
What has the research
shown will lead to
success?
11. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● A supportive family
● A supportive school environment (Easter
Seals)
● Easter Seals provided opportunities in
school and a place to transition to after
school
What contributed to your
successful transition?
What supports did you
access in college?
● Learning assistance program, which
helped with planning and tutoring
12. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Success teaching a group of boys self-
advocacy and self determination
● We don’t always get around to teaching
the discrete details that go with making
adult decisions
● Breaking the components of self-
determination into small task analysis has
helped us teach these people the skills
they need to make adult decisions
● Using rapid fluency
Do you have a success
story, and what supports
lead to that success?
13. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Success teaching a group of boys self-
advocacy and self determination
● We don’t always get around to teaching
the discrete details that go with making
adult decisions
● Breaking the components of self-
determination into small task analysis has
helped us teach these people the skills
they need to make adult decisions
● Using rapid fluency
● We sometimes forget to assume
competence of individuals
● We are fighting the myth that autism
goes away in adulthood
Do you have a success
story, and what supports
lead to that success?
14. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Within a year of graduation, ¼ of young
adults are completely disconnected from
their communities
● Lack of connectedness can have an
impact on mental health
● Planning ahead for how we get people
connected before leaving school can
make a big difference in transition
What do you think youth with
ASD and their families need to do
to ensure social emotional
wellness?
15. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Joining ROTC
● Joining marching band
● Developing relationships with
peers and teachers through
these programs
● Spending time with a supportive
family
How did you develop a
sense of connectedness
when you were in high
school and beyond?
16. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Help students identify shared
interests and facilitate
opportunities for
connectedness
● Empower youth with ASD to be
responsible for what they can
do to make themselves
comfortable in the world
How do you facilitate
successful transition for
those who do not have
supportive communities?
17. ● What the research tells us about social emotional
wellness for transition age youth with ASD
Services, Supports,
Success
Best practices for promoting social emotional
wellness among youth with ASD
● Look to the general population for
what connectedness/
disconnectedness looks like in the
general population and look at
strategies that are working
● Look for youth leadership
opportunities- faith communities
can be a good place for this
How do you promote
connectedness amongst
youth with ASD.
18. ● What the research tells us about social
emotional wellness for transition age youth
with ASD
Personal
Perspectives
First-hand perspectives from our guests on social
emotional wellness
● It must be very individualized- people
have similar but also very different
challenges
● Supporting individuals in understanding
their own needs and being able to
articulate these needs
● We need to focus on integrated solutions
that promote social emotional wellness,
from employment and connectedness to
independent living
● Be patient- giving people (and
yourselves) the time they need to
develop
What is the most important thing to
know about social emotional
wellness and youth with ASD:
19. ● What the research tells us about social
emotional wellness for transition age youth
with ASD
Thank you.
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