The Hug Machine

It has been found that autistic adults and children look for pressure to calm them as their sharpened senses cannot handle sound and anxieties. Many times squeezes or hugs from anyone can be extremely stressful for the autistic person as they are incapable of communicating their desires through pressure. So, the person who is hugging them and the autistic person find that they are not able to express their feelings.

The hug machine which is also called the squeeze machine was invented by a woman who had an autistic disorder. Basically, it helps the person to be in control of their situation. They seem to need pressure to relieve tension. The machine has 2 padded sideboards which connects at the lower end of the board into a V shape. There is a lever which moves the sideboards to touch each other and this creates the necessary pressure The lever also lets the autistic person to be in control of the pressure.

Studies By Researchers As To Why Pressure Helps

Researchers are unable to discover why pressure helps an autistic person to relieve his tension. The autistic person feels anxiety and tension over many daily routines, and it is possible that when they focus on a single feeling, they are able to feel a certain calmness. Since autistic persons are constantly tense, they are unable to interact socially. So because of the pressure their tension is abated. Many programs use this hug machine and the effect on autistic persons is being studied.

It must be noted that squeezing or hugging may not really relieve the autistic person’s tension – he may still feel stressed. If you are unable to buy a hug machine, you can come up with something like it. The autistic person can be covered with a blanket and leave them to apply pressure. You could also purchase padded boards and fix some yarn on either side so that the person can control the pressure for a certain length of time. You could even get in touch with the school and ask if it is possible to buy a machine which could be a community one. This is one of the ways in which to help your autistic child – it may not be entirely perfect or even helpful, but it can help towards relieving anxiety and stress, and help your child to live a better life so far as communication is concerned and also be able to cope with anxiety and tension in his daily activities.