Animal like noises when stressed

[mum22boys]

Just Wondering.....

 

I took m to get new shoes today. ALWAYS a disaster, always ends in him trying to trash the shoe shop!!!

 

Today we sat waiting, which he managed to do for about 5 minutes. He then became very edgy and distressed. Usually he shouts things at people but today he started making this noise, a bit like a animal calling, very high pitched. He did it over and over until he was so loud and everyone was watching him that I decided to explain to the manager his ASD and asked her if she would come out the shop when it was our turn.

 

He was screaching the whole time we waited. Once it was our turn he became agitated and then got really excited about the football shoes he picked and started jumping up and down flapping his hands, which he does do sometimes, although i have noticed it getting more frequent.

 

The screaching out these loud noises continued until we were at home. He was still doing it at dinner.

 

Do your children do anything like this? I know it was stress related and am actually glad it was this rather than a full blown tantrum.

 

Can anyone relate to it?

 

Thanks

 

mum22boys

[jb1964]

Hi,

 

Yes totally relate to this - and shoe shop to boot!!!

 

My daughter has gone through various noises that she develops when she is stressed/anxious etc. We have had lots of different noises the high pitched eee-eee-eee-eee also the mmm,mmm,mmm,mmm - we've also had a sort of aah,lah,mah,bah,wah - all for exactly the same reasons, either when she sees something that upsets her like blood, hospitals etc or when she's anxious and worried over something - she also usually either covers her ears or closes her eyes and tilts her head up at the same time.

 

I think it's all pretty 'normal' during these anxiety outbursts.

 

Take care,

Jb

[elun1]

Hi yes O does this both when distressed or to focus himself when there are too many people around. Feel for you as we also have had some HORRENDOUS experiences in the shoe shop

Elun xxx

[krystaltps]

YES YES YES !!!

C growls, like a dog. It's very unnerving because he bares his teeth at the same time - it makes him look rabid! . At least it's not too loud, I suppose.

Also shoe shops seem to be the worst, for some reason. We have only recently progressed from shoe-shop-incontinence (and I mean poo!). We now only buy shoes in Woolworths, as I can take the shoes round to the toy aisles and try them on him while he is engrossed in choosing something (due to his selective ability to focus, he doesn't really notice what I'm doing, bless him). It does mean that we have limited choice and no proper fitting service, but at least we go home with clean pants!

[smiley]

My son went through a phase of barking and snarling when he felt stressed, (i was so worried he might actually snap at someone one day) - which was usually when we were out - some of the looks i got!!!!

 

And shoe shops!! Don't get me started!! <'> <'>

[KarenT]

J's OK in shoe shops - quite likes it actually. But the animal noises are so him! He has quite a repertoire depending on what obsession he's in at the time, often Harry Potter creatures or dinosaurs.

 

It always amuses me to see other parents' faces when J emerges from school after a stressful day, squawking like a pterosaur or howling like a werewolf. That's my boy!

 

Karen

x

[car2]

My son always runs around the shoe shop and cant sit still!! Dan often makes growling/snarling noises or the kind of noise a snake makes when it's going to attack (if that makes sense??!) It normally happens when someone says something he doesn't like!!!

I thought Dan might be the only one who made animal noises, but now im happy to know that he isn't!!!

caroline

[badonkadonk]

I'm 24 and I still make random noises when I get stressed/anxious or very happy.

 

They're not animal noises (though I did use to growl when I was younger) but they are quite random and change all the time.

 

At the moment when I'm happy I make a kind of 'eeeeeeeeeee' noise and if I'm doing something everything action is accompanied by my random noise soundtrack Alot of the noises I make are like words but they don't actually exist, it's quite babyish in a way but it just kinda comes out and most of the time I'm not even aware I'm doing it.

 

When I get stressed/anxious I can start making an 'oooohhh' sound or repeatedly start saying 'uh-oh, uh-oh' or if I'm really, really bad then it's 'oh dear, whoopsies' which makes it interesting in front of strangers. I can still make a kind of grrrrr noise when I can't do something or someone is doing something to annoy me, again it just comes out.

 

Depending on the situation the noises can be ok or it can be pretty embarrassing but I think those around me kind of see them as a blessing, even if they can be really annoying at times because I know my mum at least uses them to figure out how I'm feeling because if the barriers come down and I can't vocalise what's going on inside she can rely on the noises to at least figure out if I'm happy or sad. On occassion she has also noticed me getting stressed before I even realised myself because she would notice me walking around the supermarket or somewhere making these grrrr noises.

 

Life has somewhat picked up and become a lot more positive for me in the past couple of weeks and my mum said that she's been able to know just how happy I am based on the fact that I walk around going 'hmmm hmmm hmm hmmm' in a kind of sing-song manner

 

So while I know the noises can be fairly weird at times and difficult to explain to others, I would try to see them as tools of information if you can because if you start to really tune into them and notice when and where the different noises occur you can begin to build up a picture of happy/sad noises and this will help you further understand your kids in future.

 

Emily

xxx

[MichelleW]

J took it one step further whilst walking around M&S, he actually instisted on crawling around on all fours. I hate to think what the other customers thought as I left the shop with H on a wrist strap and lead ( as he runs off when he isn't throwing himself on the floor) and J following behind on his hands and knees - people were probably thinking that I had trained my children to be dogs!

[mum22boys]

Could relate to the hands and knees bit michelle.

 

M does this when things get really bad. He actually did it at his CDAC assessment a few weeks ago. We have also been to the Natural History museum and he has crawled all the way back to the station.

 

mum22boys

[stressedmumto2]

We used to get the growl when he was much younger, now it's a moneky screech or a dog bark, he doesn't seem to do it when stressed though just at different times (maybe he is stressed). As for the hands and knees bit we had slithering on the floor of KFC luckily all the staff just smiled it off after a complete run around, think he may have tired himself out.

[carrieq]

Oh yes can relate!! Ds makes really odd noises, kind of like a bark when anxious and a high pitched screech when nothing is going on. He also crawls when he is stressed or under pressure, generally in shops!!!

Phew, so glad we are not alone!!

Carrie

[ellisisamazing]

Yes, El has a full reportoire of Jungle Sounds! His best one is UNGEE BUNGY (Sounds like!!) and everytime he does it, I can imagine him swinging from tree to tree in a lioncloth!!)

 

We had a particularily interesting experience in a shoe store, we were trying shoes on my daughter and El has a shoe fetish anyway so was in his element, licking the display shoes (yes, licking!!!!) and laughing away to himself with joy....

 

.....When I spotted him on all fours swaying about 2 metres away from a boy trying on trainers...........when like a flash EL slid across the floor and licked the length of the sole of the trainers as the boy was trying to lace it up! The poor boy's face was agog. His Mother started screaming at El, "what are you doing, you stupid boy!!"

 

....Everybody was looking, and I just said I was very sorry and tried to walk away, but this 'lady' wanted a confrontation I believe and called him "weird, freak". So I very loudly shouted back, "As I said I am sorry, but my son is Autistic, not a freak, Thankyou!!!! (and I also pressed into her hand one of the ASD cards......

 

.....I got outside and she came running out into the mall to apologise, she was red with embarrassment, I was triumphant as she dug herself an even bigger hole!!!!!

 

 

However the staff in another store, were hysterical with laughter when El did his Shoe Loving Act once and even offered to sack the cleaner and employ El for his attention the job!!!

[JsMum]

Yes screaches and squeaks, sqarks when in high levels of anxiety, also repeats random words, sometimes he takes the last sentance of a conversation and repeats it over and over again, tv sets this off in the evening, adverts are the worse as he has memorised the phrases and then repeats the bit, but rather loudly, he has done this for as long as I can rememeber.

 

its a sensory diversion tactic I believe, and to mask the task in hand, like the trying on new shoes, the whole thing is too over stimulating, textures of the shoes, the feeling of someone holding the feet to place in the shop, the demands to then walk in them, unfamiliar people, unfamiliar place its all too much sensory information.

 

I would check out the availabilty of home visits as this could be something they may do.

 

JsMum

[peppa]

Dd tends to either make up words which she repeats over and over, current one (bangee) she also repeatedly says "oh bother, which is sweet to hear, but distressing also, as it seems to confirm she is aware of her behaviour but powerless to stop it.

 

She has only recently began making noises which vary but quite often sound like shes talking swahili!!

 

Glad to know this isn't uncommon!

 

Oh and don't get me started on shoe shops!!!!! Lets just say we were asked to leave and never return in one well known store! x

[butterfingersbimbo]

el does the dog thing!!!

[loulou]

Hi,

 

Kai growled from a very young age (about 18 months), if people talked to him. He also does the "snake about to attack" sort of spit noise when he's stressed. He does is much less frequently now he's older though.

 

I've had some horrendous experiences in shoe shops too. I don't take Kai in shoe shops anymore because if he kicks off i won't be able to control him as he's too big now.

 

A very nice sales assistant in Clarks said that we could make an "appointment" for shoe fitting, rather than chance it. She said if i call before i go, she can tell me if it's quiet and look out for us. That would avoid having to queue as here is no way Kai could do that (not without major stress and tears anyway).

 

Another thing she suggested, was calling their Head Office and asking for them to send one of those foot measures. Then i can measure his feet and go to the shop without him and buy shoes. They always let me buy a few pairs to take home to try . Hooray for good shop assistants .

 

Loulou xx