Communication Tips To Help Improve Your Relationship With A Neurodivergent Child

Communicating with a child or teen who is neurodivergent can feel challenging for many parents. How those with autism, ADHD, or other developmental challenges communicate and see the world is unique. How they view and interact with the world is something special that many people don't realize if they aren't around them often.

If you want to build a relationship with your neurodivergent child, starting with learning how to communicate with them is crucial. 

Communication Tips For You Parenting A Neurodivergent Child/Teen

Active Listening

Nobody wants to feel as if they are not being heard or understood. This is especially true for individuals who are considered neurodivergent. More often than not, they will struggle with communicating with other people.

Show them that you are actively listening to them. Give nonverbal cues such as nodding and maintaining eye contact with them as they speak. This will especially help them practice active listening when someone is speaking to them. It will also help them learn nonverbal social cues that are sometimes harder for those who are neurodivergent to pick up on.

Use Visuals

Learning any type of new information or remembering something is hard for many children who are neurodivergent. Often, they learn best by having a visual representation of concepts or things they need to remember to do, such as household chores.

Let Them Process The Conversation

When someone has a neurodivergent brain, processing what was said takes a little longer. Give them extra time to process everything and formulate a response. They aren't always able to immediately respond.

When you show them that you respect that they need time to think about something, it can help them feel calmer and prepared to continue the conversation.

Give Them Options

Nobody wants to feel as if they have no control over their own life. Instead of making demands of them, give them options. For example, you might say, "Do you want mac n' cheese tonight?" And while that may be a straightforward answer, restructuring this question will help them learn to communicate their needs more effectively. You could restructure it as, "Would you rather have mac n' cheese tonight, or would you like french fries?"

It respects their autonomy while allowing them to express what they want. In the long run, little things like that will help them become more independent and confident in their decisions.

Validate Their Feelings

You don't have to fully understand why your child is reacting the way they do. It might be frustrating that they are becoming overwhelmed by something so small in hindsight. However, to them, these emotions are genuine and challenging to cope with.

Let them know that their feelings and emotions are valid. You understand that they are completely overwhelmed by something right now, and you understand that it's just too much. Making them feel silly or ashamed of their feelings will not encourage them to express them in healthy ways later on.

Make Them Feel Safe

Foster an environment where your child will feel safe expressing themselves. In so many ways, you are there safe space and what they know the most. Help them process their thoughts and feelings by never making them feel judged for them.

Helping them feel comfortable speaking with you will help them to eventually feel safe to branch out to other people as well.

Therapy

Counseling is a crucial tool for helping neurodivergent succeed. Often, parents feel as if they are a boat floating on waters they have never navigated before. Remember, that without structure and routine, that is how many neurodivergent children feel.

Don't hesitate to reach out to us to learn more about ADHD or autism treatment. The therapists at our practice are specially trained to help all neurodivergent children with many life skills, including communication.