RDI® for Adults and Teens
Adults & Autism
If you are an adult that was recently diagnosed or a young adult or teen that has “aged out’ of typical autism interventions such as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), you may be looking for help. Unfortunately, the conversation around autism, especially in regards to therapies and interventions, seems to stop when a child reaches a certain age, leaving many people on the spectrum without resources to navigate their life in and entering adulthood.
You may feel like you are trying to get around in the world with ‘holes’ in your developmental plan. You don’t know why you are having so much trouble in life but you know something is not quite right.
What type of struggles adults on the spectrum may face?
- Inability to hold a job
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Suicidality
- Non-flexible thinking
- Breakdown of relationship
- Extreme black and white thinking patterns
- Extreme stress brought on by the inability to manage their experiences
- Addiction and Substance Abuse
Helping learn how to cope and manage these struggles is not an indication that you are a person unworthy or in need of being ‘changed’, all people can benefit from therapy and a greater understanding of themselves to help them navigate life.
How does RDI help Adults and Teens?
Dynamic Intelligence
Dynamic intelligence is central to independence and quality of life, and RDI® builds on this perspective. Look at the complex world that you live in, there is much to cope with! Challenges and change are constant in life, but the development of dynamic intelligence gives you the ability to think flexibly and understand different perspectives in life. This can help you cope with change, and to integrate information from multiple sources.
Here are the six areas of dynamic intelligence universal to every person on the autism spectrum. Each help to usher in quality of life and make independence possible:
- Emotional Referencing – The ability to ‘read’ and learn from the emotional experiences of others.
- Social Coordination – The ability to observe others and self-regulate behavior in order to participate in social relationships.
- Declarative Language – The ability to use language and non-verbal language for expression, interaction, and to share feelings and ideas with others.
- Flexible Thinking – The ability to adapt when life’s circumstances change.
- Relational Information Processing – The ability to think situations through, to obtain solutions, when there are no “right or wrong” answers.
- Foresight and Hindsight – The ability to reflect on past experiences and use them as a tool to anticipate potential future scenarios.
More than Skills
There is substantial reason to believe that cognitively higher functioning teens and adults can learn a wide range of sophisticated skills. However, significant obstacles are found when the individual tries to apply these learned skills in real-world, complex, dynamic settings, or when skills must be modified or adapted “on-the- fly” to meet circumstances that were not covered in the training curriculum.
The problem, then, is not learning specific skills per se, but their application in a more dynamic manner, to progressively more complex, “messy”, unpredictable real-world problems and settings. This real life application is incorporated into the Relationship Development Intervention Program’s Dynamic Intelligence curriculum.
Basically, if you understand Dynamic Intelligence and are able to take on your learning, you will be able to become more flexible. This can help alleviate the stress and anxiety that often comes when an individual on the spectrum navigates the neurotypical world.
How to Get Started with RDI®?
We would love to help you when you are ready to start your RDI® program! The best way to get started is by looking for a consultant in your area, or one that offers online services that you can utilize. If you would like to be connected with a consultant that could best help you, you can sign up for a free consultation by clicking here.
Resources for Adults & Teens
Is This Autism?
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Autism and Mental Engagement
It’s possible to reform a Guiding Relationship with children diagnosed with autism, leading to growth-seeking and many more benefits.
Learn more with Dr Sheely
RDI: An Interview With a Former Student
In this episode of Autism: A New Perspective, host Katherine Lee brings in a former RDI® student who is now in her 30s. Alysia Elliot and her mom Sharon Sargeant talk about Alysia’s life with autism, before RDI® and how starting an RDI® program changed everything.
5 Practical Implementations of RDI® in Your Life as an Adult To Help You at Work, at School or Socially
Autism doesn’t go away when you grow up. Improve your quality of life and relationships, achieve your goals and live the life you want to live with RDI®.
Autism, Adults & RDI®
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Autism and Bullying – Helping Your Kid Cope
Studies have found that children and teens with autism are more likely to be bullied than their typically developing peers. Over 60% of children, teens and young adults with autism experience bullying. Among them, high schoolers are more likely to be bullied. If the rate of bullying among autistic individuals is so high, you might be wondering: Why isn’t more being done about it? To start with, a lot of parents don’t know that their child is being bullied.
Starting an RDI® Program as an Adult
In this week’s podcast, Dr. Sheely talks about the RDI® program for adults. When is it appropriate? Who is an ideal candidate? And how can it help?
How Autisic Adults Can Build Self-Esteem Through Self-Acceptance
We’re taught from a young age that high self-esteem is something to be desired and attained, but self-esteem isn’t all we need. Although it’s not talked about nearly as much, self-acceptance is much more important when it comes to good mental health and overall happiness.
Autistic Teens and Masking
Dr. Sarah Wayland talks about autism and masking, specifically for teens or young adults in this episode of the RDIconnect® podcast, Autism: A new Perspective.
How To Keep Your Older Child or Teen Safe Online
Many of us enjoy the benefits of being online. We connect with people from all over the world, we pursue our interests, we are entertained, and we can learn about any topic that we are interested in. Our autistic children and teens benefit as we do from the online world; however, our youngsters can be more vulnerable to cyber threats such as predators, pornography, and bullying if they do not understand the dangers, and if they do not establish and use internet safety skills.