more on Communicating pain

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Once we decided what to put on the pain communication board, took the

appropriate photo, and made the board - we had to teach him how to use it.

(The communication board has actual photos of the child in each situation or

demonstrating each feeling.)

I use a technique called Aided Language Stimulation - which is just a fancy

name for pointing to the appropriate picture and saying it aloud. ALS is a

technique proven to improve both receptive and expressive communication.

(google aided language stimulation or natural language stimulation for

research studies) Even though Josh is an experienced AAC communicator,

whenever we introduce a new board I use aided language stimulation to

introduce it.

Make a number of copies of the pain comm board. Keep one in your purse, in

the bathrooms, on the cabinet that contains meds - wherever you think it

might be used. If it's not ready to use, in sight, it won't be. It's that

simple be ready for the accident or sudden illness. Use the board as many

times as possible. It's best to use the board when it's most natural.

Anytime he or I are ill - we use the board.

Using the example of picture of the body on the bedroom door. A full length

photo of your child can be used if that's a better strategy. If your child

uses a speech generating device - you can create hotspots. Load the photo

onto the device and embed voice output messages in the body. This is called

a visual scene display and can be very effective for some.