@pastasucks

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firstfullmoon
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ryebreadgf

octave denis victor guillonnet / gordon mortensen / santiago rusiñol / raoul dufy / albert marquet / henry moret

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softnora
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trickstergoth

Thinking about how Theo Van Gogh loved and supported his brother their whole lives and funded his art even as the rest of the world said it was bad art and how without Theo the world wouldn’t have the art of Vincent Van Gogh and how Theo loved Vincent so much that he died a few months after Vincent died, heartbroken over the loss and how his widow had him reburied next to Vincent so they could be with each other forever and how I can’t even get my brother to text me back smh

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adhd-hippie

I'm thinking about how Vincent had a sister in law (Johanna van Gogh) who understood, accepted and supported her husband's support of his disabled brother-in-law and understood his art so well that even though she was left widowed, poor, and encumbered with 200 paintings which the art world saw no value in she strove tirelessly to change the minds of the art world. Thinking about how she was raising a child, founding a socialist movement, putting together art shows, and editing her deceased husband's and brother-in-laws letters to create a book which she could share with the world. Letters we still rely on today to help us understand the beauty and pain of Vincent's life and my sister won't even respond to group texts 1/2 the time.

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untilghosts-deactivated20211029
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volchitsa-of-winterfell

especially re: eating up savings:

"The less you eat, drink and read books; the less you go to the theatre, the dance hall, the public-house; the less you think, love, theorize, paint, sing, fence, etc., the more you save—the greater becomes your treasure which neither moths nor dust will devour—your capital.  The less you are, the more you have; the less you express your own life, the greater is your alienated life—the greater is the store of your estranged being.

Karl Marx, Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844

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obi-one-drop

Parents/teachers/anyone who works or interacts with children: Please, if you suspect a child is going to fail at doing something, let them fail (as long as the failure doesn't cause harm). Thinking the child might fail does not mean that they will. It sounds harmless, but preemptively giving instruction or taking over a task when not required can be damaging to a child's development.

Starting at around age 3, a child enters a stage of Social-Emotional development refered to as Initiative vs Guilt (Erikson's 3rd stage of Socio-Emotional Development). Depending on their environment, the child will leave this stage with one of two outcomes.

In the desirable outcome, the child develops the sense that they are capable of accomplishing tasks and solving problems. This gives the child the courage to take life's challenges head on. If given proper scaffolding (which I'll probably talk about in another post at some point), the child will also have a good sense to know when to ask for assistance if they need it.

In the undesirable outcome, the child develops the sense that they are inadequate and incapable of accomplishing tasks or solving problems on their own. This will likely cause the child to be fearful of making attempts when life needs it. A very good example of this is would be the child is given an assignment by a teacher, but the child feels paralyzed because the instructions were not completely explicit. The child feels it is up to them to make a judgment about how to complete the assignment but the learned feeling of inadequacy prevents them choosing how to complete the assignment. In this situation, the teacher might be okay with variations of the assignment, but the child expects ONE perfect solution and does not believe they can find it on their own.

Preemptively interrupting a child's attempt at a task leads to the undesirable outcome. Each time a child attempts any task, they learn something. The child might learn that after a few different attempts they are able to successfully accomplish their goal, or the child might learn that any attempt they make is an automatic failure that requires someone else to fix.

While this stage of development generally happens between ages 3-5, it *is* possible for it to be "revisited" at any time in a child's life. Given proper support, a child (or adult!) who "failed" this stage can develop a sense of self-confidence and competence.

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epicwatson1

Autism and Socio-Emotional Development

Guidance from ABA Therapy Experts in St. Louis, MO

Human beings across ages, cultures, and geographies typically experience six basic emotions: happiness, fear, anger, sadness, surprise, and disgust. These basic emotions start developing naturally from birth. Over time, based on individual experiences, other more complex emotions, such as trust, pride, guilt, shame, embarrassment, or contempt also develop naturally.

However, children or adults diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often have difficulty in recognizing, showing, or responding to emotions. Whether it is facial expressions, body language, voice modulation, other emotional cues, individuals on the Autism spectrum may find it tough to understand or express their own emotions or read and react to other people’s emotions.

The ABA therapy professionals at AB Spectrum discuss some of the socio-emotional challenges of ASD, along with potential interventions to help the affected individual thrive.

Common Socio-Emotional Challenges in Children with Autism

Autism is a complex neurological condition experienced by almost 1 in 54 children in the US every year. Experts in this field suggest that certain areas of the brain that link to social and emotional functioning are underdeveloped in individuals on the Autism spectrum.

Here is a closer look at some of the ASD-related socio-emotional challenges:

  • Understanding or Expressing Emotions: Children with Autism may have trouble in reading, interpreting, and responding appropriately to others’ emotions. It may also be tough for them to feel empathy or imitate emotions. For example, a child who does not return a smile or greeting, or does not show concern when someone is upset is not being deliberately rude. They simply do not understand that it is the expected reaction.
  • Responding to Facial Expressions: Children with ASD may interpret facial expressions differently than neurotypical children. Instead of reading the entire face, they may get fixated on just one part, such as the mouth or eyes, and may have difficulty in recognizing or translating those expressions into feelings or emotions.
  • Participating in Joint Attention: Joint attention is about two people focusing on each other, while also actively focusing on the same activity, interest, or object together. It requires the ability to gain, maintain, or shift attention based on verbal or non-verbal cues. This ability may be lacking in children with Autism. For example, there may be no eye contact or eye movement when someone points out an item, or no reaction when someone uses a gesture to greet.
  • Other Emotional and Social Skills: Children with Autism may tend to struggle while participating in turn-taking activities, differentiating their own feelings from those of others, orienting to new people, or understanding others’ intent or perspectives. Since they are unable to understand, express, or respond to emotional or social cues, they may find it difficult to self-regulate their actions or behave in a ‘socially-accepted’ manner. This may cause frustration, anger, and exhaustion, which manifests itself in the form of repetitive behaviors, resistance to changes in routine, unprompted negative emotions, unusual attachments to certain objects, or social withdrawal.

Socio-Emotional Support for Children with ASD

Parents, teachers, and caregivers can play an important role in boosting the socio-emotional support for children with Autism. Here are some aspects to consider:

  • Since children with ASD may not initiate any interaction, parents and caregivers should try to engage with the child several times a day. Play peek-a-boo, make tunnels for the child to crawl through, roll a ball, or invent other fun interactions.
  • Use definitive phrases to ensure the child’s attention before giving them further instructions. Words such as “Listen, please” may help.
  • Indulge the child in turn-taking games or activities to encourage synchronization of movements and joint attention.
  • Point out, label and talk about emotions of self, the child, and others who they interact with. Use drawings, pictures, photographs, or other props in the form of emotion cards to showcase facial expressions and help the child understand what each visual represents.
  • Use pretend-play activities to improve the child’s willingness and enthusiasm to play with peers or other adults.
  • Base all types of activities on the child’s specific needs and goals, keep the playtimes short, and use plenty of positive reinforcement techniques.

While parental involvement may help in nurturing socio-emotional development in children with Autism, personalized Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy and other structured interventions are also equally important. While ABA therapy experts can create a customized ABA-based curriculum to treat a wide range of symptoms of ASD, other professionals, such as speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, psychologists, and clinical social workers can also help in addressing the child’s specific challenges.

About Autism and Behavior Spectrum (AB Spectrum)

Specializing in the Reggio Emilia ABA therapy philosophy, the experts at AB Spectrum provide tailor-made ABA therapy throughout St. Louis Missouri. They focus on Natural Environment Training (NET) and use a “Learning through Play” approach to treat individuals with Autism. Their team of qualified and experienced ABA professionals includes Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA) and Registered Behavior Technicians (RBT) who create flexible, high-impact, customized learning plans based on every child’s specific triggers, learning abilities and treatment goals. In addition to in-home therapy services, they offer clinic-based ABA programs through their Autism treatment centers at Chesterfield and St. Charles, Missouri. At AB Spectrum, the goal is to decrease challenging behaviors, build essential skills, and improve the overall quality of life of children with ASD and their families.

Call 314.648.2687 to learn more about AB Spectrum’s ABA therapy offerings in and around St. Louis, Missouri. For a formal assessment and Autism diagnosis schedule a consultation at one of their Autism treatment centers in Missouri.