Ty loves things that he defines as soft and cuddly.? I had a heck of a time getting him out of the Dr.s office today without the life size Elmo stuffed animal he found because he insisted it was so ?soft and cuddly?.? I think the reason he carries cookie monster is because he likes the way it feels.? Flannel and jersey knits feel very good to his skin.?? Cotton and thermals do not.? He begs me to not make him wear ?button shirts? but this is not because he doesn?t like the buttons.? He doesn?t like the material that most button shirts are made from.? He hates to wear jackets because I have not found a jacket texture that he can tolerate.? He would prefer to be cold.? (So yes, I do have to out vote him on this one often out of necessity).

Some children with spectrum issues don?t like touch and some crave it.? Ty loves it.? He loves strong touch.? Big tight hugs just about make Ty glow with delight.

Ty also has a very high pain tolerance.? Recently we were walking out the door and Tanner pointed out that Ty?s head was bleeding.? Ty then says ?Yeah.? I have a goose egg.?

WHAT?? I check his head and he does indeed have a bleeding goose egg that he claims he got when he bumped his head on the counter.

Never said a word about it until we discovered it.? I have story after story just like this.

How can you help? When you see Ty, give him a hug.? He will love it!? Realize though that hugging Ty will invite him in so be prepared to give him a short investment of talk time too.? I?ll talk more about that later.

If you see Ty get injured and you are concerned that the injury may have been worse than what his facial features or emotions suggest, it would be wise to double check.