Tips for the ER

We had a trip to the ER.  First one in a LONG time.....since the days of the high week-long fevers and "my brain is on fire".  When you first see Tristen, you wouldn't realize he has Autism.  If you watched him for a while, you might wonder why this weird kid keeps talking to himself.
First thing I immediately realized was I should have had one of the famous "How would you rate your pain?"  charts with all the faces on it.  At first glance, the doctors and nurses do not realize he has autism, so they want him to rate his pain, which is tricky at best for most people, not to mention those on the spectrum.  Making a wallet sized chart for my purse is on my list. I tried to explain it the best I could, but really should have gone through each number and what kind of pain that meant.  He said, "Uh.....10??????"  He wasn't sure how to answer.
My son is verbal and 15 and not obviously autistic, so not until after a few times of me translating directions into a way he could understand and hearing  his speech delay, did they start to understand his situation.  I do not come out and tell people in front of him that he has Autism, because he doesn't really know he has it or what it is.  I don't want him to feel like it's a derogatory thing that identifies him.  If I can work it into the conversation without it being directed at him, that's how I do it.
"Who is his primary care physician?"
"He sees an Autism Specialist."
That usually does the trick.
Be prepared to explain calmly what is going on to your child in case they do not understand the obvious (which they probably won't).  The doctor told Tristen he was going to put his hand in a splint.  He immediately tensed up and whined at the thought of a "splint-er" which was his only frame of reference.  Being prepared to translate directions and also unfamiliar words will make your visit to the ER go much more smoothly.
When the doctor went to cut the gauze on his injured hand, Tristen screeched thinking the doctor was going to cut him.  Calmly explaining that he was cutting a hole for his thumb to go through kept him from going into full melt-down mode.
During the painful process of setting a splint, Tristen was having difficulty dealing with the pain, so I asked him if he was thinking of his favorite SpongeBob episode.  He immediately went into his own world and told me all about the time Patrick was trying to blow bubbles.  We were done before he could finish.
During the X-ray we talked about the equipment and what it did.  We talked about how cool it was to see our bones inside our body.
Being as patient and calm as possible during an event where you might not feel so calm is your best line of defense for an uncomfortable situation such as this.  Autistic kids take their cues from us, their caretakers.  If we lose it, they lose it.  We have to be pros and putting our feelings aside and making their comfort our first priority.