What Working in Autism Support Has Taught Us
Working in autism support changes the way you see people, behaviour, and relationships. It teaches you quickly that many commonly held assumptions don’t hold up in real life; especially when it comes to behaviour, communication, and trust.
Through daily work alongside autistic individuals, our team has learned lessons that continue to shape how we support people at ALC. These lessons didn’t come from theory or textbooks alone, but from lived experience, reflection, and relationships built over time.
Here is what working in autism support has taught us.
“Behaviour That Challenges” Is not the Problem: It is Communication
One of the most important shifts we’ve made is how we understand behaviour.
What is often labelled as “challenging behaviour” is rarely about being difficult, defiant, or disruptive. More often, it is a form of communication - especially when someone is overwhelmed, anxious, confused, or unable to express a need in words.
Behaviour can communicate:
• Distress or sensory overload
• A need for predictability or space
• Difficulty understanding expectations
• Feeling unsafe or misunderstood
When behaviour is viewed as communication rather than a problem to be fixed, the question changes. Instead of asking “How do we stop this?”, we begin to ask “What is this person trying to tell us?”
That shift changes everything.
Discipline Didn’t Build Trust: Consistency and Understanding Did
Early approaches to support often focus on control, rules, or consequences. In practice, we’ve learned that these approaches rarely build trust - and without trust, support is limited.
What has made the real difference is consistency and understanding.
Consistency helps people feel safe.
Understanding helps people feel respected.
When responses are predictable, calm, and respectful, relationships grow stronger. Over time, this creates an environment where people feel secure enough to communicate, engage, and try new things; not because they are forced to, but because they feel supported.
Why Relationships Matter in Autism Support
At ALC, our approach places relationships at the centre of support.
When we focused less on managing behaviour and more on building relationships, support naturally improved. This meant:
• Taking time to listen
• Learning individual strengths and interests
• Respecting pace and preferences
• Prioritising emotional safety
Through relationship-building, behaviour often changed; not because it was controlled, but because needs were finally being understood and met.
What We’ve Learned: Every Day
Autism isn’t a problem to fix.
It’s a way of experiencing the world that deserves understanding.
Working in autism support has taught us that progress begins with listening, trust grows through consistency, and meaningful support is built on relationships. These lessons guide our work every day and continue to shape how we support the individuals we work alongside.
This is what we’ve learned - every day.
If this post resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone who works with or supports autistic people. Understanding grows through conversation, and relationship building changes everything.
