CUES: Coping with Uncertainty in Everyday Situations

Do everyday scenarios like after-school plans changing at the last minute, visiting a new playground or going to a birthday party trigger anxiety for your child? It’s common for autistic kids to experience difficulty when faced with uncertainty. 

At CliniKids, we offer a therapy called CUES – short for Coping with Uncertainty in Everyday Situations - for parents of autistic kids. 

This evidence-based parent coaching program is facilitated by a CliniKids clinical psychologist based on principles of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. You’ll emerge feeling empowered to support your child in everyday situations.  
⏰Weekly or fortnighly two-hour sessions 
🗓️ Run over 8 weeks 
📍Attend in-person at our Subiaco or Joondalup clinics, or online via Telehealth 
 
CUES is designed for caregivers of children aged 4–9 with an autism diagnosis, who experience anxiety related to uncertainty.

 Our next CUES group:

⏰Mondays, 9.30am-11.30am 
🗓️7 September – 26 October
📍Online via Telehealth 
 
Interested? Fill in the form below - it only takes 2 minutes.

Reduce the impact your child’s struggles with uncertainty on your family’s everyday life

CUES will teach you as a parent how to support and manage your child’s challenges with uncertainty to reduce the associated anxiety, meaning that uncertain situations don’t always need to be avoided. 

CUES will support you as a parent to:

• Understand what intolerance of uncertainty looks like in your child
• Identify situations in your everyday life that may lead to uncertainty for your child
• Develop personalised strategies to support your child in difficult situations

Why does my autistic child struggle with uncertainty?

A large proportion of autistic children experience high anxiety that stems from difficulty coping with uncertainty, unpredictability or changes to routines. For example: 

• Changes in plans or routines – like needing to go to the shops on the way home
• Social situations – such as not knowing what to do when playing with other children
• Public events – like a birthday party or going out for dinner
• Sensory - such as not knowing when a hand dryer will go off in a public toilet
• School situations – like upcoming tests and assignments
• New situations - such as starting a new daycare, visiting a new shopping centre

Autistic kids often become highly anxious when they’re not sure what is going to happen. This is typically due to:

• A fear of the unknown
• Holding the expectation or belief that the unknown will be bad, negative or harmful 
• Feeling that they will not be able to cope with this possible ‘bad’ outcome

This can lead these children to develop an intolerance of uncertainty. When kids experience intolerance of uncertainty, they will then often try to avoid uncertain situations. At home, this might look like refusing to leave the house if you’re planning to visit an unfamiliar park, or melting down the morning before a test at school. 

The CUES program focuses on helping you as a parent or caregiver to recognise, understand and manage your child’s intolerance of uncertainty (IU). 

• We’ll help you develop a toolbox of practical, effective strategies, including:
• How to talk to your child about uncertain situations – and tools for making these conversations fun and engaging 
• Strategies for helping your child to build tolerance around uncertainty
• How you can use play at home to practice new skills for coping with uncertainty in a safe, controlled space
• Support for carrying out a ‘practice session’ for your new strategies in a real-life situation. This could look like planning a family outing, like dinner at a restaurant, where you talk to your child beforehand about the unknowns they may be feeling anxious about (such as what food might be on the menu), and supporting them to begin tolerating this uncertainty, so that your family can go through with the outing.

Interested? Fill in the form – it only takes 2 minutes.

Got questions?

Check out the answers to our Frequently Asked Questions below. Want to ask something else? Contact us on 08 6319 1133 or at clinikids.reception@thekids.org.au and one of our friendly Client Support Officers will be able to assist you. 

FAQs