My son is 16, diagnosed with High Functioning Autism, Social and General Anxiety Disorder when he was 10. Very introverted. He isolates a lot but still manages to be at the top of his class, martial arts black belt, played in an orchestra, etc. I think he may have complex trauma. He used to be very happy and silly when he was younger. His room is his only safe place and I was his only safe person (thanks to the defense mode tips from this group). I have helped him with anxiety therapy for years. A few weeks ago, I broke his trust by letting his younger brother (also with special needs) use his chapstick. He said it was immoral of me to have someone else use his personal item. I apologized & explained to him that it was an emergency and I never intended to ever have him use that item again. I was going to buy him a new one. He is furious and thinks I am a disgusting, immoral person. I lost his trust and now he doesn’t have a safe person. I was helping him prepare for college, etc before all this. Not sure where to go from here. I only found out about moral rigidity and I think it applies in this case. Any advice on how to win his trust back? He finds it really hard to forgive, but I just want to continue to help him.

Posted by Lyn at 2025-01-18 16:32:06 UTC