Staying Physically Healthy

Overview

This resource provides tips for individuals with autism on how to maintain their physical health and wellbeing.

How does one stay physically healthy?

It is a matter of building new, healthy habits and making sure you include those good habits as part of your daily life. There are lots of ways that you can maintain or improve the health of your body.

Drink enough water

Make sure you keep track of how much water you drink daily. This website is useful for calculating how much water you may need each day:

How to Calculate How Much Water You Should Drink

Get enough sleep

It can be tempting to decrease the amount of sleep in order to get more done. However, this strategy can lead to negative outcomes. Read this for more information about sleep:

How Much Sleep Do I Need?

Get physical exercise on a regular basis

Eat healthy foods each day!

Make sure to eat enough fruits, vegetables, protein, and other healthy foods and ingredients that your body needs.

Take a look at this link for more info:

Healthy Diet for Adults with Autism

Connect with others

Spend time with the people you love and trust. It’s important that you spend time with other people in order to maintain social connections. These connections are important for both your mental and physical health.

Take care of your mental health

Being aware of your thoughts and emotions throughout the day can be a good first step in taking better care of yourself. Please see this link:

Building Better Mental Health

Take your medications as prescribed

It’s important to not forget them. The medications were prescribed to help you.

Maintain your physical hygiene

Wash your hands and keep your body clean and healthy with regular washing. You can shower, bathe, or use wipes to decrease body odors every day.

Additional Recommendations:

      • Go to the doctor(s) and the dentist regularly for preventive measures and maintenance care, they can also prescribe medicine as needed.
      • Make sure to get outside on a regular basis. Going outside can be a great way to calm down and/or decrease stress.
      • Reduce sitting and screen time. It can be easy to lose track of time and sit longer than you planned. Having planned breaks or setting a timer can be a way to be more active during the day.
      • Avoid or limit alcohol use. If you are of legal age (21 years old in the U.S.), it is legal to use alcohol. However, it is strongly suggested that you discuss any alcohol usage with your doctor.

These three links below will connect you to helpful websites about maintaining your physical health.

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This information was developed by the Autism Services, Education, Resources, and Training Collaborative (ASERT). For more information, please contact ASERT at 877-231-4244 or info@PAautism.org. ASERT is funded by the Bureau of Supports for Autism and Special Populations, PA Department of Human Services.