Autism and Haircuts! Can Gabe overcome his fear and anxiety at the hair salon?

Gabe is an autistic and nonverbal teen. He has struggled from day one with getting his hair cut! We don't know exactly what it is that causes him distress at times. I believe it's a variety of things. He has sensory issues as it relates to the sound of the electric clippers. He is not sound sensitive when it comes to most other things though.
After years of practice and getting his haircut by Ping almost exclusively, Gabe has become a pro! He usually walks in the salon and sits down in her chair without showing any fear or anxiety. Today, was another story.
When we walked in there were many people in the salon. Gabe had to wait for about 10 minutes. When it was his turn he sat down and allowed Ping to put the cape on him. She asked us if it was ok to use the electric clippers to start because his hair was so long and we had asked her to cut it short. We told her it was ok, but Gabe had a different reaction! He immediately popped up from his seat when he saw and heard the clippers turn on! It took a few minutes to get Gabe to sit back down. He decided to try again after we offered him a lollipop. He sat calmly for the rest of the haicut and even let her use the clippers at the end! #autism #nonverbal #autismawareness #autismacceptance #haircut #nonspeaking