Of late, that position in our house is lying face down on the floor crying- if you are Little Bug. This move has been the most difficult for him by far. He has begun to have some trouble with potty training. At one point, he had three accidents in roughly an hour. His self injuring- specifically biting, hitting, and scratching himself- has increased in frequency.
Nick and I were kinda taken off guard by how challenging this has been for Little Bug. Last time we moved, we had a week to do it in and although it was challenging, Little Bug was not as stressed. This time we had over a month. The house closed on December 9 and we didn't move until January 20, however the change has been tremendous.
I wish with all my heart there was a way to make this better. We have included him in every step of the way- looking for houses, getting the paperwork signed, he painted and decorated his room, and helping with general tasks around the house. We don't have any more suggestions.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
My son the goat
In the past week, Little Bug has eaten or chewed on the following:
- · His shirts (every day) to the point of ruining them
- · Chuggington trains
- · Forks
- · Spoons
- · Pencils
- · Cars
- · Rocks
- · A found staple (!)
- · Sticks
- · Stuffed Animals
- · Many things that I have yet to discover
Little Bug has pica as well as a persistent need for oral input. This means that he without understanding the consequences has chewed all of the above and much, much more. He has chewed our furniture and blankets. One time he found a piece of glass at the beach and put it in his mouth to chew. Anything that can fit in his mouth will go in his mouth.
Because of this, Little Bug has chipped 7 teeth. We need to get him to the dentist (again) to ensure that there isn’t any critical damage to his teeth. Right now we are talking about baby teeth, but what do we do when they are adult teeth?
We are at a loss with this one. He has ready access to gum, chewing tubes, Ps and Qs, and we just ordered a chewing bracelet. We are going to see if his teacher will allow him to have gum in class to curtail some of the chewing. Currently he does have a chewing tube at school, but I am wondering if he needs prompting to use it. If you have any solutions or suggestions- no matter how crazy you may think they are, please send them our way.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
The final move
You would think that after moving three times previously with Little Bug, this would be something that we were prepared for. You would hope that we would be able to know when it was going to be too much. You would bet that since he is verbal, he would be able to tell us both of those things. You would be wrong on all three counts.
Just because you have done something that was hard previously doesn't mean the next time will be easier. Especially when it comes to change. It mainly just means that there will be a next time. For Little Bug, moving has always been hard on him. He doesn't like the boxes and people touching his stuff. He doesn't like having to let toys go for a little while until we get into the new house. He also has a hard time verbalizing this.
We thought that he was plugging along alright until last night when we found him sobbing by the fridge because his alphabet magnets were on the new fridge and not the old fridge. All I could do is wrap him in my arms and tell him that we were there for him. I couldn't tell him it would get better or easier, as I don't know that. I couldn't fix it. I can't shield him from it. We can only be present.
One thing he has been pretty excited about is that he has the whole upstairs to himself. We are excited because we have been able to make it into a OT play land- also known as a really cool bedroom. There are window seats for sitting and reading at, a spinning chair for vestibular input, a chalkboard wall for as much tactile and visual stimulation as one could want, a crash pad pillow and tent, and that doesn't include his toys. It has always been a dream that we would be able to really set things up for him so that he had access to all the sensory input he needed but without the requirement of furniture movement and adult supervision that has been needed before. Goal achieved.
It should all be complete and move in ready on Friday, which is a great thing because we are moving on Friday.
Just because you have done something that was hard previously doesn't mean the next time will be easier. Especially when it comes to change. It mainly just means that there will be a next time. For Little Bug, moving has always been hard on him. He doesn't like the boxes and people touching his stuff. He doesn't like having to let toys go for a little while until we get into the new house. He also has a hard time verbalizing this.
We thought that he was plugging along alright until last night when we found him sobbing by the fridge because his alphabet magnets were on the new fridge and not the old fridge. All I could do is wrap him in my arms and tell him that we were there for him. I couldn't tell him it would get better or easier, as I don't know that. I couldn't fix it. I can't shield him from it. We can only be present.
One thing he has been pretty excited about is that he has the whole upstairs to himself. We are excited because we have been able to make it into a OT play land- also known as a really cool bedroom. There are window seats for sitting and reading at, a spinning chair for vestibular input, a chalkboard wall for as much tactile and visual stimulation as one could want, a crash pad pillow and tent, and that doesn't include his toys. It has always been a dream that we would be able to really set things up for him so that he had access to all the sensory input he needed but without the requirement of furniture movement and adult supervision that has been needed before. Goal achieved.
It should all be complete and move in ready on Friday, which is a great thing because we are moving on Friday.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Looking forward
I am a long time follower of Both Hands and a Flashlight and was inspired by their recent post for their 2012 resolutions. Instead of resolutions, 3 words were chosen to act as a compass for the year. I am inspired by this and would like to do my own take on this.
Accept. We really need to work on this principle. We need to work on accepting ourselves and all our wonderful quirks and imperfections. Also, we need to work on accepting help. This hasn't been easy for us to do in any facet of our lives. We are taking steps on this. Little Bug is now spending the night with his grandparents once a month and we have gotten help with our home improvements. This is a principle that we will consistently need focus on. This does not imply that by accepting things they must stay the same. Before you can make a change, you need to know where you are at and understand it.
Do. Especially when it comes to our health. I have accepted that I am out of shape and overweight. I get it. I now need to change. I need to get healthy so that I can be active in life. I don't want to be fat anymore. I don't want to die of a heart attack at 39 like my birth mother. I want to be preset. I want to be for my son and husband. We also need to do things for ourselves. Nick and I are making strides in this, but we need to go further. We need to allow ourselves hobbies and time outside of autism.
Streamline. My current job is all about streamlining and efficiency and while I excel at work, this is something I would like to bring home. Recently, (when we need it the most!) efficiency has gone out the window. It has been chaos. While it is understandable, it needs to change. We are exhausted- partially because of double work and inefficient.
Accept. We really need to work on this principle. We need to work on accepting ourselves and all our wonderful quirks and imperfections. Also, we need to work on accepting help. This hasn't been easy for us to do in any facet of our lives. We are taking steps on this. Little Bug is now spending the night with his grandparents once a month and we have gotten help with our home improvements. This is a principle that we will consistently need focus on. This does not imply that by accepting things they must stay the same. Before you can make a change, you need to know where you are at and understand it.
Do. Especially when it comes to our health. I have accepted that I am out of shape and overweight. I get it. I now need to change. I need to get healthy so that I can be active in life. I don't want to be fat anymore. I don't want to die of a heart attack at 39 like my birth mother. I want to be preset. I want to be for my son and husband. We also need to do things for ourselves. Nick and I are making strides in this, but we need to go further. We need to allow ourselves hobbies and time outside of autism.
Streamline. My current job is all about streamlining and efficiency and while I excel at work, this is something I would like to bring home. Recently, (when we need it the most!) efficiency has gone out the window. It has been chaos. While it is understandable, it needs to change. We are exhausted- partially because of double work and inefficient.
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