next appointment

Here I am blogging live from our next therapy appointment. I am waiting for the therapist to come get him and then they go back on their own.

I have a few key issues that need to be addressed...
1. he has become very 'mouthy' lately...more so then usual.
2. what discipline methods should I use with him?
3. how do I distinguish between what he can control and cannot?
4. he says he has no friends in school and no one plays with him (i think the biggest reason is because he refuses to play what other kids want to play).
5. ongoing frustration/anger issues.

I hope to start learning some coping skills for him! It's a slow journey as he learns more about his emotions, which is the key to all other progress.
I'll keep everyone informed!

photo session

If you want to do something really funny with an aspie kid, take him for a portrait session! We did this yesterday. It was a little frustrating for me because I did want to buy the pictures, but overall it was pretty funny. He was in a goofy mood and has a difficult time smiling 'on demand'.
The funniest part was that he practiced some poses (while in underwear in the bathroom mirror) that he referred to as his 'man poses'. When he pulled them out the photog laughed so hard she dropped her camera, was crying and had to leave the room.

He's so Mr. Cool!

oh blah

I am not sure if my husband will ever fully understand all of this...

lemme back up a bit...
If a study was done on this, I am sure it would be confirmed that on average each house within a thirty mile radius of us has on average 2.5 Nintendo DS. Except for our house. We are crazy and apparently out of touch with the universe and have on average 0. Im not against them (he can play weekends only though) we just have never thought he would like it. We were wrong.
For the last several weeks he has begged and pleaded for us to buy it for him. He has done several chores and is saving his money.

On Monday my husband made a deal with him that he could get the DSi & a game if he cleaned spotless the basement and his room. Usually he jumps at the chance to do chores and earn $ but this time he procrastinated until tonight. Meanwhile he had it in his head he would get it in time for the weekend...Im sure everyone can guess how my night went...

...and how each day/night will go until he completes the tasks at hand.

We won't give in though...no DSi until the chores are done. Lets see how long I keep my sanity.

self regulation

I was emailed a copy this Self Regulation Information document today about self regulation. I think some of these techniques will work amazingly for my son so I wanted to share them. I especially like this chart of what to do if over-stimulated or under-stimulated.

I will review and comment on what works and does not seem to work.

Let me know if anyone has any feedback!

accomplished

I am feeling super accomplished today because yesterday I made all of the appointments that I have kept putting off doing. Why in the world do I put off phone calls so much?!

Things accomplished:
Food Allergy Testing - scheduled for June 13th
Prescription for Sensory Testing - should be ready in a few days
Dog appt to get neutered - Monday (yes, not Aspie related, but still accomplished!)

Time it took to accomplish them: 18 minutes

Reasons I procrastinate? numerous

nail clipping

Question of the day

How can I successfully clip the nails of the boy who screams and flinches whenever I touch his nails?

...just a slight bit of drama this morning.

The Chart

The therapist has him tracking his emotions daily on a chart. She says this will help him start to associate what he is feeling with the type of emotion it is. I am attaching the chart and will explain it below...I think it will be hugely beneficial and may be beneficial to someone else also.

A few key points about the chart:
1. He has to go through the chart first, before bed. He marks the emotions that he felt throughout the day in a red pen. After, he explains to us what made him feel each emotion and how he reacted.
2. I go through and mark the emotions that I witnessed throughout the day for him. It may be the same emotions or it may be different emotions. The key is to point out the emotions that he missed throughout the day. Then I go through and explain to him when I witnessed each emotion in him and how he reacted.

The other thing that she discussed with him is the idea that Feelings+Thoughts=Behaviors

Feelings - feelings are never wrong, you are not in control of them
Thoughts - thoughts are able to be re-thought
Behaviors - behaviors are in your control, you can change them