Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi all :)
You may have seen a topic i prerviously posted very recently about my boys. Im a mom of 3. I have got my one boy through alot of the process to the point they have said its Autism and ADHD but it hasnt been put on paper as yet as hes yet to see a phsycotherapist and my other son hasnt even got to first screening yet. This in mind, I have so many questions, so please forgive me as no matter what i read it seems so vague. My main question being if this is the case, does my nearly 6 year old son know? is he aware of his autism and ADHD? If not when do they become aware of it? do you tell them or do you not say anything at all ( i wouldnt until it was on paper anyway). Also my one son has alot of hitting, bitting to others and himself, he uses baby talk and grunts, these things sometimes make me wonder is all this behaviour completely his condition OR is some of it just an average nearly 6 year olds behaviour? Im very confused. I know alot of the things he does isnt that of someone his age but say like when hes boundary pushing is that the nearly six year old or is it part of the condition or both? the reason i ask this as im so worried about time out if its something that cant be helped, in fact should i be time outing anyway? Im in a place where im questioning everything he does (not to him like i just think is this his way of saying i cant cope or is it him just being a head strong nearly 6 year old?) , im questioning everything we do like should i time out if his behaviour is unacceptable (but then it might not be his fault and so i dont want him to feel misunderstood). I often wonder if he knows as im scared that he might feel alone or isolated and i really dont want that. I mean he seems happy enough until hes in one of his outbursts but i am a worrier and the thought of them feeling misunderstood for even a second turns my stomach. If theres anyone out there with autism / ADHD or both a point of view and advice from you would be greatly appreciated as i just want to understand and do the best for my boys. My boys havent changed overnight and i would like to think that i know them every inch of the way however if theres anything i can do to understand the way they see the world then that can only benefit them surely? thank you for reading my post, and thank you in advance to anyone that can contribute, it means alot. Best Wishes, Lisa :)
Slept 12 hours straight! This hammock is seriously helpful, usually rolling over in bed means 20 mins of uncomfortable arranging whereas rolling in a hammock just sends it rocking for 5 mins sending me asleep! ^^
I used to (and still do) what the boys do XD
In terms of food, if I don't like it, I won't eat it. I've gotten more willing to give things a go (one miniture portion, I'd only eat a molecule if I could) but am still the fussiest teen on the planet regarding my family.
To date, when I am given money or chocolate, I immediately add some money to a variety of hidden 'piggy banks' (none of which is a pig, I've got about several book-safe's hidden safely away around my room) each of which stands for a particular reason. Book 1 always has at least £50 in it in case one of our pets gets hurt (to contribute to vet bills if mums having problems) or if I run out of bugs to feed my geckos (cute colourful lizards, great for cuddling, had Emo sitting on my shoulder for three hours one time). Book 2 is for Diet coke and strawberry Chewit's that I buy each week for school. Book 3 is full of all my receipts (in case I'm ripped off) and a small stash of chocolate (in cash mum finds my large stash of goodies hidden strategically around my room), while Book 4 is where I keep all of my bank statement things that Natwest insist on sending me.
Ever since my sister Amelia was born and able to walk, she'd eat all of my sweets or cereal that I left in the kitchen, so I did the next logical thing, kept it hidden safely in my room. So far I haven't lost a single bar to her or my mum, and I should know, I've memorised all their sell-by dates just to be safe.
If I found a toy or a book, I'd go out of my way to hide it. To date if I go into a shop and find a dvd I like I will deliberately go to the far corner of the store and put it behind a large amount of musical dvd's that hardly anyone goes near. When I was little apparently I once found a cuddly toy panther (Panth, still have him now ) and actively climbed up the shelves of Tesco and hid him behind the Heinz beans. 5 months later I dragged mum back to the same Tesco, climbed the shelves (to her horror, she hates me climbing 'dangerous' things, she freaks if I find a nice climbing tree) and brought down Panth, presenting him to her and said 'Birthday' which was the following morning. I can't remember this myself but it does sound like something I may do if I found something of that size that I wanted to buy at a later date, only this time I'd use a stepladder that they leave around the store. xD
In terms of sleeping you might want to find out if he keeps waking through the night. I literally looked like Fat Tony out of the Simpsons for years until I got diagnosed, when the TA at school suggested that I try playing music while I slept to drown out any sounds that would wake me, a tap dripping or the sound of the dog moving around the house. It did help significantly and I lost the extra eye baggage. The hammock has been doing wonders for my back as for some reason all of the stress that I have sleeping on my bed (its like a marine's been doing a knot tying course on my back ) has vanished, leaving me way more relaxed. I guess its finding out what makes him tick or bothers him, then you can tune out all of the things that might not be helping him.
Or it could be he has bad dreams? I don't neccessarily have nightmares, but 'normal' dreams like being in a weird place or even being in school in an exam (similar to dreams my mum has explained are normal to most) scare me half to death, because I have no control or any idea whats going to happen, so what I'd do is sort of plan my dream, usually basing it on a cartoon or tv show and trying to make new episodes in my head. I literally made a new series of Jackie Chan Adventures in my head for at least 3 months xD but it did stop the werid dreams.
P.S. Do I still have to pay royalties to Jackie Chan Adventures if I use it for dreams? If I do then I owe them and many other shows/movies a small forturne.