Such a Quiet Boy!

Boy Wonder managed to sleep last night, through exhaustion more than anything else! He awoke this morning bleary eyed but soon snapped into action! He went into the shower and stayed there for some time. Once out he was skittish and not processing a great deal of anything. As we left to go to school he started to level off.

Once at school he bounded into the classroom and started talking at the TA about Wembley and the football game. He exclaimed that the referee was bonkers and a lunatic, expressing his reasoning for this over and over. The adults in class were quite amazed by his display of expression ( he is usually such a quiet boy!)

This morning Boy Wonder was observed by the autism specialist and I met with her afterwards and his teacher. We spoke a bit about the strategies used and the current situation at home. When the teacher returned to class we spoke more openly about the lack of actual training the school received in autism and co morbid conditions ( half an hour so far!) and that she is attending the tribunal as a witness but isn't looking forward to it and would rather not go. I discussed with her the growing reality that Boy Wonder requires a more specialist provision not necessarily because of the autism but because of the additional complexities of the ADHD and severe anxiety. She agreed that this is a likely outcome. As I explained to her, our expectations are way too high of a school that has very little knowledge of complex conditions. It would be like expecting me to service a car by reading a text book. I can't even change a tyre!

I spent the afternoon looking at options and booking some visits to other schools to view. With the tribunal pending we are very aware that we need to know exactly what we are asking for so we need to get out there and see what's available. However, the thought of moving him is not something we really want to do but that is more because of the immediate upheaval rather than the long term aim.

This evening Boy Wonder played outside and then came in for his hour on Minecraft. He reluctantly settled down and read afterwards but on checking,  he had jumped into bed with Cat Girl and they were watching Minecraft together. Cheeky monkeys!

Wembley!!

It's been one busy weekend. Boy Wonder was up early on Saturday for dance  but had to go with Superman to the club shop first to buy essentials for the tomorrow's Wembley game. They came away with a flag and two large foam hands, perfect !

After dance Boy Wonder went out with his 1:1 worker and met up with a group of children on the park for a couple of hours. We went into town to get Cat Girl's eyes tested as she keeps complaining of headaches but all is fine so it is probably just the cough/ cold that she has had for the last couple of weeks.

Once home, Super Gran and Biker Gramps came over for an early Mothers Day visit. They are at a Susan Boyle concert tomorrow which will be fabulous. Such a talent and of course part of the autism super hero gang so how can she not be wonderful?!

Boy Wonder returned in good spirits and went straight outside to play with the neighbours. They were playing nicely until one of the boys hurt his arm, claiming that Boy Wonder had done it when he pushed him off the ladder to the tree house. Boy Wonder later explained that it was an accident and that yes he had pushed him but he had hurt his arm during the falling process! Therefore he genuinely believed that he wasn't at fault. Not much we could say to that really!

Grandparents visited and Mamma was given her gift for tomorrow. They left earlier than usual as we needed to get Boy Wonder settled earlier for his trip to Wembley tomorrow. He went up bed after his bath at 7.30pm and fell to sleep at 5.30 am. That plan obviously fell on its face. Boy Wonder was too excited to sleep so he stayed up all night and read his books!

Regardless of lack of sleep, Boy Wonder got up with Cat Girl and presented me with hand made cards and chocolate. The perfect gift! Cat Girl also got me a pink teddy and pink plant, beautiful.

The boys went on their way to Wembley but before they went I spoke to them about safety and gave Boy Wonder a strategy if he got lost. I told him to make sure that he kept his mobile on him and made sure Superman had his number. They humoured me and then off they went. Cat Girl and I got ready for our day of horse riding, having our nails done, dinner and cinema.

She did really well at horse riding and is now doing it alone without a lead. She still giggles constantly whilst riding which is a skill in itself!

We had a fabulous girly day and really enjoyed our time together. We got back late but still before the boys. On their return, Superman stated that Boy Wonder had done really well and seemed to have an excellent day. He certainly was full of the day which was lovely however this quickly escalated into anxiety/ overload as he stated that he had been home sick and then proceeded to talk constantly, mainly jibberish. It took a while to settle him but he had done so well throughout the day that he clearly needed to unwind.

Eventually both children in bed, Superman and I settled down and caught up with our days.

Doing Cartwheels ...

Boy Wonder has had another high yet volatile couple of days. His morning routine has remained at 'catch me if you can pace' and his head is just not soaking up instruction for at least the first half an hour.

School has appeared a bit more settled over the past couple of days and we made a bit of a break through with the play ground issues. The other child also having 'difficulties' means that the whole thing is starting to make sense. Boy Wonder complained of feeling sick again yesterday and having tummy ache. This continued after school but after his dance session seemed to go.

He is practising cartwheels for his dance show which he seems to be really enjoying. He would spend all day on his head if he could! Boy Wonder then went to football practice in the rain with Superman. That's dedication for you. They came back soaking!  Whilst they were out, Cat Girl and I discussed our plans for Mothers Day. The boys are going to Wembley so we are going to have our nails done and then go to the cinema. I suggested to her that we could go somewhere posh for dinner after having our nails done and asked where she would like to go? 'We could go to McDonalds!' came the excited reply. Not exactly what I had in mind!

It's nice to see that Boy Wonder has come out of his low mood cycle although this has been replaced by a rather bouncy, erratic boy . We can cope with that! In fact I think everything is easier to manage when there's a smile on his face.

Friday is always ths easier day of the week as it is activity afternoon at school which they both enjoy. Therefore the day was fairly uneventful up until the boy next door accidentally lost all of Boy Wonder's stash of goodies on Minecraft by putting a hole in his floor. This sent his mood spiralling, resulting in tears and wetting before bed.

Eventually after given some time to sort his Minecraft situation, Boy Wonder settled down in bed with his cat and read.

A little excitable...,,,

Tuesday brought a less tired Boy Wonder which gave him extra bounce! After battling with him to get ready we gathered what we needed and went to school. Cat Girl was complaining of growing pains in her legs which made things a little slower.

The school day brought some difficulties which consisted of Boy Wonder trying to get his head around the head teacher leaving, an older boy that has been saying unkind things to him and then another friend giving him a toy under the pretence of wanting something in return. A lot of stuff to get his head around.

Superman picked the children up from school. Boy Wonder had refused to go to the after school club after the incident last week. Its a shame that he is now missing out on something he enjoys because he is scared of being shouted at again.

Today was much the same in the way of hyperactivity and giddiness. The Occupational Therapist visited school this morning to review the sensory diet and the class then went swimming this afternoon. Boy Wonder was reported to be ' a little excitable' which translates to 'wild child !'

After school Boy Wonder went off to drama and Cat Girl to Ju Jitsu whilst I did the food shop. Once home the children had their daily dose of Minecraft before settling down for bed. Boy Wonder remained bouncy and difficult to settle.  He created numerous football banners and read a book before finally going to sleep.

Super Car Sleeping.

The evening didn't remain settled as Boy Wonder decided that he couldn't settle and ' Will never sleep ever again!' He ran backwards and forwards between rooms, attempted to camp out on our bedroom floor and eventually burnt himself out in the early hours.

Getting up this morning was a bit of a struggle. Once in the shower I got his clothes ready and went to help Cat Girl wash and dress. Boy Wonder was very difficult to keep on task and didn't seem to be taking in a great deal of what I was saying to him. When asked to put his shoes and coat on for school he just sat on the floor near his shoes staring into space.

On the way to school we received a phone call saying that art therapy was cancelled due to the therapist being ill. Boy Wonder was clearly upset by this. However I reminded him that he could now do gymnastics which cheered him up a little.

Today after football at school, Boy Wonder's 1:1 worker collected him and they went bowling. She rang me afterwards to say that he wanted tea at home so she brought him back and explained that he appeared quite subdued.

After taking Cat Girl swimming, Superman had a game of fencing on the Wii with them both and Boy Wonder won!

Boy Wonder and I then had a chat this evening about anything that may be bothering him? We had received a letter from school today stating that the Head Teacher  was leaving in summer. Boy Wonder said that he was very upset about this as he didn't know what would happen next. This wasn't  something that I could answer either. Potentially a huge grey area that will last for months. Not great.

Boy Wonder also mentioned about an older boy picking on him at school every day about his footballing ability and other things that he couldn't remember. He stated that he picks on him as he has a bad memory and isn't able to remember what is said to him. I reassured him that he had done the right thing in telling me.

At bedtime, all gadgets removed, Boy Wonder struggled to settle. He wrote a letter saying that he would never sleep again and being bored made him angry. I suggested that he showed his kitten his favourite super cars and explained the facts to him. Boy Wonder liked this idea and after about an hour he eventually fell to sleep.

Whoosh, whoosh!

The weekend brought a little calm after the storm in that Boy Wonder started his medication increase and it appeared to level him off somewhat. Saturday was a busy day for Boy Wonder where he started by going to dance, then out with his 1:1 worker and later out with us. However, he seemed to cope fairly well and by the time he came home from his 1:1 outing he was reported to be fairly settled.

We got ready and went off out to meet friends for tea at a Chinese Buffett. Afterwards we were going to watch our first ever ice hockey match! Boy Wonder was a little apprehensive but coped well in the restaurant with his friend and Minecraft until it was time for food. He ate little and worked his way through the courses quickly, not really understanding that he needed to wait for everyone else to finish before we could leave.

We walked over to the arena and familiarised ourselves with the stadium. Cat Girl got right into the spirit of the singing, cheering and dancing and soon after Boy Wonder and friend  started to join in. They were trying to get on the big  screens for their dancing efforts! Every time the team scored the crowd went 'Whoosh, Whoosh!' and did a swaying action. We only witnessed this twice with just the two goals.

The match was great entertainment and when we left, Boy Wonder was as high as a kite! Superman held onto him all the way back to the car where unfortunately one guy thought it necessary to shout at him through his car window to watch where he was going. This was in a response to Boy Wonder shouting over and over that he was going to get run over! It would be really useful for some grown ups to read situations first before shouting about them. Superman clearly had hold of Boy Wonder so there was no real danger just Boy Wonder's altered perception.

We arrived home and settled the children down in bed before crashing out ourselves. Boy Wonder read for a short while and eventually went off to sleep.

Sunday was a lazy day. I took Cat Girl for her horse riding lesson, Superman painted and Boy Wonder played outside with the neighbours children. Later on Superman took Cat Girl for a bike ride whilst I did a bit of work and Boy Wonder carried on playing.

It was fairly impressive how Boy Wonder managed to play for most of the day with only a few battles where I had to intervene. These were all around him misunderstanding the situation and attempting to stamp his authority to regain control. What was very amusing was the mad dashes into the play shed or conservatory to avoid the sudden hail storms. They were pretty impressive storms which cleared up quickly and reverted to sunshine only to start again twenty minutes later!  Eventually they stayed inside and played in the Wii until tea time.

Superman rescued me from Boy Wonder's maths homework as we were both getting it wrapped around our necks and then it was bath time before bed. Boy Wonder became irritated by the need to settle down resulting in barricading himself in his bedroom. He eventually relented and went in the bath. This seemed to settle him and he then went to bed a little calmer.

Just Getting It

It's been a tricky couple of days as Boy Wonder's ADHD symptoms spiralled to the point where everyone felt the blast! Boy Wonder stated very clearly that he couldn't do as he was asked as he had to think about too many things at the same time. I asked him what he was thinking about and he reeled off a list of about twenty things including drama, Ju Jitsu, football, Wembley and Minecraft. I asked him if he could not think about them for a short time so that he could concentrate on doing what is being asked of him? 'No, they are all important and I must think about them all of the time,'he stated.

Yesterday Boy Wonder was sent home early from school as he was looking very tired and complaining of feeling sick and dizzy. Biker Gramps collected him from school and it was evident that Boy Wonder was feeling very overwhelmed and struggling to control himself . As they walked out of school, Biker Gramps held on to Boy Wonder who shouted out something along the lines of 'help, he won't let go of me!' Superman spoke to Boy Wonder about this later in the evening, explaining why this is not a good thing to do!

Today brought a mixture of emotions. Superman and I decided that we needed to have a chat with Boy Wonder's Consultant as the medication change seemed to be the likely cause of the increased erratic / impulsive behaviour. As always she responded almost immediately and altered his dose after I explained the events of the past week. In fact I only got half way through the catalogue of  catastrophies before she stopped me and said ' I get it.' and she does!

Today also brought back memories of the day Boy Wonder received his diagnosis four years ago.  The craziness of relief, anger, guilt and fear all thrown into one day and each fighting to come out on top. The battle of the good days and what others see, coupled together with how it really is. How in a couple of hours a very specialist team just 'get it.' Good friends of ours walked this path today and although they are likely to feel very mixed about it all, we speak from experience when we tell them that it's okay.

Superman picked the children up from after school club after work and was told that Boy Wonder appeared to be very high. 'Yep, that's pretty normal for us.' was his response. What more is there to say?! This evening Boy Wonder had his bath before bed. He lay there rubbing bubbles into his face    singing 'Voices in my Head.' Roll on the weekend !!