Posts Tagged ‘Meltdown’
Mom Thanks Metro Police Officer who Helped her Autistic Son
For 2 years I picked up my son from his Autism Program five days a week. While I waited for him, I sat in the parking lot and watched the metro trains drive by. My son loves trains. And every day I would watch a young mom, with a baby strapped to her chest, try to get her young, autistic son out of the building and to the train. I’d watch her hold onto him on the platform. I watched him drop to the ground and roll. I watched her…
Read MoreHow do I Change the World for my Son?
Lately, my son has been having some pretty huge wins. Ginormous actually. He went down his first waterslide. He laughed and flapped the whole way down. And then went five more times. He bowled. All ten frames. I had no idea he even knew what a bowling ball was! He went to an arcade for the first time. He’s never set foot in one before. He never melted down. Or bolted. He just wandered ‘closely’ by while his brother played games. It was amazing. He went to a sit-down restaurant.…
Read MoreHow Can I Help During a Meltdown?
One of the most helpless times for me as a mom is when my son is having a meltdown publicly. My attention and focus turn 100% to him. I drop what I am doing. Quite literally. If I am holding a purse or a coffee I drop it. My son is a runner so I know that I need to chase him. Until he falls to the ground. And then I have to try and keep his head safe, and get him outside. I try to do this with minimal…
Read More3 Strangers Who Saved us During a Meltdown
Whether you are the parent or the audience, there is an awkwardness and discomfort when dealing with a child in public who is pre-meltdown, mid-meltdown, or just hysterical. As parents, we plan an exit strategy. Some of us even do this before we get there. But sometimes (or most of the time) it happens when we least expect it. When we didn’t plan. When there isn’t an easy escape route in site. We find ourselves wondering: Do we really need these groceries? So what if I paid $300 to be here.…
Read MoreBeauty in the Breakdown
As Moms, all of our children have had a public “temper tantrum”. It’s awful. You can see it coming most times and try to brace yourself for impact. Tantrums stink point blank. You’re sweating, your kid is flailing, people are staring and you just want to RUN. A meltdown is a bit different. A meltdown occurs when a body has endured too much stress. It looks like a tantrum but can not be contained like a tantrum. Meltdowns can get ugly, real ugly. Meltdowns not only break down your child…
Read MoreDancing in the Moonlight
A little girl maybe 4 walked up to me at the park today and asked me to push her on the swings. I said to ask her Mommy if that was ok first and she turned to me and said…you know when you fall down you just have to try a new way. She walked off but I doubt she saw me sitting on the swing with tears rolling down my cheeks. This was the most profound thing that has ever happened to me in all my 33 years. How…
Read MoreReality Bites
I have 3 beautiful children. Ethan 13 and Gavin 9, have been diagnosed with Level III Autism, without intellectual impairment. My youngest Moira, 3, is just lacking that official stamp. Gavin showed textbook signs, lining up cars in perfect rows, total organization, sensory overload, late speech, I think I was ready for him, but I never quite put the pieces together with Ethan. Looking back I should have seen something. All the signs were there, but as a first time Mom you think, you’re overreacting. He NEVER wanted to be…
Read MoreSpecial Needs Parenting Under a Microscope
You know what I find to be the hardest part of taking my severely autistic son out in public…And it’s not what you think. It’s not the screaming. Or the meltdowns. Or the running or chasing. Or his anxiety. Or managing my stress on top of his. It’s doing it all under a microscope. The curious stares. The people. The knowing how loud my son is. Knowing what a scene we are indeed making. The praying that nothing really bad happens. The hyper awareness that is needed. The worry. It’s…
Read MoreHow to Tell the Difference Between a Tantrum and a Meltdown.
I just saw this on Pinterest and it really struck me. It was an ah-ha moment I guess. Cooper is obsessed with getting a reaction. Pretty much everyone that has met him will admit this. He is driven by reactions from others. If Cooper gets mad for whatever reason he goes into full blown tantrum mode. Since he can’t speak he tends to knock over chairs. Or maybe knock stuff off a table. (It’s exasperating!) But the odd part about it is he waits until you are looking. He will…
Read MoreJust Tell Us What To Do
Please God just tell us what to do. Simple as that. Cooper had an epic fail at speech today. As I type this I am actually shaking my head because it gets worse every single appointment. How? Why? Someone reading this might actually think I am joking. Or exaggerating. Trust me…I am not. I took Cooper to his speech appointment this morning alone and he did well for the first 20 minutes. Yes, he hopped from activity to activity but we were able to engage him. His therapist loves him and…
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