Read more about the article Hello @AkronChildrens, we meet again
Akron Children's Hospital / Behavioral Health / Elliott / My thoughts

Hello @AkronChildrens, we meet again

So far, my plans for the day are firing on all cylinders. There's not been any hiccups aside from road construction in Akron. I mean seriously Akron, are you ever going to finish? Anyway, Gavin's been dropped off and Mr. Elliott and I are in the waiting room at Akron Children's Hospital. Elliott's not wanting to talk about the things that may or may not be bothering him, so I messaged the the nurse prior to our arrival so he was aware of what is going on. I'm hoping that makes things a bit easier Elliott. Mr. Elliott has kindly agreed that I can speak to what I know or feel he's going through and if he needs to correct me, he will do that. It's not perfect, but at…

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August 28, 2019
Read more about the article Some good news and our plans for the day
Akron Children's Hospital / Behavioral Health / Elliott / My thoughts

Some good news and our plans for the day

Here's some good news for today. Both boys made it to school, without any problems. Elliott was not thrilled but he cooperated 100% and I'm so thankful for that. The plan for the day is pretty simple. I have to pick Elliott up from school a little before noon, drop Gavin off with my Mom and head up to Akron Children's Hospital. Elliott has a followup in the behavioral health clinic. They are helping manage his depression, as well as handling all his medications for it. They're absolutely fantastic and I'm so appreciative for all they do. I promised Elliott that I would take him to lunch afterwards. He gets very anxious about any and all doctor appointments. As a result, he won't eat until after it's over. So, that's…

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August 28, 2019
Read more about the article Things didn’t go so well at school
Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts / New Beginnings

Things didn’t go so well at school

I know in an earlier post, I was optimistic about Elliott making it through the day at school. Here's the background on that. Unfortunately, Elliott left school very upset this afternoon. He wanted to come home but didn't speak up because he didn't want to disrupt his class. I'm not sure what that's all about. When I called the school after dropping him off, and convincing him to stay in the morning, it was a no news is good news kinda thing.. Elliott and Emmett were both still in class and they hadn't asked to go home. If they had, their teachers would have immediately sent them to the office so they could call me. Emmett did fine but as I said, Elliott was very upset. I don't know what…

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August 26, 2019
Read more about the article I’m feeling a little better about today
Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts / New Beginnings

I’m feeling a little better about today

I know we had a rough morning because I was there. That said, I'm feeling a little better about things because I'm seeing some positives. First of all, Gavin's IVIG infusion went very well. He's struggling to do it himself, and for right now, I'm not going to push him. It's easier if I do it for him, at least for the time being. There was no leaking today and I believe it took less than an hour to complete. By comparison, last Friday's infusion took over four hours. This is definitely a positive thing. Second, I called the school to check on the boys, and they seem to be doing okay. Both boys have been in their respective classrooms, and there's been no contact with the office, meaning the…

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August 26, 2019
Read more about the article We’ve had an absolutely heartbreaking morning
Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts / New Beginnings

We’ve had an absolutely heartbreaking morning

I've mentioned many times in regards to my wife leaving that the kids and I are going to have good days and we're going to have bad days. Over the last couple of weeks, we've been lucky enough to have more good days than bad. Unfortunately, today is a bad one. Our morning started out well, and then it very quickly fell apart. While getting ready for school, Emmett had a very emotional breakdown and became inconsolable. He screamed things about how we're a broken family and how other families are happy and having fun, while we're traumatized. Those are his words. He said a few other things but you get the point. He's demanding answers to things that only his mom can answer, but probably won't and rightfully so.…

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August 26, 2019
Read more about the article I was completely unprepared my #Autistic son’s heartbreaking emotional reaction
Autism Parenting Heartbreak / Autism Parenting Insight / Elliott / Emmett John / Gavin / My thoughts

I was completely unprepared my #Autistic son’s heartbreaking emotional reaction

One of the biggest challenges my wife and I have faced as Autism parents is something that thankfully, doesn't present itself very often. When it does, however, it's very difficult to navigate. That challenge has to do with the death of a family member. Thankfully, that doesn't occur very often, but it's something that we all have to face throughout our lives. Before we get into our current situation, I want to provide a bit of background and context. We've lost two grandparents in the last eight months, and for the first time, we allowed the kids to participate in the process. We've always shielded them from these things because of their limited ability to cope with emotional situations. It doesn't get more emotional than the loss of a loved…

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June 8, 2019
Read more about the article Pictures from yesterdays therapeutic martial arts promotion
Autism Parenting Victories / Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts

Pictures from yesterdays therapeutic martial arts promotion

The boys had their end of the school year martial arts promotion yesterday. Both Elliott and Emmett did awesomely. Elliott was promoted to blue belt, and Emmett was promoted to high blue. Lizze and I couldn't possibly be any prouder of them than we are. I posted some video on my Twitter feed yesterday and you can check that out by clicking here. I wanted to let you know how things went and share a couple pictures of the boys from yesterday.

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May 25, 2019
Read more about the article It feels awful to know I’m failing my wife and kids
Akron Children's Hospital / Autism Parenting Struggles / Elliott / Psychiatry

It feels awful to know I’m failing my wife and kids

We had Elliott to Akron Children's Hospital yesterday. It was a routine follow up in behavioral health. We discussed any concerns we had. We talwdat things are going well and what needs work. We also follow up on medications and make sure we're still on the right track with that as well. I personally feel like Elliott is making a serious effort in many areas, and I made sure to bring that up. I'm incredibly proud of him because I know that life in our house isn't easy. That said, there are still things that he needs to work on as well. That's not anything against him at all. He's a newly minted teenager, and that's never easy, especially when Autism factors in. One of the things that Elliott is…

8 Comments
May 2, 2019