Read more about the article The screaming started before 7 am today
Elliott / My thoughts

The screaming started before 7 am today

We're not off to a good start this morning. Emmett's not in a good place and he's freaking out because he doesn't wear dress pants. He wears comfy pants because of numerous sensory issues and is afraid that he won't match everyone else at the luncheon, after the funeral this afternoon. He's screaming and it's barely 7 am. To make matters worse, his glasses broke last night and I can't glue them back together. They actually broke about 2 weeks ago and I superglued them back together. They've broke a few times since and I've reglued them. Unfortunately, they simply won't stick anymore when glued. I should also mention that I believe this I'd the first time Emmett's ever broken his glasses and he's been wearing glasses for many years.…

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November 2, 2018
Read more about the article Gavin’s behavioral problems will ultimately be the end of us getting a night off
Autism Parenting Struggles / Elliott / Emmett John / Gavin / My thoughts

Gavin’s behavioral problems will ultimately be the end of us getting a night off

Lizze and I are knee deep in the first break we've had in about a month. Gavin and the boys are at their grandparents for the night. What typically happens is that these types of visits are are broken up. The boys (Elliott and Emmett) will go and Gavin stays home. Gavin will go by himself the next time, while the boys stay home. The reason for that is because of problems that tend to arise as a result of Gavin and the boys not getting along. I've talked about this before. Gavin will try to parent the boys and/dictate what they do while they're visiting. The boys don't like it and it just creates problems. Frankly, we see this at home all the time and it's definitely not a…

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October 27, 2018
Read more about the article Nose bleeds and tummy aches
Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts

Nose bleeds and tummy aches

It's gonna be a long trick or treat weekend. Both boys are home from school but for different reasons. Elliott went to bed not feeling well and woke up not feeling any better. His stomach is upset.be his nose is really dry and that's what behind this. Once we get this under control, I probably get him a saline nose spray. Emmett on the other hand is feeling okay but is getting nose bleeds and they take awhile to get them to stop. This actually first happened a couple of days ago and it started again this morning. Emmett woke me up about 6 AM, so I could help him. He's not doing anything to cause them. They just sorta happen. I'm thinking maybe his nose is really dry and…

5 Comments
October 26, 2018
Read more about the article The heartbreaking reality of how trauma has seriously impacted one of my kids with #Autism
Akron Children's Hospital / Elliott / Gavin / My thoughts / Psychiatry

The heartbreaking reality of how trauma has seriously impacted one of my kids with #Autism

I've been meaning to write this but the idea of doing so has been too overwhelming. There are a number of reasons for that but the main one is that I'm struggling with my own depression at this point and many things have me overwhelmed. I'm going to try and keep this super quick so I can actually finish it. Elliott finally got into psychiatry at Akron Children's Hospital this past week. We'd been waiting for a very long time for an opening because child psychiatrists are nearly impossible to find in our area, especially good ones. We ended up meeting with a nurse practitioner. Turns out we already knew him because he used to work with Dr. Reynolds, Gavin's longtime psychiatrist. That was very comforting, although we'd never spoken…

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October 14, 2018
Read more about the article Thoughts and prayers would be greatly appreciated today
Akron Children's Hospital / Elliott / My thoughts / Psychiatry

Thoughts and prayers would be greatly appreciated today

Today is going to be a very big day for us as we're finally getting Elliott into the psychiatrist at Akron Children's Hospital. You may recall that the appointment was the first week of November but they moved it up due to a cancelation and Elliott's need. I haven't talked about Elliott's struggles too much because I'm trying to navigate invisible boundaries. The truth is, Elliott's miserable. As time goes on, it's getting worse instead of better. Elliott is struggling with depression and quite possibly bipolar disorder as well. We're going to get a better idea of what's going on and figure out how we can best go about finding him relief. We have some last minute paper work we need to collect from the school before going. We will…

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October 8, 2018
Read more about the article It’s crushing to hear your child say they feel dead inside
Autism Parenting Heartbreak / Elliott / My thoughts

It’s crushing to hear your child say they feel dead inside

We had a pretty rough evening with Elliott. I don't talk about this a great deal but he's seriously struggling and it's absolutely breaking my heart. He has very little control over his emotions and seems to cycle through the full gamut in a very short period of time. I think at the very least, we're looking at serious depression. He's on antidepressants but they don't seem to be helping much. He's in individual therapy as well and he finally gets into Akron Children's behavioral health clinic in a few days. I want so desperately to help him and in order to do that, we need to get help. During tonight's episode, he told us that he feels dead inside. He's also told that he doesn't feel loved or taken…

6 Comments
October 7, 2018
Read more about the article I needed this walk to clear my head
Elliott / My thoughts

I needed this walk to clear my head

We've had a pretty decent morning. I was able to sleep in because once again, Lizze never fell asleep. She was still awake when the kids woke up and let me sleep in. That was really nice of her. 😀 Gavin had a successful IVIG infusion first thing and shortly after I woke up, I took Elliott to my parent's house. He's going to go out to lunch with her and my grandpa. I stuck around and visited for a few minutes before heading to the park to get my time in. I did notice, as did everyone else, that Elliott was nonstop talking and couldn't sit still. He was literally walking around the table, talking about anything he could think of. I was getting overwhelmed, so I hugged him,…

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September 28, 2018
Read more about the article The heartbreaking reality of parenting an adult child
Autism Parenting Insight / Elliott / Emmett John / Gavin / My thoughts

The heartbreaking reality of parenting an adult child

Being a parent isn't easy. I don't think anyone would argue that statement. Being a special needs parents it's without a doubt, the most difficult endeavor of my entire life. We are facing a very difficult reality right now with our oldest, Gavin. Gavin's going to be 19 in a few months and we're still adjusting to him being an adult. My goodness, does that make me feel old. I've been raising Gavin as my own since he was about 15 months old. I legally adopted him many years ago and that was a moment I will never forget. I'll always look back on the day we went to court to make things final, as a blessing and a truly amazing experience. My personal journey with Gavin has brought me…

6 Comments
September 23, 2018