It just keeps getting better

If you have been reading here for any length of time you know we have been working on potty training for MONTHS.

You also know that both boys have had their fair share of potty anxiety that we have dealt with.  We mostly take the “it will all work out, so no pressure” method of things.

At school the boys have very few accidents.  We think Emory’s are sensory related at this point because he usually has pretty good control and only has accidents on days when he seems to be overwhelmed in other ways.

We haven’t worried much about naps or nighttime yet.  Although Dean has taken quite a few naps in his big boy pants without incident…which he is always quite proud of.

Our last major hurdle was Dean and poop.  MAJOR anxiety…as in it had never EVER happened in the potty except in a very contrived manner.  He will ask for a pullup and he can hold it in for a long period of time to avoid the potty.  So we didn’t make a big deal about it.  We just put a pullup on him and figured it would happen when every it happened.  The school agreed with us and don’t make a big deal about it either…although he doesn’t typically poop at school since he is only there until lunch.

But today friends…today was the day.  Today it happened and he did it.  There was lots of anxiety because he knew it was happening and I was encouraging him to sit on the potty and he agreed.  Usually it amounts to nothing.  But today…today something must have been different because today for the first time EVER he pooped in the potty!  And as it was happening the anxiety left him and he was all smiles.  He was so happy and proud.  He was telling me all about it and I was trying to be calm and happy and encouraging without scaring him by being too excited.  What I really wanted to do was scream and jump up and down…but I certainly didn’t want to freak him out!

Instead I cried.  I cried huge tears of joy as I smiled and laughed and told him how proud I was of him.  I then promptly promised him any treat he wanted and he got a big grin and said, “A present?!?!”  I regretted that for a brief second but I recovered quickly.  I asked if he would like Wendy’s for dinner because french fries are his favorite thing in the whole world.  He was so excited about that.  And he received a lolly pop…2 in fact…because poop in the potty deserves 2 in my opinion.  Emory was so excited he hugged Dean and when he heard my offer of presents he yanked his pants down to go potty too.  It was quite funny.  He of course received a lolly pop as well.

I will never know if this success if related to sensory therapy or if today was just the magical day it was supposed to happen.  I don’t really care.  It happened and it is huge.  He overcame a huge anxiety and I could see the relief wash over him.  He was so happy that he could finally do it and not be afraid.

2012 is going to be an amazing year for them…a super amazing year.

Therapy Love

Today was our second time to go to our new therapy place.

This place is AMAZING.  After only two sessions of sensory therapy we are already seeing changes in Dean.  Actually, I saw changes after the first session last Thursday.  Last Thursday night he was so focused and just “tuned in”…like never before.  During our story recap of the day that we do at bedtime he was telling me what he did at therapy instead of just repeating what happened during the day.  That was a first for him.  It was clear that his brain was stimulated in ways it never had been before.  And on Friday at school his teacher said he was just so focused and “on”…that she had just never seen him like that before.

All weekend he was so busy jumping and playing.  Dean doesn’t jump.  So jumping is new for him.

I was excited for them to go again today.  We were also going to be learning our home program today.  Both of them did great in both their OT and speech sessions.  Dean actually touched peas to the inside of his mouth 3 different times!  He didn’t eat them but he put them in his mouth!  HUGE!  And during OT she said he was so verbal and active and doing so many things.  It was just so exciting.

After nap we (my mom and I) could tell a definite difference in Dean’s speech pattern.  It was more clear and conversational instead of just phrases repeated at the appropriate time.  It was so noticeably different it was startling.

Emory, for his part is a bit more calm.  We are hoping the home program will help with that.  The home program consists of brushing and joint compressions and an oral part where we rub their gums and roof of their mouth.  They LOVE it and are so relaxed during and after it, especially Emory.  We are supposed to do it every 60-90 minutes for the first month….that is going to be hard.  Especially on school days.  But we are going to get it in as much as we can because I can already see the effect it is having just after doing it 5 times today.  It is kind of difficult to explain the brushing thing…after a few days…probably one day this weekend I am going to try and get Nathan to video without them really noticing he is videoing…or I will video while Nathan is doing the brushing and compressing so you can see what we are doing.

As a caveat here…you should not do brushing or joint compressions without instruction and guidance of an occupational therapist.  Sensory therapy done incorrectly can cause harm to the child and his/her nervous system.  I am sharing this information simply as information for other parents who may be going through similar situations and have questions.  If you think your child has SPD or might benefit from sensory therapy feel free to email me and I can tell you where we are receiving therapy and help you with contact information.  I am not a doctor or an OT or an expert and you should not take anything I say on this blog as medical advice.

Oh…another thing that has improved for Dean is that he is willing to tilt his head back in the bath now when I rinse his hair.  He hates to tilt his head back and it has always been a horrible ordeal.  Tonight I asked him to lean his head back and he leaned it all the way back with no hesitation.  AMAZING!  Two 45 minute therapy sessions!  I cannot imagine where we will be in 1 month…3 month…6 months…or even a year’s time….

The boys have always excelled in therapy and progressed quickly.  I feel so excited and filled with hope after just two visits to this new place.  2012 is going to be a great year for Dean and Emory…a very great year!

Obsessing about the Patterns

Whenever we figure out a new piece of our crazy puzzle I spend a bit of time obsessing.  For example, when Dean was diagnosed with autism I watched him like a hawk.  I realized he would have these “slips” or “slides” where he would be more autistic in nature and would be harder to reach.  And then after a few days it was like he emerged or “woke up” and suddenly he had all these new skills.  He would take a huge leap forward.  I would always worry during those “slips”.  Now I know what they are and what to expect and we just keep on going like nothing is different.  But I was pretty obsessive about autism for a few months early last year.

Now we have this whole new Sensory Processing Disorder thing.  I have something totally new to be obsessive about.  And instead of only having one kid to obsess about I have two because they both have it.  Emory has it worse and in a much more traditional and very text book obvious way.  So he is easier to focus on.  He is also the one who is having a harder time living life right now and I spend most of my “worry time” on him.

He had a big melt down at school on Friday.  I had warned the school at drop off that he was on overload.  When I picked up his teacher told me she had never seen him like he was that day.  She said it was like he was at maximum capacity and just couldn’t tolerate anything.  At one point they were playing with trains and it was time to clean them up and he wasn’t ready for the transition and couldn’t handle it and he jumped up and stood in the middle of the room and screamed.  He has never done that at school before.  I have seen it many times.

I was hoping they would both be able to reset over the weekend.  Saturday was much better and I was thinking we were over the worst with Emory.  But then today happened.  I am not sure what set him off today.  That is the problem with SPD…it could be anything or everything.  It could be something internal like his immune system or it could be something external like the weather.  It could be something I have control over or something that I have no control over.  It is a complete and total crap shoot and we just have to try and manage it.

Today sucked for Emory.  Everything was too much and upsetting.  I knew it was going to be bad when he spent almost 30 minutes swinging at my parent’s house…the swinging motion is HUGE for a sensory seeking SPD kid like Emory who is trying to get sensory input into his system.  He had no tolerance for Dean.  He wanted to be held but not be touched.  Nap was long but not restful.  And now, it is bedtime but neither of them are sleeping well.  And honestly I think it is the weather.  We are having a huge wind storm.  The wind is crazy high tonight…20mph with gusts well over 40mph.  A bad night of sleep means a hard day tomorrow.

At least now I understand what it all means.  Before I knew what was happening, I just didn’t know WHY.  Now I know why.  The how to fix it is the next step and we are working on that part.  Until then….we muddle through and I obsess about it all…it is one thing I am pretty good at.