WELCOME TO JIM'S AUTISM BLOG





Hi everyone and thanks for visiting our blog. My wife and I created this blog to chronicle our experience while raising a son with Asperger's syndrome. Since our son was diagnosed with an ASD at age 5, we've had a lot of questions. Lucky for us we have a great support network in place. And our blog gives us an opportunity to share what we've learned with our readers. We hope you find our blog informative and interesting. Thanks again for visiting.


"It seems that for success in science and art, a dash of autism is essential." Dr Hans Asperger 1906-1980



Friday 4 May 2012

THE UPS AND DOWNS OF ASPERGER'S

It has been another week for the record books.  This week literally had one of the strangest days we have EVER had since Jacob was diagnosed with Asperger's.  Jacob's week has been pretty good at school and he has earned a total of:

  Cranberries Background 7 OUT OF 10 STICKERS

The week started out great and Jacob didn't mind going to school on Monday morning, which is weird.  I should have known that this behaviour was just a tremor to something big, but we were just happy to start the week without an argument, so we didn't really take notice. 

Then on Tuesday, Jacob's school had a Jump Hope for Heart fundraiser and while in the gym, Jacob actually tried to jump a skipping rope.  Again, a wonderful surprise.  I don't know that Jacob has ever tried to use a skipping rope before.  He only used it for a few minutes, but at least he tried it.  During the event, the school handed out juice boxes to all the kids.  At lunch Jacob told me that he wanted to drink the orange juice.  I was stunned.  I gave him the juice box and we all sat in amazement.  Jacob drank all of the orange juice.  Prior to Tuesday, Jacob hated juice of any kind.  Again, I should have taken notice, but I was blinded by Jacob's good behaviour.

Wednesday morning was one of his best sessions in school all year.  His EA rated it as an 8 out of 10, which by our standards is amazing.  He did all his work and he didn't have too many outbursts, so of course we were happy.  Then as we were heading back to school after lunch, Jacob had one of his worst meltdowns of all time.  He took off his sweater and hat and threw them on the ground.  Then he began to hit Shannie and I as he screamed and cried.  We still took him back to school in hopes that seeing his friends would snap him out of the funk, but it was no use.  I actually had to go into the school to try and talk him down.  He was slamming the door, throwing things around and hitting me.  His afternoon EA told me to not worry and that they'd try and work through his meltdown.

At home time, Jacob's EA said that it took until 2PM before Jacob would settle down, but he still refused to participate in class.  When we got home Jacob was still upset, but able to talk.  Jacob wanted to use the CPU and DS, and he said that he'd do his work and then he'd get them.  Then it hit me.  We've always allowed Jacob use of his favourite things, but only after he finished his homework.  So it seemed that he'd act up in class, not do any work and then do the 15 minutes work at home.  We had no choice but to deny use of those things until he began to have good days at school.

Thursday was great and so was Friday morning, but as soon as Jacob got outside of school on Friday, he again threw down his hat and backpack.  He was kicking and hitting and even tried to throw his desk.  Today at my son's school, a group of people received Canadian citizenship's in the gym, so the playground was full of cars and the students had an indoor recess. 

We just got finished talking to Jacob about what happened and he told us that this afternoon was very stressful and he felt anxious, two feelings he hasn't really talked about before.  After some crying and about 15 minutes of talking Jacob felt much better.  And it was a huge step to show him how important it is to share your feelings.  It genuinely felt like Jacob understood.
Oh the joys of Asperger's.  We never know what to expect.  Oh, and the meltdown on Wednesday was caused because mom was talking to someone that Jacob wanted to talk to.  When I explain to people that Jacob's behaviour can be affected by the weather or a smell they just look at me like I'm crazy.  But us ASD parents know the truth.  If the birds aren't chirping, then Jacob's not happy.  It no wonder that I sleep in so late on Saturdays.  It's because I'm the one that needs the break from grade 2.

4 comments:

  1. Jim, I thought of you and Jacob when I saw this...I'm not trying to push anything on you, but I think there are huge benefits in this...

    http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7404508n

    Keep on trucking, Jim!

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    Replies
    1. This is a great service for kids with autism. 4 Paws for Ability is a great service, but I'm not sure if we as a family have the ability to commit to such a big process.

      Now if Jacob was prone to running away or was non verbal, we'd definitely be looking into a service dog. Thanks for the information.

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    2. No sweat Jim. I understand. Service dogs are a huge commitment, and take a lot of time and energy. For some they're well worth it, for others not so much. Totally understandable....just thought I would throw it out there. Keep on trucking Jim, I love reading your blog.

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  2. I used to wonder what would set Alex off...it's like playing detective sometimes, isn't it? Trying to figure out what changed to set him off... And a big YAY on using words to fit the emotion!!! We are still working on that.

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