As a father to 3 boys in different places on the #Autism spectrum, I have rarely found any one thing that can capture the attention of both Elliott and Emmett at the same time.  Typically,  the only thing Web have found was video game related. That was until last night. In my fruitless effort to get my house in order, I picked up a box of replacement Swiffer heads. I did a quick once over and was putting them away. Apparently, I caught the attention of Emmett who was wanting to know what the heck I was doing.  Admittedly, it's really sad that Emmett hasn't witnessed me dusting enough in his 4 years of life, to know what dusting was. That's a pretty big fail on my part as a…

You know how a pet can have a certain quality? Something that you always associate with them. Well,  we have only had Dean for a few days but it's become very clear that he has a very special talent. It turns out that anytime that Dean gets scared, he poops on the floor. This has happened 3 or 4 times now.  Maggie had Dean sorta cornered behind a piece of furniture this afternoon and once again, had the crap scared out of him, literally. The other three times, Dean pooped on Lizze.  :-)

Today is going to be a day of medication changes for the Lost and Tired family.  I've already discussed Elliott's situation but I haven't explained Gavin's.  Tonight, Gavin will begin taking ativan as a means of suppressing his constantly elevated heart rate. We're going intobthis knowing that there are some serious risk factors.  The combination of the ativan and the clozapine that he's already on increases the risks of side effects for both drugs. The ativan isn't as big of a deal but the clozapine is.  Clozapine is the most tightly controlled medication in the United States. It's been responsible for many deaths in the EU. The most serious and deadly side effect has to do with the destruction of immune system.  If safely controlled and tightly monitored, Clozapine is…

Elliott's kitten, Dean, has been dealing with an upper respiratory infection since before he came to live with us.  We just didn't know about it at the time. Anyway, we had him to the Vet's office this morning.  We wanted to find out how bad it is.  Thankfully, he's just fine.  We have to keep his eyes clean but that's about it.  Outside of that, he's a beautiful healthy little kitten. Elliott made sure Dean was properly cared for and held him the whole time. I think this is going to be a good thing for Elliott and Dean both.

Elliott will miss another day of school today because he has to be at the doctors. Hopefully, God willing, this will be it for the week.  However, depending on the medication changes Dr. Reynolds makes, he may be at home again tomorrow. Anytime you make changes to medications, especially when the child is prone to reactions, it's better to play it safe. That's my opinion anyway. Of course, your welcome to your own opinion.  It's just that sometimes after a medication change, the child has to be watched closely for a day or so.  Truthfully, I don't trust anyone else to do it.  Nothing against the school but when it comes to things like this, we tend not to delegate. I'm leaning towards pulling the plug on the Tenex and…

On Wednesday of this week, Lizze is scheduled to have a sleep study at the Cleveland Clinic. This is a prerequisite to entering the Chronic pain rehabilitation program. They want to rule out sleep apnea as a contributing factor to her chronic fatigue. However, Lizze has been and currently still is, sick. Apparently, if she isn't feeling 100%, they sleep study will be scrubbed and rescheduled. On top of that, services for her Grandfather, who past away Sunday night, will be on Wednesday as well. Lizze is going to be an emotional wreck that day and I can't see her being in a position to take part in a sleep study. My guess is that we will have to reschedule. Unfortunately, that will put her entering the Chronic pain rehabilitation…

On Sunday, Lizze and I moved Elliott and Emmett into what was Gavin's room. If and when Gavin returns home, he'll be in what was Elliott's room. We had to sanitize the room prior to moving furniture in.  You would not believe the stuff we found on Gavin's walls.  It's like he left us little presents, smeared all over the friggin place. Apparently, he had been spitting on his windows and walls. The rest of it I'll leave to your imagination. Let's just say, it was very unpleasant. We still have to repair the damage to his walls but it'll be alright for now.  The boys are pretty excited but also stressed out by the change, especially Elliott.  He essentially had to give up his own room and start sharing…

In the morning, we have to take Elliott to see Dr. Reynolds and discuss his medications. This is going to be a serious discussion because we have some serious concerns about the anti-anxiety medication. Elliott has become rather aggressive while on the Tenex.  He has been self-injuring and losing his temper quite a bit and this is very much out of character for him. Instead of addressing the anxiety, it seems to be making things worse. What's the point of him taking it if it isn't going to help?  The answer of course is, there is no point. I'm thinking that it might be best to pull him off of anti-anxiety medications altogether because he keeps having adverse reactions. Hopefully we will get some answers and options in the morning.