Sometimes,  when things are really tough,  I need to remind myself,  why I do what I do. Every night,  before I got out bed,  I'm reminded of the answer. Autism can be so challenging and our kids persnickety.  My wife likes me to use the word persnickety. :-) No matter how tough things get,  or how frustrated and overwhelmed I am,  I can't give up.  Through all the exhaustion I have to find the strength to get up just one more time.  I know many of you out there understand.  This is my reason or rather, reasons for doing what I do. **Thanks for reading**        -Lost and Tired Please join our Autism Help Forum Look for "Autism Help" app at the Google Play Store This was posted…

Lizze and I met with Dr.  Patti tonight and discussed Gavin.  We also did some research while we were there.  Things may have taken a turn and become a bit scarier.  At this point,  I feel that we will once again have to put a hold on the mental health issues and return to the medical side. I mentioned earlier that we stumbled onto a new piece to the puzzle this afternoon.  Gavin's lithium level has hit dangerously high levels.  The very concerning part is that this has occurred even though Gavin's dosage hasn't changed in over a year. This is a very big problem,  that was almost missed. Let me clarify, the cause was almost missed. They had assumed, as anyone would, that his dosage was simply to high. …

I spoke with the hospital twice this morning.  Gavin is doing pretty well but is very easily frustrated. At this junction there is now external plans in place and Gavin will likely return home in the morning.  Having said that,  we discovered something concerning today.  While speaking with the nurse on the phone this afternoon,  we discovered that there appears to be some sort of metabolic issue.  She mentioned that they've checked his medication levels and that while some were too high,  they were still okay. I asked her for the levels and realized we had a problem on our hands. Gavin's lithium levels,  which have remained at .7, basically since we hit the current dosage,  at least a year ago, is now 1.3. This is the absolute highest it…

I wanted to introduce all my new readers to a couple of very special members of the Lost and Tired family. Meet Maggie and Bella. Maggie is a 4 year old English Staffy/Boxer mix and Bella is a 6 month old pure breed Brindle Boxer. They have proven themselves to be amazing editions to our family. They are fantastic with the boys and very protective. Maggie and Bella are both extremely patient with the boys. Bella belongs to Emmett and they are very close. Bella has helped Emmett to overcome so many obstacles already. Maggie is a blessing and a half. She had been a great friend and has very often put herself in harms way to keep Gavin away from the boys during his meltdowns. She took a solid…

Elliott and I decided to change things up a bit tonight. Instead of going to bed on time we went to the park. We started out walking the track and ended up taking to the creek bed to look for whatever cool things we could find.  Elliott had such a good time and found a ton of fresh water clam shells.  He only wanted the ones that were still connected.  We also found some snail shells as well. He very clearly shares my love for nature.  I used to do the exact same things when I was a kid. This is something that I want to foster in Elliott because it's a natural love and I want him to be able to explore the great outdoors. I had so much…

I wanted to update you all as to what is going to happen this week with Gavin.  At this point, honestly, I think he's coming home. I don't like the idea because I know that nothing has changed with Gavin and it will only be a matter of time before this happens again. I don't mean to sound cold but it's not safe to have Gavin in the house right now.  At this point in time,  barring some miracle,  when Gavin is released this week,  he will return home. Lizze and I both,  have mixed feelings about this.  One one hand,  we miss our son.  However,  on the other hand, we can't absorb much more of his behavior.  The stress in the house when he's home is unbearable and I…