Meltdowns Archives - The Autism Dad

24 hours of devastating meltdowns

Gavin is not having a good day. We've already survived several meltdowns, and that was before 9 AM. Yesterday was pretty rough for him as well, and I'm not sure what's going on. Yesterday, he lost it because I was paying him a compliment. I think it came down to semantics on his part. Here's what happened. When I picked him up yesterday morning so I could take him to get his blood work done, I noticed that he was wearing a hoodie. Gavin has this thing where he automatically defaults to wearing his winter coat, hat, and gloves, even in warmer weather. All I did was compliment him for dressing appropriately for the weather. I asked him if he'd checked the weather before heading out to the car and…

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April 25, 2019

Autism Parenting Struggles / Meltdowns / My thoughts

Yay for #meltdowns

I'm just not a fan of today. The weather is terrible and the kids are struggling but goddamnit if we didn't go trick or treating in the pouring rain. We debated and not going was the end of the world for some. They missed out last year because they were sick so we didn't want to miss out again this year if it was possible to go. Lizze is sick again and so I ended up taking the boys to my parents house on my own. That's usually where we go. Our neighborhood isn't safe and so we go somewhere that is. It poured the entire time and everyone got soaked but everyone also had a good time. The kids are miserable now that it's over and the excitement has…

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October 28, 2018

Autism Parenting Insight / Emmett John / Meltdowns / My thoughts

Meltdowns and mayhem led to an incrediblely touching gesture

This morning has been a total disaster. Mr. Emmett woke up in a mood that can only be described as unfortunate. He woke up at one point last night and wanted to crawl into our bed but we got him back into his instead. Maybe he had nightmares again and that's what had him in such a horrible, outwardly aggressive mood. Elliott and Gavin were both the targets of Emmett's verbal wrath at one point or another. Both seemed to understand that Emmett was having a rough time and didn't react in a retaliatory manner. Very proud of them for that. I intervened, correcting Emmett when he lashed out but as most Autism parents can relate to, it's a very fine line between correcting behavior and escalating an already volatile…

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September 17, 2018

Autism Parenting Struggles / Elliott / Meltdowns / My thoughts

We’re seeing a significant increase in #Meltdowns

There's so much going on in my life and it's becoming more and more difficult to write about it because it's exhausting. I keep thinking about doing more vlogger type things but I don't know. Anyway, Elliott's going through a very, very, very difficult time. The teenage years aren't easy for any kid to deal with but factoring in things like Autism, ADHD or Anxiety and life becomes truly difficult. Elliott is absolutely the sweetest kid in the world and he always has been but he's also struggling more and more. We spoke with Dr. Pattie about this again on Tuesday and from where I sit, I'm not even sure Elliott knows why he's so miserable. He'll rattle off things that are upsetting him but it just doesn't seem to…

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August 31, 2018

Elliott / Emmett John / Meltdowns / My thoughts

It’s already overwhelming

The boys got off to school this morning without too much hassle. Emmett however, is very clearly distressed by all the changes to his routine and schedule. We're seeing tummy aches and nightmares again already. He loves school but at the same time, it's very stressful for him. When Emmett gets stressed out, he doesn't cope well with the world around him. Coping with the world at large can be difficult for any kid with Autism and Emmett is no exception. We're seeing an increase in meltdowns and he can go from zero to full on freak out in nothing flat. It's stressful for those around him but it's especially true for Emmett because he's the one experiencing this high level of distress first hand. As an example, it wasn't…

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August 23, 2018

Autism Parenting Struggles / Emmett John / Meltdowns / My thoughts

I’m so tired of fricking #meltdowns

There isn't anything I know of that can prepare some for the reality of Autism related Meltdowns. They're awful for everyone involved, especially the person physically experiencing one. At this point in time, Emmett is the defacto meltdown maker in our house. Gavin's making a comeback and that's incredibly unfortunate because he presents with many safety issues. Emmett is having another meltdown right now. It began the moment he climbed into the car and has continued since we've been home. Lizze has tagged in and taken over so I can collect myself before re-engaging. I don't know what really triggered this. It could simply be that his day has taken a great deal out of him. It could be sensory overload or nothing at all. Meltdowns are the bodies way…

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May 2, 2018

Elliott / Meltdowns / My thoughts

We had a massive, massive meltdown

It's not been a good morning so far. To start things off on the wrong foot, I stepped funny coming down the stairs and jarred my back. You may recall that I suffered a major back injury many years ago. Most of the time I'm okay and I've adapted to the pain however, it doesn't take much to aggravate it again. I totally succeeded in doing that this morning. I'm in so much pain right now, I feel like I'm going to puke. Once I lay down for a little while, this will hopefully start to improve. To make matters that much more stressful, Elliott had a massive, massive meltdown this morning. He's really struggling emotionally and today was in regards to not wanting to take his morning meds. He…

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February 22, 2018

Meltdowns

Another example of why Monday’s suck

Mondays suck. I don't know what it about a Monday but it just seems like they never go well. This morning for example, we woke up to Maggie puking up a bunch of Slim Jim wrappers and we have no idea where she found them. The only thing we can think of is that she found them outside, in which case, I need to search through the yard and find the source of this problem. Emmett is not in a good mood this morning and has been raging on and off since he woke up. Elliott on the other hand, is up and ready to go without any problems. Lizze got up right away and took Ruby outside, only to have her come back inside the house to poop. Ruby…

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February 12, 2018