Autism Archives - Page 57 of 715

I’m really worried about his test results

We have a rather eventful week a head of us. The direction it takes will largely depend on the results of Gavin's labwork Monday. Background: If you recall, Gavin's labs from this past week were so concerning that we're retesting to make sure they're correct. So much is so drastically wrong that we need to rule out lab error. Gavin's not exeriencing any obvious problems and he's not complaining about anything. With how bad these labs were, he should be in pretty rough shape. Until we know for sure though, we aren't taking any chances and have locked down even tighter. End Background This will go one of two ways. Gavin's labs will either come back normal and we move forward or they will come back problematic and require immediate…

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August 30, 2020

My thoughts

Helping my #autistic son manage his own routine and schedule

One of the things I really need to invest more time into is helping Gavin manage his routine. He does pretty good with major things like brushing his teeth or taking his meds. That's a awesome because those are both very important things. The stuff he really struggles with is everything in between. He so easily loses track or time or gets lost in what he's doing. He's been telling me lately that his imagination takes over. Gavin needs frequent reminders in order to stay on task and not drift too far off course. I mentioned before that I'm using visual prompts and check lists to help him remember but I'm always looking for better ways to help him navigate life. Sure, it's fun laminating things but there's no point…

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August 29, 2020

My thoughts

It’s been an okay day

The boys have been having a quiet morning. The stress level in the house is down a bit and we're getting a breather. Lizze is filling out all the paperwork for the boys and then I'll get everything submitted. As soon as the school gets the paperwork, the boys will get their schedules and their Chromebooks. Lizze and her mom will pick everything up and drop it off as soon as it's ready. She wants to help and I'm grateful. Elliott snuggling Ruby Until we know more about Gavin's situation, we are locking down even tighter. Speaking of Gavin, I've not been able to get ahold of his immunologist all week. I've left messages and have not heard back. I hope everything is okay because they are in one of…

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August 28, 2020

COVID19 / Distance Learning / My thoughts / Planning / Remote Learning / School

We made a major decision about this school year

Let me start by saying, I hate everything about this school year. I hate how our kids and teachers have been put in impossible situations because our leadership won't take COVID seriously and do what needs be done in order to get us through this. That being said, we've made a major decision in regards to school for the boys. While I can go into more detail at a later time, Lizze and I agreed to pull the kids from their current school and put them back into their old school. After 2 weeks of technical issues, the kids literally crying and me on the brink of a fucking stroke, I decided this wasn't going to work. The reality is that the entirety of this responsibility falls on me. It's…

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August 28, 2020

Gavin / My thoughts

Please keep Gavin in your thoughts and prayers

I'm going to make this quick because my brain is completely fried and the rest of me is equally as exhausted. Gavin's labs came back today and some of the results appear to be very concerning. The reason I say appear to be concerning is because I'm not a doctor and I have only a basic understanding of how to read this. There are several areas that are concerning to me. Gavin's IgG level is 358 and the normal range is 578 to 1228. His IgM level is 20 and the normal range is 23 to 166. Gavin's IgA level is 24 and the normal range is 59 to 337. On the surface this looks bad, especially considering he had his IVIG infusion less than 24 hours before his labs…

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August 27, 2020

Confessions / Depression Management / Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

Focusing on the positive helps me remember that #depression is lying to me

I'm very much in a darker place right now but I'm also refusing to give into depression. Fighting depression is an imperfect, uphill battle that's part of an invisible overarching war that I've been engaged in for most of my life. Part of my battle tactic is to force myself to focus on the positive things in my life. Depression tells me there's nothing positive but I know that's not true. There are three amazing little humans in my life and that's the most positive thing I can imagine. I'm going to share some pretty cool things my kids did today. Gavin's life is challenging for him but this kid never fucking gives up. This morning he was up before everyone else, which is normal for him. He focused on…

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August 24, 2020

COVID19 / Distance Learning / Lockdown / My thoughts / Planning / School

We persevered this week

It's been a crazy stressful week but I'm so proud of how we persevered. The boys ultimately made it through their first week of distance learning and even exceeded their hours for the week. Their experience has been improving and while Elliott is still having technical issues, Emmett seems to be experiencing fewer. For the most part, we tried keeping to their previous school schedule but it didn't always work. What I've found was that giving the boys a little freedom over how their day is managed, seems to motivate them. Obviously, I can't let them loose but if they start at 10am instead of 9am, who cares. As long as they complete their work, that's all that matters. One of the coolest things about distance learning is that if…

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August 22, 2020

General Update / My thoughts

It’s been a really shitty week and I’m down but not out

This week has been pretty rough, and that's by our standards. Thus far school has been a technical frustration for the boys and they're quickly forming an opinion that will be difficult to work through. The boys are very turned off to school at this point and there are only so many battles I can pick right now. I need this to work. Admittedly, I'm really frustrated with it myself and have questioned whether or not we chose the right school. I will say that the school staff seems really cool. I've spent a good bit of time on the phone with various teachers and administrators this week. Everyone is super nice and wanting the boys to have the best experience possible. These technical issues will hopefully be resolved in…

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August 21, 2020