everytime i post i always write something corny like “good evening everyone” or “hello, i hope everyone is…”. while i do want to say hello to everyone, and i hope that everyone has a great night, i want to find a better greeting to start my post. i am going to give this some thought. i feel as though i am sounding like a robot.

anyway, what to hear about my night?

good, i will be glad to tell you about it. the weather outside is frightful! it is foggy, chilly, and raining. driving home from work in this weather was enough to give me a headache! so, i finally pull into the driveway about 20 minutes later than normal. then i just sigh. once inside the house i was pleasantly surprised to see that my dear husband had rearrange the sunroom. it looks great! thank you.

Follow up:

but, then it was time to go upstairs. now, it is not always a dreaded experience. the babies are happy to see me and greet me with a hug. ms. maxie starts talking and talking, and sir dantes dances around. it was brought to my attention quickly that sir dantes has a new cut over his eye. how did this happen? headbanging again!

now i know that our children have a developmental delay. that is part of the whole autism thing. so, he will be four next month but is now just going through the “terrible twos”. if you have a “typical” child this stage can be difficult enough. with an autistic child, this stage is nearly unbearable. sir dantes’ temper tantrums go to the point where he is hurting himself. and it scares me. and i hope he grows out of it soon.

i can not just let him have whatever he wants. he has to learn the meaning of “no”, he has to learn that there are rules in this home and rules in society. for example, at our house while i get dinner ready it is time for the babies to pick up there toys and clean up. after that is done, and dinner is on the table; no more toys are to be brought out for the night. play time is over and it is time to eat, then time to get ready for bed.

well, we have a built-in hutch in the kitchen. at the bottom is a cabinet where we keep some coloring books, crayons, puzzles, and play-dough. the same rule applies to these toys. they are put up before we eat, and they stay up until the next day. sir dantes loves to get into this cabinet. when i tell him “no”, we are done for the day he screams and bangs his head on something. this, at times, results in him hurting or bruising himself.

after his bath tonight, while i was drying him off, he kept putting his hands in my face, pulling my hair or squeezing my nose. tonight he poked me in the eye. it upsets me and i tell him “no” and “stop” several times until i end up raising my voice. then he screams and tonight banged his head on the toilet seat. luckily he didn’t “hurt” himself. but, he could have.

will he outgrow it? i hope so but he may not. some autistic children’s temper tantrums and meltdowns do not improve with age and they go on medication. now, i do not agree or disagree with this decision. i feel that it should be left up to the parents and doctors who know the child the best. but, when that decision is made to have a child put on medications; and that child is experiencing success, it is horrible that the child has to be yanked off of them because the parent got a better paying job.

this is the case with a friend of mine’s grandson. “jake” (not his real name) suffers with serious meltdowns and sensory issues that made his behavior and concentration difficult for him and his parents and his grandmother. life has not been easy for them but at least jake was covered by the state’s insurance. the decision was made to put him on medications and, low and behold, jake improved. his meltdowns virtually disappeared and his concentration improved immensely. his social life, his school performances, and the quality of life for his entire family improved.

now, his mother has a better job and the state ended her insurance for jake. now little jake has not had his medication and all of those improvements are now becoming set-backs. life is getting harder. although this mother has a better job, private insurance is still a financial stretch. she has managed to make a payment, but can’t seem to get the medications her son needs.

now, this is a sorry state of affairs. jakes condition, just like sir dantes’, is no fault of their own. they are children. they are loving, smart children. but, they have a disorder that sometimes need medication to help maintain. if sir dantes does not grow out of his current state and continues to hurt himself just because he is told “no”, well…could i be looking at the possibility of him needing medication to calm him down?

i know i am ranting to a point, but people and politicians who continue to toy with the health coverage of children are doing much more harm than they realize. i just wanted you to know.

good-night.