Just Stand Against the Wall

Nobody has ever asked me this, but I've got my answer all ready to go. "What's harder to live with, the ASD or the ADHD?" By far, on a day-to-day basis, the ADHD. In the grander scheme of things, and as far as planning for our golden years and Rojo's adulthood, the ASD wins, but for just your general, run-of-the-mill living, ADHD kicks our butts. Th

Just this morning Rojo sang in a VERY loud and falsetto voice, "Pick, pick, pickatell, picka picka tell..." to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" for a solid hour. He also thumped his right leg down so often and with such force, I swear to God, I thought the house shook. This starts no later than 6:00 AM (today it was 5:40) and goes until his meds kick in, which on school days, isn't until after he arrives. They have worn off by the time I pick him up.

On the weekends and non-school/working days, we only give him a tiny bit of his meds to get us through the first two, and roughest, hours of the day. Then we let them wear off so he'll eat. And he does. He eats and eats and eats and eats. The whole weekend is devoted to taking him places to get him things he's willing and ready to eat.

My boy is growing. He grew an inch just last week. He's now 5' 10 1/2" and 110 lbs. Skinny. But not as skinny as he has been in the past.

I was thinking about the title of this site: Hopeful Parents. Hope is really the key, isn't it? I've tasted despair, and hope really has it trumped. There were days we never thought he'd ever gain weight - not with his 101 rules about what he can and cannot eat. Not with the appetite suppressant of his ADHD meds. Not with pickiness. Not with the ultra sensory defensiveness.

But he has.

Equally important, if not more, he's growing in other ways: spiritually, socially, behaviorally, academically, emotionally. Sometimes it's hard to see the growth when you're up so close, but it's there. Just stand against the wall and you'll see.



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Carrie is a parent and advocate of a child with special needs and even more special gifts. She blogs at http://carrielink.blogspot.com/ where this is pretty much her favorite topic.