School started back up on the 6th, and things have been going very well for Alex. His teacher and I communicate back and forth via notebook, and everyday has been a "good day". It is so wonderful to read! Of course we have our minor daily battles, and food is back to being the enemy, but otherwise it's been a pretty smooth couple of weeks. Even bedtime has been less of a fight, thanks in part to a little bit of a natural, dissolving wonder called Melatonin. I had read about it before being very helpful to kids with ADHD when they are 'coming down' from their meds or having sleep difficulties. As I don't like to give Alex anything I don't have to, I only give him a 1/4 of the recommended dose. It seems to do the trick in helping him settle his body down to be able to fall asleep. I never thought I'd see the day again where he was actually asleep by 8:30 - but it's been happening now on a regular basis. Another thing that has returned that I thought was long gone? Greeting me after school with a hug and wanting to hold my hand as we walk to the van. :) It's such a tiny moment in time - but it brings me comfort that I can't explain.
I am kind of pressed for time today, but had wanted to at least put a few thoughts down here. I was thinking that my next blog post should be about my OTHER son, Joey. It seems only fair - don't want to show favoritism ;)
Monday, January 17, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
12 days in... 2 more sleeps til school is back! Yahoo!
Day 12 - Final weigh in for the boy found him at 49.2 lbs, an increase of 4.2 lbs! His cheeks are rounder, his shoulders and shoulder blades less jagged, his little tummy full. He looks so wonderful.
And now it ends. Today was the first day back on meds, which he surprisingly took without a fight this morning. He had a bit of tummy trouble at breakfast which kept him from eating much, and by lunch time his appetite was very low. All I could get him to eat was 1/2 a hotdog - a far cry from the *3* hotdogs he polished off only a few days ago at lunch. Yup - it's really that dramatic a change. We baked and decorated cookies today together while his brother went back to daycare for the first time in two weeks. (He only goes once a week to give Mommy a little sanity...) He ate a cookie or two, but only to please me. While we were decorating, he kept getting frustrated that my cookies "looked better" than his, and wanted to avoid decorating them all together.
In the afternoon he just didn't seem to know what to do with himself. He wanted me to play with him, but then he couldn't decide what to do, and seemed very low.
We're now 12 hours since meds were given, so supper went a little better. I anticipate a very difficult bedtime, however.
The last 12 days have been such a roller coaster, in a sense. While many days were frustrating and filled with 'managing' Alex, overall the time went by really fast. He and his brother loved spending so much time together (fighting aside), and it was so wonderful to see him with a 'normal', healthy appetite. I got more hugs out of him than I have in ages, and my parents remarked how he was just so much more 'himself' again.
I really feel somedays like I will never know if I'm making the right decision in medicating him.
He's looking forward to seeing his buddies in a couple of days, but NOT looking forward to the 'learning' part of school. :) I suppose it's really not exciting enough for him. The only time he got really excited about school was the last few days before break when they had alot of extra time in the gym!
Well, I'll be sure to update this blog after school begins later this week. Should be interesting!
And now it ends. Today was the first day back on meds, which he surprisingly took without a fight this morning. He had a bit of tummy trouble at breakfast which kept him from eating much, and by lunch time his appetite was very low. All I could get him to eat was 1/2 a hotdog - a far cry from the *3* hotdogs he polished off only a few days ago at lunch. Yup - it's really that dramatic a change. We baked and decorated cookies today together while his brother went back to daycare for the first time in two weeks. (He only goes once a week to give Mommy a little sanity...) He ate a cookie or two, but only to please me. While we were decorating, he kept getting frustrated that my cookies "looked better" than his, and wanted to avoid decorating them all together.
In the afternoon he just didn't seem to know what to do with himself. He wanted me to play with him, but then he couldn't decide what to do, and seemed very low.
We're now 12 hours since meds were given, so supper went a little better. I anticipate a very difficult bedtime, however.
The last 12 days have been such a roller coaster, in a sense. While many days were frustrating and filled with 'managing' Alex, overall the time went by really fast. He and his brother loved spending so much time together (fighting aside), and it was so wonderful to see him with a 'normal', healthy appetite. I got more hugs out of him than I have in ages, and my parents remarked how he was just so much more 'himself' again.
I really feel somedays like I will never know if I'm making the right decision in medicating him.
He's looking forward to seeing his buddies in a couple of days, but NOT looking forward to the 'learning' part of school. :) I suppose it's really not exciting enough for him. The only time he got really excited about school was the last few days before break when they had alot of extra time in the gym!
Well, I'll be sure to update this blog after school begins later this week. Should be interesting!
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