Reprieve

My husband came home a few minutes after my last post while my son was happily playing by himself in his room. I felt completely defeated. My son had one of his aggressive days. Separating him from his sister for safety's sake (and from me so that I can regain my patience)by letting him play in his room is one of the techniques recommended by his school behaviorist. I've been doing some reading, and it seems that aggression is very typical in autistic children, especially those with PDD like my son who are in the autism spectrum. Now that he finally has a diagnosis, it's so helpful to be able to compare him to children like him rather than typically developing children. It's not just me dealing with these problems.

My husband played with the kids while I cooked dinner, which was delicious. I made steamed chicken and broccoli with garlic sauce. Then I took a very long, hot shower with Bath and Body Works Sandalwood Rose Stress Relief Aromatherapy body wash. I felt a billion times better. We all took a ride to get my car from the mechanic's...hurray! Then I took my daughter to the supermarket to pick up a couple of things while my husband got our son ready for bed. When I got home, I finished getting him ready and gave him lots of snuggles and kisses, and we played and laughed. Then, of course, he hit me in the head. But, because I have a wonderful husband who gave me a reprieve and some respite, I just quietly said, "Don't hit Mommy."

I am happy that I did not seek refuge at the Dairy Queen or Baskin Robbins. Today I sought refuge where I could really be helped...in other people. Thank you to my Mommy and my husband for listening to me vent and decompress, and thank you to my husband for helping me so much when I know that he's tired after a long day of work.

It can be very isolating being a mother of a child with special needs because a lot of people don't understand why my son acts the way he does, and I think people who do must get sick of hearing me talk about the things we go through. I'm so blessed to have my husband who helps me and my Mommy who listens to me. I am going to be joining a support group as well. I know I need to talk to other people who go through the same experiences and know that I'm not alone. Now that my son has a diagnosis, I feel validated in going to a support group, where I didn't before.

I am blessed.