Flotation tanks may be a useful tool for calming the nervous system and helping with sensory integration in adults with Asperger syndrome and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
This case study describes an adult with Asperger syndrome and ADHD who was treated with flotation-Restricted Environmental Stimulation Technique (flotation-REST). The 36-year old woman from Sweden also had depression. She was given 19 sessions over a year and at the end felt that she was better able to live life on her own. With time she learned to control how alert she was (arousal control). She also learned to control how active she was (activity regulation). Her senses relaxed and she became better at sensory integration.
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I hope I get detention.
Dec 16, 2008 by AnonymousThe holiday sing went very well! I have to admit that I didn’t have such high hopes as Thomas is not much of a performer, but he did stand onstage in the appropriate spot. While he didn’t do all of the hand movements that went along with the songs, he did at least mouth the words (he wasn’t singing so loudly that I could hear just him, of course) and I got the whole thing on video. Hayley sat in the audience picking her nose the whole time. I can only assume that she thoroughly enjoyed herself. They sang one song about sledding, one song about Hanukkah and one song about Santa. The first grade classes sang two songs about Kwanzaa, so they covered all the bases, while shying away from the whole “baby Jesus” concept. The only Christmas songs they did were about reindeer or Santa. I was really disappointed that there were no songs about Boxing Day. Perhaps I’ll pass around a petition for next year.
I’ve got so much going on this week that I just know I’m going to forget to do something important. I’m sending in cupcakes for Thomas’ birthday tomorrow and also the supplies I had to get for the little gingerbread houses they’re going to make on Friday and finally the book for the Book Exchange. I think that covers Thomas. I’ve decided to skip Thomas’ Christmas party and go to Hayley’s party at school on Friday instead, since I get to spend one day every week in Thomas’ classroom anyway. And on Thursday, I wrote down “School sing – 9 a.m.” on the calendar. I don’t know whose school this is for or who will be singing. I’d better ask. I think – think – that it is a school thing for Thomas, but we just went to that Holiday Sing last week! I’m losing it. Plus, Thomas’ birthday party is this weekend and I haven’t ordered the cake yet or bought any of the supplies. Thomas wanted a Little Einsteins party but I haven’t been able to find Little Einsteins party ware anywhere. It’ll all come together, but right now I feel like I’m completely unprepared. At least we have all of our Christmas shopping done. Oh, except for my aunt in California. I have to do that in the next two days to avoid high shipping charges. So I guess it’s not all done.
The kids have been doing marginally well with the whole independence thing. The problem that we’re running into is that I still don’t leave enough time before school for the kids to put on their mittens, hats, coats, boots and scarves. This process, if I wasn’t constantly trying to hurry it along, could easily take an hour. I get so impatient when I see Thomas playing around with his shoes instead of putting them on, or when Hayley screams, “I WANNA DO IT!” and snatches a garment out of my hands, only to take F-O-R-E-V-E-R to put it on the appropriate body part. She is very particular about her socks, which I have little room to complain about since I am the same way. The seam across the toes has to be just so. The heel has to be in the appropriate spot, and hell hath no fury like Hayley when there’s a loose thread on the inside of her sock, tickling her instep. I get so frustrated and impatient with the two of them that I think I’m going to have an attack of some kind. Thank goodness that nothing more important than possible tardiness hangs in the balance while they gear up in the morning.
The upshot is that some days they do it themselves and other days I am forced to do it for them. Teaching independence is still my major commitment, however, and the thing that we’re working on regularly.
Thomas did about an hour’s worth of homework tonight and this is probably the longest I’ve gotten him to do homework in one sitting EVER! I usually can’t get him to sit down for more than fifteen minutes at a time, but he really did a good job staying focused on his work this evening. We had a lot to do. The teacher didn’t give us that much homework in one night to be handed in the next day or anything; this was stuff that should have been done over the weekend but as usual, it was a busy one and we had lots of other stuff to do. Late homework at this age, like tardiness, is more the parent’s fault than anyone else’s. I wonder if I’ll have to serve detention. It would actually be a nice little break for me.
Job well done
Dec 9, 2008 by dankohnI really wish I had more time to write. I’m sure everyone understands that this time of year, things are completely cuckoo-bananas.
Anyway, I left off right before Thomas’ conference, which went very well. We brought both of the kids along which seems to be the thing to do at Thomas’ school. Everyone brings their kids along for every little meeting and get-together. We felt like outcasts for not bringing at least Thomas to the first Open House.
In addition to our family of four and Thomas’ teacher, the resource teacher also attended Thomas’ conference. She made a point of explaining to us that Thomas’ progress is being charted along with his classmates, and for many of his goals she wrote that his class is still learning that particular concept, so he is neither behind nor excelling, but progressing as expected. Thomas’ teacher only had very good things to say about Thomas and I can tell that everyone really enjoys working with him, which is so wonderful. I know what I go through on a daily basis with Thomas and I always hope sincerely that he is not behaving the same at school. It appears as though he does work hard and try harder at school than he does at home.
I’ve turned over a few new…leafs or leaves? Anyway, I implemented some changes around our house as I’ve realized that I do way too much for the kids. I look around and realize that Thomas is nearly six years old now and there’s no way I should be putting his shoes on for him every morning, getting his coat on and zipped, and so on. I held a “Zipping Seminar” for the kids about a week ago. An hour or so before dinner, I helped the kids put their coats on and then taught them how to zip them up. It only took a couple of minutes for Hayley to master the concept and implement it, and it took Thomas only a little bit longer. I was very proud of both of them and they are now both zipping their jackets like pros. The problem I have with Thomas doing any self-help or personal hygiene chores by himself is that he takes FOREVER. Yesterday morning, I thought that I had been abducted by aliens because it seemed like we started getting ready to go to school around 8:05 a.m. but by the time I got the kids in the car it was 8:26 a.m. and the first bell had already rung. Yikes. There’s about twenty minutes of time in there that passed by so quickly I didn’t even realize it. I got Thomas in the building just in time, but because of this, I now see that getting on coats, shoes, hats, mittens and scarves, and sometimes boots is a half-hour procedure at least if I let the kids do it themselves, which I must do. Thomas has a difficult time staying on-task and needs many verbal cues to do what he is supposed to do. I know that he is just waiting for me to get frustrated and pressed for time so that I do it for him, but Jonathan and I have both explained to the kids that we wouldn’t be very good parents if we did everything for them all the time. We say that it is our job to teach them how to take care of themselves because one day, we won’t be around to do things for them. That statement opens up a whole other can of worms usually, but we’re very honest with them about life and death. They know that everybody dies sometime and usually, nobody knows when that will be. Luckily, the kids don’t lie awake nights wondering if their number’s going to be up soon. We told them not to worry about it and they seem not to. Especially with Thomas, however, we really need him to understand how important it is for him to learn to take care of himself. Hayley has a drive to do things for herself and usually will get dressed by unassisted if I ask her to.
In addition to getting dressed and getting ready for school, I’ve begun to insist on the kids washing themselves properly in the tub and brushing teeth (and in Hayley’s case, hair) by themselves. I sit in the bathroom with them and talk them through it, but I’ve really begun to see that I’m not doing Thomas any favors by treating him like a baby. Sigh. Those days are definitely over as he’s about to turn six. And Hayley’s four-going-on-fourteen. We’ll see how it goes, but I’m really trying to push independence.
Tomorrow is Thomas’ school Holiday Sing at the local high school. I’m very excited to see how he does. He participated in something similar when he was in preschool, but it was on a much smaller scale. I have no idea what they’re going to sing (non-denominational songs about snow and candy canes, most likely) but I’m eager to see how he does. I wonder if the much bigger high school stage (I assume it’s bigger; I’ve never seen it) will intimidate him, or if the bright lights will distract him. Mostly, I think that Hayley will be shouting to him from the audience. Which reminds me, I have to charge up the video camera tonight.
Thomas did much better in school when I was there last Tuesday. We had a long talk about how his teacher is there to help him, but I’m there to help the teacher. This apparently sunk in because he was not at all clingy last week, completed his work and only relied on the teacher and the aide for help. Today he was also purposefully ignorant of my presence, but it was a difficult day for all of the kids, for some reason. Thomas would NOT stop talking. Before the teacher read “The Gingerbread Man” to the kids, she put the weighted vest on Thomas and this really helped him settle down. She usually pairs the kids up and reads a few pages. Then she asks the kids to discuss the story so far with their partners. Thomas was Hayley’s partner today and he was so adorable. Every time the teacher stopped and asked a question, Thomas would turn to Hayley and repeat it. She would answer it pretty accurately, too. After the story, the weighted vest was removed and Thomas resumed his motor-mouth. He wasn’t bad, he was just talking when he should have been listening. Many of the kids were out of sorts today, so there must have been something in the air.
Thomas said something very sweet today. The social worker came in for Thomas and another little boy today, which she does every Tuesday. Thomas, who is not always eager to leave the classroom, got right up, took her hand and said, “Wow! You look so beautiful today!” Of course, the social worker blushed and thanked Thomas, saying that he had made her day. I think that she’s expecting, and at that difficult time when people don’t know if it’s extra weight or a baby bump, so his kind words worked wonders on her. He comes up with those zingers every now and then and melts the hearts of whomever he’s talking to.
Hayley, on the other hand, has zingers of her own. We got all of our Christmas shopping done this past weekend, thanks to my mother-in-law taking the kids from Friday after school to Sunday afternoon. We met at our regular rendezvous point on Friday and I put the kids and their bag into her car. We were standing outside Hayley’s open car door, just talking for a minute when Hayley said, “Look, Grandma! I’m wearing a freakin’ hat!” Grandma laughed herself sick while I stood there with a “this is clearly my fault” look on my face that also made her laugh. It was hard not to giggle at Hayley, who could tell that she had said something extremely entertaining and has been using the phrase “freakin’ hat” ever since. Job well done.
understanding my 18 year old - Danielle
Mar 16, 2008 by AnonymousI'm new to so much of this, but I thought I would explain, then ask for guidance. Born in 1989, she was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis as age one. Multiple hospitalization, didn't walk until age three and a half, didn't talk until age three, for years all was assumed related to the JRA. Open heart surgery at age three due to an atrial septal defect, again more delays. Speech therapy up until her 8th grade. We held her back in the 3rd grade due to maturity issues. We have had her tested at school three different times for a learning disorder to no avail. She always tested below average, but not extremely significant. Pediatricians and specialist never could quite put their finger on it. TEACH program at Chapel Hill was an option, however, out of network and not within our budget and 2 hrs one way. When she turned 18 we got her in to see a psychologist and several visits later we have this diagnosis of Asperger's Syndromel. I'm grateful to have a diagnosis, however, I feel helpless on what to do. She is a senior, hopefully graduating in June. No support groups in our area. How do I help her gain some independence? be safe in society? My patience wears thin at times when she seems to be coming into the "teenage girl years" of boys.
A "plan" for the future from her is just not in the real world. Will she make it to college? She works at a grocery store part-time, but has been counseled related to her "social skills" - inappropriate at times, lacking at times at the register, literal always thus confusion. Suggestions are welcome. Thanks for reading.