We Get Derailed Easily…

As a mom I dread this time of year. It's a hard time to navigate as far as Alan's wellness goes. Allergies are terrible for us and with flu season starting. Flu season all over the country is awful and nobody enjoys it. But there's something about that Midwest in between winter and fall time that absolutely is amazing visually and sucks the life out of you all the same time. We get glimpses of cool weather while also enjoying some beautiful warm weather. It's a rollercoaster of temps which effects everything.

Alan has been battling some sort of sickness the past week on top of his seasonal congestion. Usually a cold or little virus is no big deal for most kids. Vinny also has the same sickness but it's totally different navigating his sickness and Alan's sickness. Vinny came downstairs one day last week and said "Mom, I think I need some medicine, my throat hurts." Okay, done problem solved and we moved on with our day. Alan, it's like a tropical storm, as I so lovingly refer to him as. You know when you watch a weather warning for a hurricane and they show you an arial view of the clouds churning together? Like a circular motion with the eye in the middle? That's how we feel here when he starts coming down with something. It usually starts with some little irritable behaviors, along with not eating much. Clouds start churning.... and then moves into some congestion and/or cough along with more mild(ish) irritable behaviors.... Clouds still churning a little faster.... and over the weekend man did that eye of the storm hit our land. We saw explosive, angry behaviors along with not eating, not drinking, not sleeping. It ALL adds up to a perfect storm.

It is SO hard when he is sick. Nothing we do makes him happy. I was beyond grateful his class had a field trip to the pumpkin farm yesterday so the academic demands were not being put on him. He did decently on the field trip, all things considered but he definitely did not enjoy it as much as I know he could have. His Dad surprised him and met us there, which also helped having four hands and four eyes to help instead of only mine. There was a huge jump pillow that he absolutely loved so we spent most of the trip on that. We got him to go on the tractor ride, the corn maze, walk by the animals, a tree house and some bike riding. But it was just one of those days where he could tip the other way at any second. We have always been on pins and needles with him.

Well we got home and he sure tipped the other way. He loves his tablet but he will continuously watch a clip from episode of Little Einstein's that upsets him. I think it's the fixation piece of Autism and it comes out a lot when he is sick. He will continuously go back to that clip and get upset or meltdown. Alley is perfectly capable of navigating his tablet so he doesn't see that clip, but it's almost like an obsession of his. This is a part of his Autism I do not understand. The past couple days can only be described as rocky in our house. And that is okay, he is not perfect nor are we. We are just getting through day to day right now in hopes that this virus kicks rocks soon. Until the we are going to love him through it the best we can while giving ourselves some grace.

With grace-

This Autism Mama