Behavior Improvements in affect thanks to the medication

I always celebrate the little things he does, but this one was a show stopper! Since starting his current placement, William has never had a whole week (5 days) of good behavior. We've tried diet, sensory vests, bumpy seats, fidget toys, weighted lap blankets, sensory breaks... (you name it, we've tried it). We were lucky to get 3 days a week with a good check mark AND he has a TSS. But this week, since starting medication (we didn't even inform his teachers that we started the meds so she has no idea) he finally got 5 good days in a row. He is usually dinged for not being able to sit still or not paying attention and not following directions. His teacher is quick to check these boxes if he does anything to hinder his education like not copying notes or just generally staring out of the window. This week, her comments were that William has been very good in class and is able to participate and keep up with other classmates. He is able to focus and retain the information given to him. He also is thriving with his personality and is able to express himself better when speaking to us and telling us about his day. On the weekends, we are not giving him the medication and letting him have a break. We totally see the difference from giving him meds to not having the medication. He is back to his old self, but at least we recognize it and see how it is helping him. We don't give him the maximum dose, but just enough to get him through his day. 

As his mom, I still have reservations about medicating my child for school, but I do see that he is much happier with his school and academic performance and he is so proud of himself. He is excited to do good in school and not to be so down on himself when he was trying so hard to concentrate. Sometimes he would tell us "my brain isn't working" and I would feel so bad for him knowing that he is trying is best but just not able to perform like he wanted to. The medication is helping him focus on the things he wants to accomplish instead of worrying about his movements and his behavior. We will continue to monitor his progress and not give him the medicine unless he really needs it. Now if we could just find a good placement for him, now that he's happy and thriving....... 

Life is never dull for this complex, sweet, and loving little man I am blessed to raise. 

The Meds seem to be working....

Well today is day 5 of the medicine. We started Mother's day weekend with 5mg of Focalin which seemed to calm William down, but only for about 5 hours. He woke up, had breakfast and took one dose and was not drowsy or over sluggish. He usually lets music from TV shows and other things over-stimulate him, but he was very calm and cool throughout the morning. We asked him questions and we kept a close watch on him, but he appeared to be quite happy and content sitting next to us and watching tv (which he never sits the entire time). We had plans to proceed to Ocean City New Jersey to ride on roller coasters and really test the over stimulation factor of the medicine. Since it appeared to wear off in the afternoon, we gave him another dose of 5mg and proceeded to the boardwalk. William was fantastic! The medicine did not curb his appetite, but it really helped him to focus better, not be overwhelmed by the lights and people, and we were able to breathe a sigh of relief and have a great time.

On Mother's day we gave him a 10mg of Focalin and he had a great day all day. It lasted from 7am - 5pm which was great. We noticed him getting jittery and back to his old self by 6pm and we were ok with that. By that time, it was time for dinner, bath and bed so we agreed to keep him on 10mg on Monday to test out how he would do on a school day.

William has never had 3 good days in a row. He struggled in the past, but it is astounding to see that he is proud of himself and his accomplishments. He is much calmer and not stimulated by things that happen as much as he used to be. We did not tell anyone at the school that we started him on meds, and everyday that we pick him up, someone at the school tells us that he is was doing so good.

I still have mixed emotions and sort of feel guilty that I am giving my son medication to be able to focus, but I see that he is happy and able to enjoy his life without having to control his behavior. If he has a whole week full of good days, we won't know what to do with ourselves.

If you have any information to add or experiences from meds, please feel free to share them with us! 

Day 1: Plant Based and A Good Day

Day One 1: Went off without a hitch. As you can see from the chart, there are alot of ways he could go with his day, but for a Monday, this is stellar. Usually it takes William until Tuesday or Wednesday to get back into the swing of things at school. He is usually still wired and fired up from the weekend and it takes him a day or two to cool it down to focus in school. It is great that he didn't get marked for any thing but a good day. Usually his marks include not following directions or not listening (which I feel is common for a kid diagnosed with both Autism and ADHD, but what do I know). The fact that neither of these was checked on a Monday is clearly saying something. Lunch was served with a salad with extra virgin olive oil dressing, broccoli, carrots, lettuce, chia seeds and walnuts. He didn't eat the walnuts, but he ate everything else, including the pineapple and gluten free popcorn. He always drinks water, and nothing but water so he was happy.

Tomorrow's another day, so we shall see how he does with my next creation (gluten-free vegan pizza!) I hope by the end of this experiment to compile kid friendly lunch box recipes to share with everyone. Seems like that is really missing in the GFV world. Most recipes aren't kid tested first and don't look that appealing in my opinion. This will be a stapler when I can't find anything else to do.