The Horse Boy

We watched this movie on Netflix instant tonight, called The Horse Boy. Documentary about a couple who takes their son with Autism to Mongolia, after traditional therapies have done little to help him. We're not planning on packing up and heading to Mongolia any time soon ; ) but it was a very moving story. It was almost eerie to watch the child having his meltdowns, because it was like watching Rocket. You see how people react to him in public, and it's just sad. We've been getting "those" looks long before we had any idea what was causing the meltdowns ...the inconsolable meltdowns.

So far ...the fact that we so often CAN NOT HELP HIM, is the worst part of it. Not knowing what will trigger a tantrum, and then not being able to make it all better, it's heartbreaking. As a mother, a parent ...you just want to make it all better. You don't want to sit there helplessly while your toddler-who is essentially still a baby, sobs and holds his breath and generally acts like he's being tortured. All you want to do is hold them and kiss them and take away the pain and you can't. Every touch, every hug, it just makes it worse. So you sit there next to him while he cries, sometimes you can't control yourself and you cry along with him, and eventually he may decide he wants to sit with you and then you can rock him and settle him down some. Or he snaps out of it as quickly as it was started, and you're left feeling like you just got one of the most brutal ass kickings of your life.

Monday is the OT eval at Kaiser, as well as speech. We had to adjust the time of his speech appointment to make the OT appointment, so he won't be with his guy. : ( I am hoping that he doesn't freak. He's not liking new people very much these days. Another new thing, he absolutely does NOT like anyone holding Monkey Baby. This is a brand new thing ...we had company (family) two days in a row and he was totally fine with them being here, until they held the baby. He actually grabbed his feet and tried to yank him off of my grandfather!

He just crashed out, this is the earliest he's gone to sleep all week! 9:30. He actually had a very decent day, especially considering he didn't nap. He came into our bed around 5, and woke up for good at 8 something, and was happy and all smiles. I adore that. Lots of eye contact today too, both briefly for requests-which of course we are encouraging and reinforcing!! and just independently looking at us and engaging. Hubby has a theory that he seems much worse when he's not eating bananas regularly, and he had 2 today. Things that make you go hmmm.

I'll update after the OT eval and then again Friday or next weekend, after we meet with his coordinator at Alta Regional. I'm really hoping that they are able to provide a lot more therapies for him. Keep your fingers crossed, please!