I have not given up on my Avon business at all (did have a small set back last campaign do to a billing issue) but that has all for the most part been straightened out. This wasn't a very big order that is going in tomorrow. But there is still plenty of time for orders to go in.
I am going to put my Facebook posts for this month here in my blog :) .
I'll start with the first three days, and add three more in a new post tomorrow.
Day 1:And welcome to Autism Awareness and Acceptance month. Autism is a Neurological and developmental disorder (hate that word... how about difference
smile emoticon ) Basically it is a different operating system... Many people with autism also have sensory issues... and too much sensory in put can cause shut downs and/or melt downs. Because they are trying to sort through all the input their brains are receiving and they are having trouble doing so. relegating information is a difficult task at times when there is a lot of back ground stuff going on. You may not notice the lights buzzing, the three different perfumes that different people are wearing, the brightly colored clothing a few of the people in the room are wearing, and the 6 or 7 different conversations going on... but these things are enough to cause an over load of information which may cause a child (or adult) to have a meltdown (not a tantrum as they are not seeking attention but rather escape) or a shutdown where they are unable to complete the task at hand because their mind is taking a break. self stemming behaviors (rocking, hand flapping, finger tapping, verbal noise) are all methods that the person uses to help center themselves. Everyone is different. This is not an easy thing to witness. don't try and comfort them unless they ask because some need the deep pressure of a hug, and others that might send them further off... do what you can to lessen the stimuli in the room for them (headphones to drown out the excess noise, dim the lights if possible, make sure they have a quiet place to go where no one will bother them for several minutes.(and make sure they know this before the meltdown/ shutdown occurs) ) If you know someone is autistic ask them or their parents if in the event of a meltdown/shutdown what are the best ways to handle the situation, what to look for prior to a meltdown/shutdown to possible prevent it from occurring.
Day 2 of Awareness and Acceptance of Autism month. Before I had kids... and up to (I am ashamed to say) fairly recently.... screaming kids in stores all I could thing was "what brats... their parents really should do something about that.. and yes I even at times thought my own kids were just being bratty. So lets stop for a moment when we hear or see this and instead of thinking what brats... lets look around at what all is going on in the store (lots and lots of sensory input that most people can easily filter out to the subconscious is being processed almost exclusively in the conscious mind of a person with autism, and busy stores can be pure hell for a person with autism). Give the mom or dad with the child a nod and a smile... or even say something nice to them. Because chances are they too feel like having a meltdown and are feeling very exposed, and just want to get their shopping done as quickly as they can. Many don't have a choice as to when they can go to the store for various reasons (work, transportation, being a single parent, money issues...ect.) so instead of condemning the kid as a brat and thinking the parent has poor parenting skills... be compassionate, give the parent a smile and a nod... if you know them assure them that they are a good parent, and are doing a good job. Or even do a random act of kindness towards them if you can.
Day 3. My journey with my oldest.... Ok... Robert was born at 31 weeks due to premature rupture of the membranes caused by polyhyromus, spent 6 weeks in the NICU, suffered from colic, and reflux as a baby, when he was 15 months and not walking on his own we were sent to a neurologist and at 18 months ( he was finally walking on his own) we found out that he has mild diplegic Cerebral Palsy. ok fine initially I was devastated thinking that he was doomed to be in a wheel chair (completely forgot about Gerry off of Facts of Life) gradually I came to realize that that was not the case... the doctor assured us that it was not something that would worsen with age.
Fast forward to Kindergarten... We begin to notice that he has trouble over reacting to teasing (yes I know... he comes by that naturally through me) we moved before 1st grade so he began a new school, with in a week of him being at school we were asked if the school could do anything to help because they had noticed his odd gait (I ALWAYS put the CP on any paper work I have to fill out.) So this new school begins to get him services to help with gross and fine motor issues.. Towards the end of 3rd grade he is having a lot more outbursts and hitting other kids (always the reaction that is caught, never the cause of it) so we decided that we were going to try virtual school the next year... to give him a little time to mature hopefully and time away from his tormentors...Before the end of the year his teacher informs me that he has made comments like he wishes he were never born... so II make a psychiatric appointment for him (earliest available was the following September, but he started counseling right away.)
Our middle child had started PPCD when he turned 3 to help with a speech delay. I took Robert with me to Thomas's meet the teacher the August before he started virtual school... This was the first time anyone ever mentioned AS to me. Robert sat down and started looking thorough a book about idioms, and the silly way they would seem if taken literally... and he looked up and said... I don't get it. I tried to explain which ever idiom it was... Tommy's teacher looked at me and asked "Is he AS?" I was like "huh????" Autism Spectrum... and yes my first thought when I heard those words was Rainman... "Um...NO." so a month or so later we finally got to see the psychiatrist.. and his diagnosis was ADHD and Asperger's syndrome... so yeah he is AS...
The virtual school never added the diagnosis to his IEP, so when I discovered that it was too much of a strain on me and him to fight to get work done and decided to send him back to regular school We had to start the whole assessment process over with the school district.
Robert is very smart (8th grade reading at a college level according to his teachers). Do I feel that AS has made him any less... not even a little bit... yes he has trouble in social situations, but those skills can be learned over time (and I believe that his reading probably helps develop those skills as well) We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and AS is just another label that doesn't make him defective, but should be used to help him overcome his weaknesses.
If you know someone with AS... no matter how severe the case I firmly believe that they are in there somewhere... we just have to keep trying to find the key, the spark to help them grow to their full potential... never ever give up trying to teach, seeking the spark. Everyone deserves love, and understanding , and most of all ACCEPTANCE.
Fast forward to Kindergarten... We begin to notice that he has trouble over reacting to teasing (yes I know... he comes by that naturally through me) we moved before 1st grade so he began a new school, with in a week of him being at school we were asked if the school could do anything to help because they had noticed his odd gait (I ALWAYS put the CP on any paper work I have to fill out.) So this new school begins to get him services to help with gross and fine motor issues.. Towards the end of 3rd grade he is having a lot more outbursts and hitting other kids (always the reaction that is caught, never the cause of it) so we decided that we were going to try virtual school the next year... to give him a little time to mature hopefully and time away from his tormentors...Before the end of the year his teacher informs me that he has made comments like he wishes he were never born... so II make a psychiatric appointment for him (earliest available was the following September, but he started counseling right away.)
Our middle child had started PPCD when he turned 3 to help with a speech delay. I took Robert with me to Thomas's meet the teacher the August before he started virtual school... This was the first time anyone ever mentioned AS to me. Robert sat down and started looking thorough a book about idioms, and the silly way they would seem if taken literally... and he looked up and said... I don't get it. I tried to explain which ever idiom it was... Tommy's teacher looked at me and asked "Is he AS?" I was like "huh????" Autism Spectrum... and yes my first thought when I heard those words was Rainman... "Um...NO." so a month or so later we finally got to see the psychiatrist.. and his diagnosis was ADHD and Asperger's syndrome... so yeah he is AS...
The virtual school never added the diagnosis to his IEP, so when I discovered that it was too much of a strain on me and him to fight to get work done and decided to send him back to regular school We had to start the whole assessment process over with the school district.
Robert is very smart (8th grade reading at a college level according to his teachers). Do I feel that AS has made him any less... not even a little bit... yes he has trouble in social situations, but those skills can be learned over time (and I believe that his reading probably helps develop those skills as well) We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and AS is just another label that doesn't make him defective, but should be used to help him overcome his weaknesses.
If you know someone with AS... no matter how severe the case I firmly believe that they are in there somewhere... we just have to keep trying to find the key, the spark to help them grow to their full potential... never ever give up trying to teach, seeking the spark. Everyone deserves love, and understanding , and most of all ACCEPTANCE.
No comments:
Post a Comment