The end of summer brought some challenging times for the Bordens. Heather started school a couple weeks ago. Her first weeks of school have been hard. She is adjusting to a new job with new coworkers including helping along a new teacher. She is the teacher in the behavior unit at her school. Her class has been going okay, but a reorganizing and new programs are proving to be challenging. Unfortunately, I was unable to ease Heather's stress at home due to me being sick. I had all sorts of things going on from a sore throat to a yellow tongue to horrible tooth pain. Basically, my mouth was so inflamed that I couldn't distinguish the pain until I started to feel better about 8 days later.
Additionally, it's been a rough several days at our house. All summer, Ethan has been up around 430 in the morning. This week was even worse. Ethan has woke up between 3-4am this week. No matter how hard we tried, we just couldn't get him back to sleep. Once he was awake, he would just cry and cry. The only thing we could get out of him was watch Mickey watch Mickey over and over and over again. It was emotionally draining for Heather and I because we just couldn't figure out what was wrong. We certainly knew something was off, but couldn't figure it out. We thought he was just tired from waking up at 3am, or maybe he was getting sick. Early Sunday morning, we were awakened by horrible screams and loud bangs. It was Ethan. He was in what could only be described as an "autistic fit". He was crying, screaming, and kicking the door. He began flailing his arms and throwing himself against the wall. A few hours later, we found our answer. Turns out, Ethan was extremely constipated. Once he relieved himself of a major traffic jam, he was fine. It was like a switch was flipped. Today, he was initiating play, shooting basketballs, and smiles all around. He even played catch with Heather for about 3 minutes. It's just another example of how what's going on inside our kids definitely has an effect on behavior, mood, mental state, and ability to function. It really is remarkable the change we've seen in just a few hours.
We did introduce dairy just a day before Ethan started having troubles. We are not convinced the yogurt was responsible, but we will certainly remember this the next time we give him dairy.
Ethan has finished his antifungal prescription for his yeast treatment. We will continue the natural anti fungal, grape fruit seed extract, for another couple weeks. We've seen great improvements in all aspects. He's been in a better mood, looks healthier, and his therapies are going great.
No school for Ethan this year. He is currently going to therapy 40 hours a week. He has OT and PT once a week, and speech twice a week. He is in ABA therapy all week for about 35 hours. We finally have Ethan in a good position with all his therapies. We really like all of his therapist. This is his 3rd OT, and I think he is going to be great. He is a veteran in the OT game specializing in sensory integration therapy. He's got a great energy and Ethan has responded well to him. Ms Jenny is his longest running therapist. We've been seeing her for speech for about a year and a half. Ethan has had some ups and downs with Ms. Jenny. She's seen first hand just how different Ethan can be when his biology is off. She sticks with us and remains positive through all the cranky days. Ms Jenny had a really nice moment with Ethan this week. On Wednesday, Ethan ran into the OT gym and wanted to swing. It was not time for swinging, so as Ms Jenny was trying to get him back into her room, Ethan began to get really frustrated. In the past, Ethan has hit, scratched, or even attempted to bite Ms Jenny. However, this time his frustration made him wrap his arms around Ms Jenny seeking comfort from his long time therapist. It was great to hear Ms Jenny tell the story, and I think she really appreciated the hug from Ethan. I am now proof reading this, and reading the story is bringing a couple tears to my eyes.
So, summer has ended with a bang. After all that has happened, now little Gavin has a pretty good cold. Although, he is taking it pretty well. As you can see from the photo, he is still up for a good sword fight. A little more whiney and bossy, but nothing we can't handle. Hopefully, we can nurse him back to good health before Ethan's birthday on Wednesday. Grandma Penny and Grandpa Bill are coming in town for Ethan's birthday this week. (shot out to Gma Penny and Gpa Bill who spent their Labor Day helping in Joplin with tornado relief) We are all very excited to have them. I think everyone is a little home sick. It will be nice to see some familiar faces from back home. Heather and I plan to take full advantage of the babysitting while we have it available. I can't wait for a couple of much deserved, and much needed, date nights with the Mrs.
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