My boy is back!

Wow, has it has been a really rough few weeks.  Nathan has had a tough time transitioning back to school.  It has been very difficult for him to go from the hospital setting to home to school in a matter of 5 days.  He has tested any and all boundries and limit and has pushed the line and crossed in on numerous occasions.  We have struggled with the fact that we felt like we lost our little boy somewhere along the way.  The day they discharged him from the hospital they discontinued a medication because they were “not sure” it was effective.  Well, let me tell you that not only was it effective, it was essential, but we would not realize it until it became too late.

He was having terrible trouble at school.  He was having to be physically restrained at school so that they could get him to calm down and be redirected and at one point it happened in the lunch room in front of all of the 5th grade class.  Unfortunately, for everyone involved, Madison is in 5th grade and all her classmates saw it and needless to say were less than kind.  Even “friends” made some pretty ruthless comments.  It is unfortunate and she was embarrassed, but as always has seemed to bounce back from that experience. It got to the point were he was isolated in the special education room and having to eat lunch by himself because he could not handle all the commotion of all the other kids.  Every day when I went to pick him up, I felt like I was going to throw up.  I did not know what horrible news I would hear about that day.  And sure enough every day for 8 days at school he had a problem.

We took him to his new doctor last Wednesday and decided to make a few medication changes.  He said you should notice a difference within a week.  By Saturday, we saw some changes and by Monday, I knew that my little boy was emerging.  I don’t know where he went, but I feel like we have got him back:)  His aggression that was so hard is gone, he is affectionate and caring and kind.  He can be redirected and is playing independently, something that he could not have done a month ago.

We had a meeting with the school and they brought in the Behavioral Development team from the district to go over a behavior plan.  Needless to say, I was very apprehensive as I did not know what that meant or what they would say.  Walking into the meeting we ran into one of his aides and she said “what happened over the weekend, because he has been amazing today!!”  The meeting started with Nathan’s teacher saying that he had the best day ever!  She was so impressed with his attitude and willigness to participate and positivity.  We went on to discuss a behavior plan should things regress, but again, I picked him up today and another great report.  I feel like we are making progress and I will take all of it.  A good day for Nathan is a GREAT day for everyone.  I am so proud of him and what he is able to do when he sets his mind to it.  He has been told 1,000 times how wonderful he is.

He went the whole week without incident and got some really good feedback from his teachers.  I am so proud of him and I can see that he is proud of himself which is such a joy to see in him.  I pray that we are on the right path for him to be successful this year.

Thank you to all who thought about or said a special prayer for him as we feel they were truly answered.