Dyspraxic Journey

Tag Archive: slow-processing speed

Feeling Positive

Life is always an interesting and somewhat unpredictable journey. Today, I am feeling positive and excited about what tomorrow holds for me, CB, and our family. I think I am still floating from a really good yoga session earlier and this wonderful iced latte, but I am not going to question it. Oh, and I just realized Portishead is playing in the background. This music feel me with nostalgia and warm feelings. I spent many a day in college sitting in coffee shops soaking up the positive vibes of Portishead’s tunes.

So, I think CB and I are connecting really well these days. He cuddles with me more and wants me included in more of his activities. I think I have been in a better place to handle situations more gracefully and calmly. I have this natural inclination to say “no” to things. It is something I have struggled with in my professional and personal life. For me, I think it serves me well b/c it makes me think about things before I do them and helps me to think analytically. However, in my interactions with others, it comes off like I am finding the negative in the situation, dissing the other person’s idea, or being a Debbie Downer. I am trying to fight my initial urge and say “yes” to more things and to let more things go.

Olem and I had one of those “Things that make you go hmmm…” moments this week with CB. Before I get to this moment, I will provide some background on CB that got us to that point. So if CB is engaged in just about anything and we want his attention, he will most of the time not respond to us until about the 3rd-5th time we say his name. I know part of this is related to the fact he processes information slower than most kiddos his age. At times it is also apparent that he has his mind set on something and will not be deterred until he completes his desired task. It is very frustrating b/c we cannot always get to him and physically touch him to get his immediate attention, and we need him to stop or respond to us soon to protect himself or others. He also will re-enact whatever undesirable behavior we want him to stop doing. For example, if we ask CB to not hit his brother. He will then proceed to hit his brother again. If I say, don’t throw that car. He will throw the car and potentially all those around him. OK, now that you have the background, Olem and I, played a game with CB kind of like simon says. We would say things like “Roll your car towards your dad.” or “Don’t touch your head.” or “Clap your hands” or “Don’t look at me.” You get the idea. In every scenario, CB did the action regardless of whether it had the word “Don’t” in front of it. Now, if we asked CB what we said, he would take a moment and correctly tell us that we told him not to do the action. We therefore know that he knows what is being requested of him, but it seems like his automatic response is to do the action mentioned regardless of the context around it. After a little while, he thought it was silly to do what we said not to do. I get that. After all, we use reverse psychology often to get him or his brother to do something. We could tell initially though that he was trying to play the game properly. So, this is something else for me to research and to see how we can help CB in these situations.

Oh, I love this warm weather we are lately experiencing. Getting to send the kiddos outside to run around and play has been good for all of us.

June 4, 2015 Worries, Fears, & Ramblings, 0 Read more >

Let’s start from the beginning

CB is 4 years old …

For this week, let’s start from the beginning.

CB’s dad and I had mutually decided that we wanted to add a new addition to our small family of 4 (Olem, our 2 dogs, and me). We started to try to conceive, but my body decided to get all out-of-whack. After a couple of months, my body situation returned to normal but Olem’s schedule was extremely hectic. We decided to stop trying and to wait till we were both in a better place. The next time we decided to try to have a baby, CB was conceived with 2 weeks of trying. The pregnancy was a happy and fulfilling one. It was one of the happiest times of my life. The pregnancy itself was a little noteworthy. I had two yeast infections and took a medicine prescribed by the south american OB we saw for our first ultrasound called Icaden. We were traveling extensively and on a work hiatus when I got pregnant. I had placenta previa for most of the pregnancy but the placenta moved out of the way by the time CB arrived. For the last several weeks for the pregnancy, I had polyhydramnios. At 42 weeks and 1 day, I had to be induced b/c CB was not coming out on his own. I was given a low level dose of pitocin and the Dr broke my water. Labor was on the short side, 6 hours, and my midwife and her assistance were there to help the whole time. I stayed mostly relaxed throughout labor. During child birth, the umbilical cord came out while CB was exiting my birth canal and the Dr decided to cut the cord at that time. CB was born and turned blue right after being placed in my arms. After a couple of minutes (and after Olem began talking to CB), CB cried out and his color returned to normal. He was then placed back in my arms and we just stared into each other’s eyes. I still remember the extreme joy and connectedness I felt at that moment. While in the hospital we hardly slept because Olem and I just wanted to watch CB. The only time he left my sight was when Olem went with him and the nurse to perform a couple of tests. We were so excited about our new beautiful boy. I had lost a lot of blood after CB’s birth because my placenta had to be manually extracted. We had to stay in the hospital an extra day because CB was no longer pooping. It turns out he was severely tongue-tied. At 6 days old, we had his frenulum clipped. I should note he never had problems latching on. He just had problems latching on properly initially since his tongue would only extend to the back of his teeth. I also received numerous sonograms since I had placenta previa and then polyhydramnios.

The first weeks were a bit of a blur. I would nurse while my husband fed me from the food my mom had prepared for us. Olem took care of all the diaper changes, putting CB in his napper, and picking him up. It took 2 weeks before I had the strength (due to the low iron from the blood loss) to carry CB around.

We enjoyed our new beautiful boy and learned to function on little sleep. CB was a good baby and a pretty easy baby, as far as babies go. He enjoyed laying on the playmate and watching the lights and spinning toys, swinging in his swing, going for strolls in his stroller, and riding in his car seat. By 2.5 months, he was sleeping through the night and we moved him to his crib in his own room. One mom had noted that CB made being a baby look easy. What CB did not like was being carried in a sling or carrier on me or belly time. I had a wrap, sling, and 2 baby wearers. It took until CB was 6-8 months old, before he would tolerate me carrying him in one of these for more than a few minutes. He has always loved the water. He was a very happy baby. Everyone always commented on this, as well.

Promising Progress: Olem and I feel even more certain that Global Dyspraxia is what CB has. The DSM V states it as DCD, Developmental Coordination Disorder, but that only accounts for the fine and gross motor planning issues. If we go with the DCD diagnosis, then you could say he has DCD with Apraxia, sensory issues, visual issues, and auditory issues. Global Dyspraxia seems to cover his verbal dyspraxia, motor, coordination, balance, sensory, visual, slow-processing, focus, attention, and low frustration tolerance levels. He also has overall hypotonia (low muscle tone), which is common in DCD and Dyspraxia but is not required. It is still nice to have a more concise unofficial diagnosis.

April 18, 2015 Growth and Progress, , , , , , , , 0 Read more >