Progress Comes When You Least Expect It

I'm way behind in the stories that have been happening in our lives here.  But I'm just starting in fresh again.  Those stories, well, maybe I'll find another way to incorporate them here.  But for now, we're just going to start with where we are right now.

On Tuesday, it finally happened.  I got a phone call from school to tell me that Music Man had a toiletting accident.  Since he was trained (well, urine trained) over President's Day weekend, we haven't had an accident at school.  Apparently, I had never brought in long pants (he had plenty of shorts) and they needed these ASAP.

I had mentioned during Music Man's IEP Meeting that he was not yet "Poop Trained".  In fact, he has never INTENTIONALLY released poop into the toilet.  He showed no interest.  And he never showed any indication that he was uncomfortable when he had an accident.  I'm not sure if anyone in the room agreed that that last statement could be true, but they did take me at my word.  Well, on Tuesday, when he had his accident, they realized that I was telling the truth.  He truly just didn't care.  He just sat there. He was able to completely ignore it.  He didn't fidget.  He didn't do anything to indicate that he was the one that the teachers were smelling, other than simply sitting there in his own poop.

Yesterday (Wednesday), his teacher sent him home with a social story.  She found me outside the school waiting for dismissal and told me what they were starting to do.  She was keeping her own copy of the social story at school and she informed me that, since he likes Oreo cookies, he wasn't allowed to have an oreo unless he successfully "Pooped on the Pot".  This last bit threw me a bit.....I would have to follow this as well, and Oreos are his regular after-school snack.  But, I agreed to go along with this regime and I figured we'll see what happens.

Before Music Man is allowed to go downstairs to play, he has to go to the bathroom (I don't know when he last goes at school and this way we are starting fresh with the timing).  He had to urinate and that was no surprise.  But after he was done, I asked if he needed to poop.  I pointed out that, if he did put his "Poop in the Pot", he'd get a Double-Stuff Oreo cookie.  He immediately decided it was worth trying.  So, he sat on the toilet and was clearly putting in the effort.  He asked for me to sing a song, which I gladly did.  We went back and forth between the song and reading the social story.  And, sure enough, he put his "Poop in the Pot"!  3 times actually.

YAY!!!!!!

After cleaning up, he got his Double-Stuff Oreo cookie and then went downstairs to play.

Today, when I pick him up from school, I intend to do the same thing.  We will have snack (that isn't an Oreo) and when he goes to the bathroom prior to going downstairs to play, we will take the social story with us and we will try again.  I will give him a smaller snack so, if he's successful, he can have his Double-Stuff Oreo without getting too much sugar, but I'll take the added sugar rush to have this whole thing behind us!

It's not like we've been complacent with the toilet training thing.  But, just like in February where the breaking point was reached, I think that's what we are seeing right now....everyone has simply had enough.  He needs to know that this is the way it's supposed to be and how it will be.  And, thanks to his teacher, we figured out a way to convince him that we really mean it!

Who's Afraid of the "Big Bad Dentist"?

Well, I AM for one. You're reading the writings of someone who has had 3 root canals in a single tooth this summer, is about to have more work done on that tooth at the end of the week and will need a crown put on once everything is fully resolved. I HATE going to the dentist. So, I don't expect my children to like it either.

That is especially true for Simon. Simon doesn't like anything new. His fight or flight response is strong and so is he. He doesn't like people to come near him with any instruments, including a toothbrush. But he has started losing his baby teeth. We need to have his remaining 19 teeth checked. And we need to get him used to it, even if it takes a while.

So, last week, Daniel went to see a local pediatric dentist, "Dr. Bob". Dr. Bob (in general) has a great reputation among many local families for all children, including children with special needs. When we were in the office for Daniel's appointment, I took several pictures and made a social story for the twins. I also spoke with Dr. Bob explaining Simon's issues and my concerns. I made sure that HE was prepared, even if I couldn't successfully prepare Simon.

But I worked on preparing Simon. I made that social story using a phone app called "Stories2Learn". And Simon LOVES that story. We read it over and over and over and ..... again. When I picked him up from school yesterday, we went into the school library and read it again. He thinks it's a great story. And it worked. From the moment we pulled into the parking lot, he knew we were there to see "Dr. Bob". Then we got out of the car. That's when reality set in.

He seemed to instinctively know that we were going to have to go to the second floor. He kept screaming "No elevator!!!!", with his hand covering his ears. I kept reassuring him that we didn't have to take the elevator if he didn't want to -- we could walk up the stairs. Unfortunately, the stairs are right near the elevator. But no body drops -- just loud insistence that we not get on the elevator. But we went up the stairs and walked around to the dentist's office. It was still closed for lunch.

We took advantage of the extra time and walked around. We looked down at an exercise room and saw the people on the treadmills, exercise bikes, stair machines, and all sorts of exercise equipment (most of the building is a health club). Then when the office opened, we went into the waiting room and he was face-to-face with the pictures he saw in the book. He saw the books. He saw the fish. He saw Mr. Potato Head. And he got to meet Dr. Bob. Things are going well!

We walk down the hall so Dr. Bob can look at his teeth. This is what I'm afraid of. This is where Simon typically falls apart when we visit the pediatrician. But he seems to be doing well. Until we get to the end of the hall. He drops to the floor and starts to cry (note, I say cry, not scream). He has no intention of getting into the examination chair or letting Dr. Bob come near him with those instruments. But while talking to him, he is willing to come sit on my lap, facing me. We play a short tipping game and before he knows it, his head is in Dr. Bob's lap. Simon is not happy about this, and is squirming as much as he can. But Dr. Bob is able to count his teeth, check the general condition, and confirm that he does have a few more teeth that are starting to get loose. And he confirmed that there are no cavities.

No cleaning. No x-rays. After a VERY brief attempt to scrape the tarter off with a pick (unsuccessfully), that task was done.

This was most definitely a first visit. We are going back in a couple of months and will probably continue to do so for a while so that Simon can become more comfortable with the idea. And hopefully he will allow Dr. Bob to do a little bit more. But given the nightmare I was expecting, this was simply an unpleasant experience. A success.

Baby steps......