Mi Vida Loca

So I wanted to blog at least one more time before the end of the year.  Since the last time we last met, we have celebrated my brother in law's birthday, my son's birthday, my birthday and today is my sisters birthday (happy birthday T-Pod!).  We had a very small med change for Ben's ADHD (a 5 mg change) and we have had an insanely crazy month.   I felt like the 10mg wasn't doing much for him anymore but the 5mg change was WAY too much for him.  I have spent several nights crying after he goes to bed because it's been so hard.  He is a completely different child off his medication.  It's days like those that I realize that I do love my son unconditionally. 

A day with too much, too little or no meds usually contains one (or more) email(s) from his teachers at school, no homework getting done, bed 30 minutes to an hour earlier (which puts it around 7-730pm), and one or both of us yelling and/or in tears.  Not to mention his screeching, constant noise making, hissing (imagine an angry cat), spitting and of course the hateful words that come out of his mouth.  There are other things but my goal is to vent (for me) and educate (for you, hopefully!) -- NOT to embarrass my son, so I choose not to share every single detail.  So you can imagine my frustration.

Now, you are more than welcome to judge me for using medication. I am completely secure in my decision.  While I hate to "medicate" my son, he is and has never been a "zombie". I keep him on the lowest possible dose that is still effective.   The meds have never changed who he is as a person, caused him any pain, nor has he had any side effects.  I monitor his health closely and ensure he is always feeling ok on his meds.  My son can collect his thoughts and focus on his work and behavior for longer periods of time.  While he also has bad days on his medication, they aren't as frequent as without.  I should also mention that I feel ADHD is very over diagnosed and only a parent knows their child...no one should ever unnecessarily medicate their child...for any reason.  You should also note that I never said this was medication for his Autism.  :)

Sorry, yet another soapbox for me! I'm off! A hui hoa, friends.