The Continuing Saga Of Sir Spaz-A-Lot

I took Triscuit back to the behavioral specialist a little over a week ago. Things are better regarding his attention span/focus, but towards the 3rd week of him beginning his medication, I noticed it wearing off 4 hours after he took it. Since it takes about an hour for it to kick in, he only had 3 hours of focal ability. That wasn't working...considering he would only get a few hours of schooling in before he started jumping around like someone was putting coals down his pants. His behavioral specialist increased his dosage from 5mg (the lowest) to 10mg per day. The concern is now his weight. The kid is shaped JUST like Weenie. Tall/Lanky and skinny! He really couldn't afford to lose any weight, but he did. He lost 3 pounds. When they lose 10% of their body weight, the docs start getting concerned. He only had 2 and 1/2 pounds to go before that 10% benchmark was reached. The decision was made to put him on a high fat/high calorie diet along with an increased amount of the med. Triscuit gets a milkshake LOADED with junk right before he goes to bed. Whole milk, Vanilla Ice Cream, Chocolate Syrup, a packet of Carnation Instant Breakfast and a few scoops of peanut butter. Blend together and you have a chocolate peanut butter shake! She instructed us to give it to him right before bed. Not only with the Tryptophane in the dairy help him sleep, the full tummy will, too. Along with the decreased appetite, he was having problems falling asleep again. Good thing he had Spring Break the week the increase in med started.

He couldn't fall asleep until after 11:00pm...and a few nights after 1:00am. Then, he would wake up at 6:00am raring to go! A few hours later, he would be really tired. I don't know many adults who could handle getting only 5 hours of sleep and be happy...so what follows is extreme crankiness. Of course, when he gets cranky, he takes it out on Toblerone. The ONE thing Triscuit hasn't gotten through his head is Toblerone is almost his size...as a matter of fact, there is only a 2 pound difference between the two of them now. Triscuit is 56 (almost 57) pounds and Toblerone is 54 pounds. I don't know how many times Weenie and I have to tell Triscuit..."DO NOT TAKE YOUR FRUSTRATIONS OUT ON YOUR LITTLE BROTHER". But does he listen? No....of course not! So, what follows is this....

Triscuit: "Toblerone! Move your head! I can't see!"

Toblerone: "NO! Triscuit take a nap!"

Triscuit: "NO! YOU take a nap!"

Toblerone: *runs over to Triscuit and hits him*

Triscuit: *screams* "OW!!!!!!!!! MOOOOOM! He hit me!!!!"

Mum: *spanks Toblerone for hitting and puts him on the couch*...."Now...Triscuit! How many times do we have to tell you to be NICE to your little brother!"

Triscuit: "But Moooom! He's in my way and he won't move!"

Mum: "If you don't change your attitude, you're going to go take a nap."

OH BOY! You would have thought I crushed his world. Oh no! I said the "N" word to a 7 year old....

Triscuit: *begins WAILING*..."NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I don't wanna take a naaaaaaaap!"

At this point, I try and explain to him what the medication is doing to him and how IMPORTANT it is for him to get some sleep. Needless to say, it doesn't work.

Mum: "If I catch you ONE more time being mean and talking to your brother like that, you WILL go to bed. Now...repeat what I just said to you."

Triscuit: "Be nice or I will go take a nap."

Not even an hour later, it all starts again. Toblerone wanted to sit next to Triscuit and watch "Beverly Hills Chihuahua". Triscuit wasn't having it.

Triscuit: "No Toblerone! Get down!"

Toblerone: *gives him a confused look*

Triscuit: "I want to be by myself! Leave me alone!"

Toblerone: *sensing Triscuits hostility begins to react in a normal 2 year old fashion* "NO! Triscuit MEEEEAAAAN! *SMACK*

Mum: *sigh*

I stop doing dishes and break up the fight. Toblerone got spanked...yet again...while I sent Triscuit to his room for a nap. On his way up the stairs I hear....

Triscuit: "You don't love me! You don't want me around!"

WHOA! Where did THAT come from???? It made me feel bad but it also made me MAD. I understand that he's not in his right mind because he's tired and not eating a whole lot, but COME on! That was a LOW blow!

I follow him upstairs and while remaining calm, explain to him...YET AGAIN...that I told him ONCE to be nice to his brother. I reminded him of what the agreement was...if he was mean again, he would be taking a nap. He understood the "nap" thing, but here was his statement....

Triscuit: "You always send me away when I'm in trouble. You just don't want me around. You love Toblerone MORE than me!"

Ouch. That hurt. NO mother wants to hear those words. So, I tried to explain to him WHY he gets sent to his room. Not only to calm down, but to separate the TWO of them. They BOTH needed to cool off. I also explained that NO...I DO NOT love Toblerone more than him. I love them BOTH. There is enough "Mommy" to go around. I punish Toblerone in a way he can understand and then punish Triscuit in the way HE understands. I am not "wanting" him to be away from me, but instead, wanting him to think about what he did. My explanation seemed to calm things down....for now, anyway.

One of the things I've noticed since he's been on this medication is he's becoming more in tuned to his emotions. Instead of just crying when he feels an overwhelming wave of emotion, he's starting to express them with words. He seems to be a LOT more sensitive now when it comes to specific things (like the whole "you don't love me" thing). I am SO happy that he's able to recognize his feelings and express them appropriately, but imagine how HE feels. All those years of not really being able to express himself...then all of the sudden...BOOM! I don't know if it's a relief for him or more of a frustration. Only time will tell. I will be talking to his behavioral specialist about this at the end of the week. Hopefully, it's a positive thing and not just a side effect from the med.