Last Therapy Appt
Big changes are coming for Mark. We sadly found out, a few weeks ago, that his therapist (who he's been seeing for the last 3-4 years) is leaving the office and moving out of state. He is so upset (and so am I).
Don't get me wrong, I'm not upset at her. I'm upset at the situation. He doesn't adapt well to change. He doesn't want a new therapist. He doesn't do well when the structure of things change.
As a boy on the autism spectrum, with sensory processing disorder, anxiety and selective mutism, change is devastating! When he meets new people, he shuts down and doesn't talk. Sometimes you can read his facial expressions, but not all the time. Take my coworkers. The store has been there for years. I've worked there for over a year and a half, some of my coworkers much longer than that. Does he know them? Yes. He sees them on a daily basis. Does he talk to them? No way, but he smiles when they talk to him.
He has his last session with her on Monday. It's going to be a sad one. We talked about what's to come, and I'm just not sure. My stomach is churning just thinking about it. He's made such progress with J, and continues to do so. Then again, he already "knew" her before starting therapy with her because she came to the house and worked with Allie about a year prior. It didn't take long for him to trust her.
I don't know how long it will take for him to talk to a new therapist. There's a whole basket of "what ifs" regarding a new therapist.
Right now we are doing remote learning. Because of Covid-19, schools were shut. There was no transition. He is having a rough time, 8 weeks in, still. He refuses to participate in any video calls, which rules out speech. He did speech once. He won't participate in the zoom calls with his teacher and classmates. He does the teletherapy with J for about 25 minutes, than he's just done. He hates his picture taken and hates videos. That's what makes this all so hard.
So when he gets a new therapist, I asked J to talk to them, if possible about my boy. That it will take some time for him to get acclimated to someone new. That it might take some time for him to speak, to cooperate with video calls. I hope we get someone understanding, and will not be quick to want to close him out. Someone who is patient, kind, compassionate to his issues.
So yeah, that's where we are with this. Here's some pictures of my little man to brighten your day!
Don't get me wrong, I'm not upset at her. I'm upset at the situation. He doesn't adapt well to change. He doesn't want a new therapist. He doesn't do well when the structure of things change.
As a boy on the autism spectrum, with sensory processing disorder, anxiety and selective mutism, change is devastating! When he meets new people, he shuts down and doesn't talk. Sometimes you can read his facial expressions, but not all the time. Take my coworkers. The store has been there for years. I've worked there for over a year and a half, some of my coworkers much longer than that. Does he know them? Yes. He sees them on a daily basis. Does he talk to them? No way, but he smiles when they talk to him.
He has his last session with her on Monday. It's going to be a sad one. We talked about what's to come, and I'm just not sure. My stomach is churning just thinking about it. He's made such progress with J, and continues to do so. Then again, he already "knew" her before starting therapy with her because she came to the house and worked with Allie about a year prior. It didn't take long for him to trust her.
I don't know how long it will take for him to talk to a new therapist. There's a whole basket of "what ifs" regarding a new therapist.
Right now we are doing remote learning. Because of Covid-19, schools were shut. There was no transition. He is having a rough time, 8 weeks in, still. He refuses to participate in any video calls, which rules out speech. He did speech once. He won't participate in the zoom calls with his teacher and classmates. He does the teletherapy with J for about 25 minutes, than he's just done. He hates his picture taken and hates videos. That's what makes this all so hard.
So when he gets a new therapist, I asked J to talk to them, if possible about my boy. That it will take some time for him to get acclimated to someone new. That it might take some time for him to speak, to cooperate with video calls. I hope we get someone understanding, and will not be quick to want to close him out. Someone who is patient, kind, compassionate to his issues.
So yeah, that's where we are with this. Here's some pictures of my little man to brighten your day!
Comments
Post a Comment