STOP! If you haven't read the last post (yesterday's post) then this one will not mean much. So click on the purple link, read it, and catch up! Thanks for joining in my "fun" with autism.
We are one day into the
elimination of fantasies and Tate is doing very well. He is past crying and seems to be okay. He is not verbally arguing but still he seems
to have gotten the last word. Ha!
In the past, on occasion,
when Tate feels the need to argue with an adult but knows he will be stopped,
he has written notes. The first note I
ever remember him writing was around third grade and he was upset with a
teacher. He wrote her a note to continue
an argument that she thought she had
won. He’s been writing notes ever
since. Not all of them get delivered but
it may be a good release for him. I’ve
written my fair share of notes to school board members and various others that
I never sent. Now I blog for
therapy. Ha!
Last year, Tate wrote a
couple of notes to his well-loved para to fire him from his position because he
was asking Tate to do things that Tate did not think were “worthy” of him. Things like reading and math. Ha! We
explained that students cannot fire school staff and then went around the
corner and laughed hard. Three steps
forward: Tate is initiating interactions
with others, trying to advocate for himself, and using communication skills
that are really hard for him. Two steps
back: Tate is unable to “drop” the
“argument” that he lost and is sometimes, boarder-line, disrespectful, both typical of autism.
Following is a note Tate
wrote to his Dad regarding the babysitting service he wants to open based on a
television show scenario. It was in a
folder at school and the para sent it home so we could see it. We’re not sure when he wrote it.
Dear DaD I thank I will Be
a GOOD BaBY SiTer The BilDing Will Be a
wonDerful Place and I canT waTe To Be a Bother [brother] and Manager We Will have Dinner every Day aT 4:00 I We will come and viste you MosT oF The
TiMe Winever the Kids GeT sik I will
TaKe them To The DoTer and Me and SiDNey Will Go To the Computer every Day at 5:00 I will NoT Give UP
intell This New Year’s Day From TaTe PS
I will aso BaBYSit NaNs KiDS and The aParTMenT Will Be for KiDS and animals Who
Need a BaBYSiTer only
The reference to being a
brother and a manager is from an unrelated joke we have also been trying to
eliminate (also from a television show.) The joke is never delivered in a context that is understandable to his “audience”
and only makes Tate appear very odd. I
have been trying to extinguish this one for two or three weeks and Shawn
addressed it when he spoke to Tate about the inappropriate fantasies and
stories he has been telling people.
Three steps forward and two
steps back.
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