Anonymous wrote:'i never felt I had a beast in me until I had a SN kid."
THIS THIS THIS!
Oh, OP, btdt. My girl is a runner and is fast and incredibly athletic. I have broken ribs, toes and an elbow trying to catch her before she dies in traffic. Once she ran towards a pit bull who was trying to jump the fence to get to her. I literally tackled her to get her off the fence before the dog got to her. Horrifying. One time, after all my body parts had finally healed, and I had been home alone with her for two days, she got away from me on the way to the playground. When I caught her I lost it. I mean, I lost it. I grabbed her and yelled in her face, "I'm so fucking sick of this shit. Why can't you just listen for once." We both started crying and then I practically dragged her home. It was the most horrifying experience of my life, mostly because it felt so good to get the anger out.
I started meditation to deal with anger I never had experienced before (therapist suggested it). The best thing it does is to help me take "me" out of the situation. I visualize myself kind of hovering over the scene. I'm not sure why, but it gives me a certain degree of separation that diffuses the situation for me. I see my daughter as a kid trying hard and I'm filled with compassion for her.
Just wanted to send you my thoughts, OP. It's hard. Tomorrow is a new day.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:OP, first, I would stop beating yourself up about this. It happens. Second, it's hard with some kids to stay out of 'reactive' mode.
Right now, it sounds like you are running from fire to fire. Take some time to formulate a plan for dealing with his behavior. It's said that 'all behavior is communication'. What does his behavior say to you. If he is acting out in school, what might need changed there?
If he is lying and manipulating at home, what changes can be made?
I strongly recommend a book called, 'The Explosive Child', by Dr. Ross Greene. It's an amazing approach to kids with difficult behaviors. It's not targeting to any one diagnosis but rather any child struggling with behavior and emotional regulation. There is also a website, www.livesinthebalance.org, that explains the concepts in more detail. It was life-changing for us.
ADHD doesn't cause that type of behavior. Putting aside the over diagnoses of that condition and exaggeration of its impacts not to mention how it has become a scape goat of under performing upper/middle children; I suspect you will want to lose it a more often and consistently with your 11 year old or it will only get worse as they age.
As always I could be wrong and your results may vary.
Anonymous wrote:OP, first, I would stop beating yourself up about this. It happens. Second, it's hard with some kids to stay out of 'reactive' mode.
Right now, it sounds like you are running from fire to fire. Take some time to formulate a plan for dealing with his behavior. It's said that 'all behavior is communication'. What does his behavior say to you. If he is acting out in school, what might need changed there?
If he is lying and manipulating at home, what changes can be made?
I strongly recommend a book called, 'The Explosive Child', by Dr. Ross Greene. It's an amazing approach to kids with difficult behaviors. It's not targeting to any one diagnosis but rather any child struggling with behavior and emotional regulation. There is also a website, www.livesinthebalance.org, that explains the concepts in more detail. It was life-changing for us.