Our Aspergers Teenage Boy

Tommy is really regressing these past two days. Lots of very immature behaviors. Manic laughter is the worst. It’s like he’s not even there at all when he’s like this. I can certainly see why people used to think the mentally ill were possessed.

Dad reports:

Tommy had a up and down day at school. It ended with him breaking the teacher’s neon lamp. Brought him home and all during the trip he was looking for sympathy by making these deep sobs and alligator tears (he turns that on on purpose and its evident that its fake) The only real ones were when he started playing with a remaining shard of glass in his hand and hurt himself. Got him home and removed the glass. Had an incident where I asked him to empty his safe and it was full of stuff he’d stolen from his sister and he reached across the table and grabbed something that “was his” and I grabbed his hand and held it until he let go of the stapler and I explained that he should not do that again. I used force. Nothing more than standard pressure point stuff. Nothing bone breaking or harmful and the wife had a cow. I took the next 2 hours to myself and listened to Tommy and the wife scream at each other.

Yesterday Doug and I got upset with each other over an incident with Tommy. Today we had a problem with Tommy and Doug and I got into a fight over how to deal with Tommy and the children in general. Doug is pro-corporal punishment and I am anti-corporal punishment.

Dad reports:
Tommy dropped off at school. He’s in a good mood but going to town with the lip sucking noises. I tried asking him questions to the whole trip to school just to see if I could get him to stop by making him talk but he slips the sucking noises in between words and sentences.

Dad reports this morning:
* 6:45 Tommy gets medicine. We can’t yet ask Tommy to take his own medicine. We have to watch him do it. Much of that has to do with his 20 month old sister who would eat a dropped pill in a heartbeat since everyone, myself included, in this family has helped her learn about candy. So, we watch him to make sure one doesn’t get dropped. Also, he hasn’t yet shown the responsibility. I could see him saying “yes, I took my medicine” just to make us quit asking when in reality he just didn’t want to be bothered. And if he misses a med, he gets wacky. The evening medicine is a single 40 mg pill and if he skips it he can’t sleep at all.
* 7:00 I tell Tommy to get out of bed and have breakfast then I proceed to take the others to school fully expecting Tommy to be sleeping when I return.
* 7:20 I return and his clothes are still laid out and he’s in bed. He springs up and says “Just kidding. I’ve already had breakfast.” then proceeds to get dressed. Let’s hope his good mood holds!

(note: yesterday could be summarized by saying “Tommy reverted to institutional type behavior”)