How Autism related meltdowns impact me as a parent, and how I cope
One of the hardest parts of being an Autism parent for me this week so far, is meltdowns. When it comes to Autism, I always tell people never make assumptions. Having said that, I feel pretty safe saying, if you’re an Autism parent, you’re probably intimately acquainted with meltdowns.
Meltdowns are exhausting for everyone, not just the person having one.
I mentioned earlier in the week that Emmett was coming into a new fever cycle. When he hits one of these things, he’s generally quite miserable, and far more prone to meltdowns.
The fever cycles don’t cause the meltdowns directly. They seem to decrease his ability to cope with all the things around him, which would already lead to a meltdown. Things like light, sound, his clothes, and pretty much any other sensory-related sensitivity you can imagine.
Let me say that first off, I’m a freak. When it comes to the boys having meltdowns, I rarely get upset. It drives Lizze crazy, because I generally remain really calm, and she may be at her wit’s end, as would most other people.
I have a seemingly endless amount of patience when it comes to my kids. If you ask the people closest to me, they would likely agree.
Here’s the thing.
I don’t have an unlimited supply of patience, because my kids drive me fucking crazy. It wouldn’t be a normal day if one or more of my kids haven’t made me want to hop on the next train to crazy town and lay low for awhile. I should buy a house there, because I’m there often enough.
I’ve been thinking about this recently, and I’ve figured out what I’m doing to help ensure I always have enough patience for my kids. I don’t think I consciously do this either.
What happens, is my kids get all the patience I have. Perhaps my patience pool is deeper than most other people’s, but it’s not endless. While I have a great deal of patience with my kids, heaven help the average person that says the wrong thing to me, because I don’t have patience to spend on them.
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