Second Therapy Session

Our second session was a bit of a re-pore building day. Fred & Marie played with toys and chatted about stuff.

Fred had a list of ten things that evolved into this:

1. I am good person.
2. I am smart.
3. I am strong and healthy.
4. I am a good helper.
5. I love reading.
6. I am learning new things all the time.
7. I love to eat with my family.
8. I love math.
9. I am learning and growing everyday.
10. I am a child of God.

He is to read these out loud everyday. I know it has a lot to do with rethinking things, training ourselves to think along a specific thought line. With the fasd child things get in the way of that such as memory issues, as in Fred's life, but I believe the key is to just keep going. I see and hear things that I have been trying to train Fred for years finally coming out of his mouth and in his behavior and actions. Yesterday, I was watching him cut his food on his plate and I saw him look at his knife, begin to draw it towards his face then set it down. He was going to lick it and remembered that we have asked him not to do that and decided to put it down. I saw the process as it was happening and I said to him, "Fred, I saw that you were going to lick your knife and chose not to, thank you." He grinned at me and said "your welcome." It's the little victories that will have Fred winning the big stuff. It's the consistency and time, we can't and won't give up on this beautiful boy.

Marie also taught me a breathing technique to practice with him so that it becomes an ability so when he needs it and is stressed out he can still do it. It’s really a slowing of respiration and looking at a 4:7:8 ratio. What that means is we have Fred inhale for four counts, hold for seven, and then exhale for a count of eight.

Here is Dr. J.Ryan Fuller going more into depth about how and why it works and there is a demonstration.

Dear Mothers and those who Love an FASD Child,

There is always hope. Love and encourage one another, if you are alone in this find another. Two are stronger than one and can hold each other us. Find a group, build a group.
When in doubt, laugh. Persist, persist, persist....
OK, enough mush, the reality is you do need support and your child does need you to soldier on. Your child needs you to search out whats best, teach whats best over and over to get through to the inside where they will have it to use when they are grown in this world.

Peace, Freds Mom