The house is quiet, and we are all in bed, trying to sleep.
All except one of us.
The nervous system is working overtime, and the movement is necessary to find comfort and calmness.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
“He is easy. He is so intelligent. He is so articulate. He does not look like he has autism (my personal favorite). He is verbal; he will be able to do what everyone else does.”
While I agree with almost all of the above, except the outlandish one, there is no easy autism.
It isn’t every night, but it happens. His brain will not allow his body to rest. When he was young and had to go to school and conform to their unreasonable and often impossible requests, we would work to calm him and get him to sleep. We also had to be mindful of his siblings because they required a restful sleep.
But now that he is an adult, I often let him work it out on his own because I know he is safe. Other families do not have that luxury; their loved ones on the spectrum cannot be left to walk it out or utilize other methods to calm themselves without hurting themselves or breaking items in the home. But he just needs “a minute”.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
An adult unable to feel their feet hitting the floor can make a noise loud enough to rival the 4th of July fireworks. At times, his sister will remind him that she has class or work early in the morning. He has a soft spot for her and is awakened to reality. Normally, he can find something quieter to do. For her. His favorite person.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
The midnight march beats its final steps of this night.
I am an educator, parent, disabilities advocate, published writer, autism mom, soccer mom, band mom, drama mom, scout mom, choir mom, nursing student mom, Coach's wife, a former PTA President as well School Leadership Team Member.
I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education, a Master of Science in Elementary Education, Several Graduate Level credits above my Master's Degree in Special Education, a minor in English Literature and Journalism. I hold permanent New York State Education Certification. I have a lower-level certificate in Meditation and currently pursuing a full certification in Mediation Training for students. Meditation and Mindfulness are my focus. I am also studying to be a Life Coach and have been setting up my own Parent Empowerment Business. I have written several other blogs, most notably a blog which mostly focuses on Education and raising a child on the spectrum. I am married for over 31 years to my best friend, partner, and soulmate. We have three children who are no longer children. Our eldest in on the Autism Spectrum and this has laid the foundation for the type of family we are which in many cases is rather unique. Our son has excelled although he has and continues to face many challenges in a world that do not accept differences. Our second child is a Registered Nurse, an Eagle Scout, who has played soccer and basketball. His best quality is his ability to make us all laugh no matter what. Our youngest is an amazing young woman who I hope to empower to be whatever she wants to be in life. She is a musician, works in a science camp, held lead roles in her HS musicals, sings beautifully, has been a soccer goalie, a girl scout, and played basketball like her father and brother. She is pursuing a degree in Music and Composition. She plays 7 instruments in addition to singing.
I am a former PTA President of my daughter's High School which is laughable since in all my years of parenting I only started going to PTA meetings while my youngest child was in High School. Let's says I jumped in the pool with both feet.
Dropping Crayons is my life. I have spent my life kicking the remains of whatever I dropped on the floor around me as I scurry through life barely remembering what I have to do next since what I really want to do is sit by a lake and watch the beautiful colors of a mountain sunset..(note my site photo) I felt inadequate all through grade school and High School. It was not until college where I found some freedom to be different and to be me. My heart breaks for all of the years I sat depressed and wishing I was anyone but me. Not able to focus, to get out what I wanted to say to the world. Then it happened to my child. That woke me up to the world. It made me want to help and maybe save someone else.
"It is better to light just one little candle than to stumble in the dark."
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Dropping Crayons: Life as an ADD Mom 