Thanks for the replies. I haven't been able to speak to the teacher dealing with it, but will phone the school again after Easter. The school have been in "temporary" accommodation since he started while the new school was built. They're due to move into the new building in a month's time and have started to pack up the library books and maybe other stuff as well in readiness for the move. I wonder if that could be a source of anxiety, although he seems quite content about it and has watched the new school being built so it's not unexpected.
From what he's been saying recently his friends are playing "older" games that he doesn't want to play - I think that's also a source of anxiety. Having said that a new boy has started who is also small, and chews his clothes! He seems to be spending more time playing with him as I hear his name mentioned a fair bit. The friendships thing is very difficult as there is little I can do about it, but it's horrible to thing that he's sad about it. He is a very friendly wee boy.
Breeze, my son used to bite a lot, but it was when he was pre-school. We discouraged him, but I think he just grew out of it. Having said that he bit my father a few weeks ago, but that was the first time in a long time. I wonder if you could give him some kind of sturdy plastic or rubber toy that he could bite instead. I think there's an old thread about chewing that made some suggestions along those lines.
Although this week when I picked him up - he was sick and wanted to run laps around the gym but his teacher stopped him. ... I kept him home today since tomorrow is a holiday - will give him time to get better. He has been doing great in school other then the behaviors. Thanks
I hope your son is better soon and you all enjoy the holiday!
Had to laugh about your son doing laps around the gym - my son is exactly the same!
I was always a biter/chewer. I used to chew absentmindedly on my clothes, and I would bite myself very hard when I was stressed out. I seldom bit other people, though.
I would have benefited from a chewy toy if I was allowed to have one, but after first grade my parents took mine away.
I guess I kind of just grew out of it... I've had occasional times when I went back to biting, but not often. Most of my stims use pressure; other people prefer movement. So if your son is a headbanger, other movements are probably what he's going to want, which means the exercises idea will be good for him.
That's an interesting perspective on different types of stim - pressure and movement. My son has both types and is extremely active. His school seem to have a good idea of what they're about then. They have other children there with AS so maybe this is something they've done before with other children.
Thanks , you too!
LOL The teacher was trying to catch him, I was laughing. She couldnt catch him. He must have did like 6 laps with the teaching trying to get him. LOL It was hilarious.
And that's when he's not well! LOL Don't know how many times I've sat in the doctor's waiting room with my son running laps round the table in the middle. I have to say to people - Believe it or not, this is him actually quite subdued because he's not well! You can see them all feeling grateful that they're not forced to sit in a room with him when he's fit and healthy! LOL
I would guess it to be anxiety. My son is a headbanger and he does it when he is stressed, tired or doing something monotonous. He seems to be needing a kind of regenerating alone time. Seems to shut out his surrounds. He finds it comforting and often falls asleep doing it (and so does my daughter without dx). I don't think he does it because he needs exercise, mostly he will pace or jump or run round in circles to do that.
What are the animals on the cards for, do they sybolize something?
I asked my son about it again tonight. He says he started doing the card thing and knows what he's to do and who he's to go to, but... when I asked him if he thought it would help he said he didn't think so!
Oh, and the animals on the cards don't seem to mean anything, as far as I can make out.
I asked him why he did bang his head and he said "it hurts". I said that if it hurt he maybe shouldn't bang his head, but he explained that it's because his head hurts that he bangs it. This is new to me. Before, when he was asked he said he did it because it made him feel better.
I suppose it depends what he means by "hurts". Sometimes if I have to sit still for a long time, I say that it "hurts" me and loud noises "hurt" me although they might seem normal to other people. It is a kind of pain, but not the sort you take painkillers for, I just have to get out the situation, move around, or get away from the noise and I'm ok. So I'm thinking maybe that's what he means....
Any thoughts, guys?
Yes, that could be it. My mother used to tell me and my sister to bite our tongues if we were in pain - this was a deliberate tactic so that we had a diversionary pain which we could control.
So maybe my son has worked it out for himself...
I think I'll take him to our GP and get him checked out generally to see if there are any problems.
Spoke to the Assistant Head about this today. The animals on the cards don't have any particular significance other than my son and the playground assistants know what they're for. He got to choose the animals that went on the cards, so maybe it was partially to involve him as well. When we were talking about it today the teacher commented that he's bright enough to know what it's about as apparently he said to her "This is to distact me from the headbanging isn't it?". lol.
He developed an exciting new combination stim at the swimming pool yesterday. I bought him a float from the Early Learning Centre, after hitting himself on the head with it a few times, he bit on one corner of it so it stuck out in front of his face, then flapped underneath it so it pinged up! Hey, nothing if not inventive!
