Because I feel like a shit parent for even thinking about it.....we've got a psychiatrist appointment coming up and he wants to talk about medication as a last resort to try and help.
Ds is 8. Recent diagnosis of allegedly high functioning ASD. He's gifted and no learning needs so this makes him hyper aware of his differences but doesn't really understand them; very aware of how children don't like him; very aware of change etc. He's extremely rigid, controlling and can't bare any form of injustice, even slight. He is so anxious about all of this that he's explosive. His fight or flight response is constantly hyper. He will hit / kick / trash rooms / throw furniture / rip things up. On a good day he will bite your head off for anything he doesn't like, cry over everything, shout at you, storm around the house etc.
He's not been in school properly for nearly 2 years. Vast amounts of fixed term exclusions and isolations which created even more anxiety and feeling like he wasn't wanted. He talked about killing himself every day at school because he was so anxious, lonely and sad. He hasn't attended for 6 months and things are still pretty bad at home but slightly less violent now not at school. But this week alone he's thrown an iPad in a shop because it was noisy (weekday); thrown a swim float at his instructor because he got the wrong end of the stick and thrown furniture at a relatives house because they changed a plan. All on top of the constant crying, shouting, snapping.
We're on our knees. Life is miserable for all of us. We've had 2 years of autism classes, therapy and support and nothing has changed.
Will medication help? What could they possibly give him? I can't even believe this is a thing for 8 years olds but I'm sad to say there's a little flicker of hope from it being suggested....and then I cry about it.