Am I right to be concerned? Tell me I am not making this up!!!

[mrsbaffled]

I have had a particularly hard few days with DS (nearly 8). He has been hyper since MIL came to babysit on saturday and it has culminated with a huge meltdown this afternoon.

I tried to get DS to 'write' his book review (he only has to do a very simple spider diagram due to his recognised problem of "specific learning difficulties in fine motor control, spelling and writing"), but it was just awful - terribly messy and terrible spelling (due to his mood), so I made him start again (my first mistake....). Half way through attempt 2 he suddenly got really angry (out of nowhere) and started to push the pencil down really hard and was damaging his writing slope. I shouted at him to stop and told him to go downstairs where DH was.

He did go down, but then started screaming and shouting, crying and trying to break the furniture. I didn't see this - I decided it was wiser to stay out of it and let DH deal with it.

Eventually he calmed down and I got him to smile by cracking a joke, but his mood switched back to hyper like turning on a light-switch. The rest of the afternoon was spent playing wrestling and loud games with his younger brother, and repeating back everything I said to him. I have not dealt with this well....but the repeating thing does my head in! needless to say there were several minor injuries sustained in the hyper games. I have had to shout many times just to get him to acknowledge I am talking :(

I am right this is not normal behaviour?! I have my suspicions about him being on the spectrum somewhere (he also has eye tracking problems, sensory issues and has had retained reflexes - though these are going with VT). The pead didn't even persue the thought of ASD because he shows empathy sometimes and we cope reasonably well with his behaviour normally.

Argh! (need to vent, sorry!)

(((hugs)))
I would keep an eye or maybe a little diary note wont hurt if it happens again. All kids have the odd tantrum but it sounds over the top to me and much like DS is being due to issues at school and not enough help.

Example: He is over DDs BF to the point of obsession at present and wont leave the poor chap alone. Not that he minds one bit and is so patient with all the constant questions and babble but it takes up their whole evening here. He wants to talk boy stuff, gun stuff, lego stuff etc and feels the "big man" with him :)

I told DS that X needs a break now to do something so I tried to prise him away. He would not stop going back and interupting non stop every time he was removed. In the end DD said I wont bring X here anymore if we cant have 20 mins quiet time to talk. Well that was it and he went upstairs in a stomp but threw everything around in the bathroom, picked on middle DD by banging and charging her door which had her shrieking and all hell broke loose. It took him 2hrs to come out of meltdown. End result? it was all because he was afraid he had lost a friend due to what DD said. She wasnt nasty when she said it just calm but because his school teacher keeps telling him his peers arent happy with him, or his peers are happy with him today he comes home during a bad time and says no one likes him today so he has no friends.

He cant handle failure very well either and so if something is pointed out as incorrect at school he takes it out at home if we mention if he had a nice day because all he can register is the bad bits not the good iyswim.

Thanks for the hugs coff I needed them last night! (((hugs))) to you too! Bless your DS, he sounds really sweet x

I find the constant noise he makes very wearing and I think I handled the situation so poorly because I am tired as well.

Yes, DS, only retains the criticism. He is a perfectionist and usually tries very hard, but just wasn't trying yesterday. I know he has better in him, but I obviously expressed this all wrong to him :(

Feeling a bit down today.