Tomorrow morning, I am taking Jaron to the Rehab Center.
He has been diagnosed with Sensory Integration issues by his pediatrician and will be getting evaluated for further course of therapy.
I don't quite know how that translates exactly into real-life, but I do know after working with preschool aged children for the last few years that we are dealing with an exceptional child in Jaron. Try as we might, it is apparent that Chris and I could use a few pointers on parenting him. So we are looking at this as an opportunity for growth.
It has been a road fraught with both inexplicable joy and trial to be Jaron's parents.
We have loved and corrected, wrestled with him and wrestled with how to parent him.
He knows he is different. Sometimes he is able to celebrate the wonderful qualities that set him apart, and we celebrate them along with him.
Other days, the isolation those 'differences' bring is a pang, straight to the very core of who he is.
As his parents, knowing full well that there are many, many good days sprinkled with some not-so-good days, Chris and I have long sought what help, if any, we should afford him.
At the persistent urging of the entire faculty at our school, Chris and I decided to entertain the possibilities that therapy brings. The doc agreed that this was a journey we should take. One that could greatly benefit our son.
I spoke with Jaron tonight, to prepare him for the unknowns that lie ahead for him tomorrow.
He has never adapted very well to change, a part of having sensory integration issues.
He asked me questions about the new place he is going tomorrow. I tried my best to answer him, but I've never done this either. I didn't know how to answer all of his questions.
I stressed that we all have trouble knowing exactly how to cope with some things. How to 'be' in certain situations - especially new situations. I told him that we were going to make some new friends tomorrow who would help us, give us the tools we need to be the best Jaron and Mommy we could be.
He said, "so that my friends will like me better?"
I winced, "No. So that you stay YOU. Completely you, but the best YOU you can be."
I don't think I know what to expect. I am not sure how to tell him what to expect.
At the end of all this, I want Jaron to feel completely accepted and acceptable.
That is the goal. To equip him for life. Success in school, in jobs, in relationships, in whatever.
I guess I am concerned that the things that make him different, perhaps a touch more difficult to parent/teach at times, will be perceived by him as things that make him unacceptable or less worthy of our love and acceptance.
He is exactly the kid I would have ordered from a catalog if I had been given the chance. I cannot imagine life without his quirky little self.
He needs to know - believe - that wherever he is, whatever he does, he adds so much to the world just by being in it.
His value is without price. His contribution: incalculable. His acceptance: unconditional.
It can be so hard to feel like you've done the right thing in trying to help a child by seeking help from therapists, but if you don't do everything you can to set them up for success, have you done enough? There's a thin, thin line. I want to have stood on the right side of that line when this is all over.
5 comments:
keep me updated.....
When it is all said and done, what you and Chris give to him and how unique and loved you make him feel, will be all that matters and will help him be him, the unique him, God created him to be. And I have no doubt he will grow to be a very successful, well-rounded and grounded young man with the whole world in his very reachable grasp.
You are such a great mommy.
Believe it.
Let us know how it goes.
;) ya'll be just fine, just with a little tweekin'.
prayin' 4 ALL ya'll!
hannah has never been diagnosed with this sensory thing, but, she is one that adjusts very slowly. if we rush her into things, it leads into disaster.
so after learning things the hard way, we finally began ease her into things slowly.
for example: i have been taking her to our new school for weeks now. i started back in july. she has already met all her teachers. i think she is beginning to feel very comfortable there.
also, every new school year her grade for the first grading period are not as good as they are at the end of the year. i used to think she wasn't trying hard enough, but after a year of this, it finally sank in.
now i know that it just takes her a while to adjust. so don't be alarmed if it shows up in his school work at first. even though i know he is a very gifted child.
fyi....
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