Anxiety

This week has been filled with lots of anxiety stemming from Roger.  He is anxious about time and being late, which I am certain comes from me.  He is also having meltdowns, again, about his shoes not being tight enough.  I thought we turned a corner with that, but, alas, it has returned. He also stresses over the contents of his backpack and the messiness of his hair.

When I discussed with his therapist how he’s been talking back a lot and testing boundaries, etc., she said it was a sign of stress.  The above symptoms clearly sound like he is under a great deal of stress.  If I ask him or his teacher about school, all seems okay.  Roger discloses very little about school, but has not wanted to stay home from school.  That is my indicator that all is well.  His teacher says he is great.  There are some fine motor issues but his temperament is fantastic.  I think since this is Red Ribbon Week and they have different dress up categories each day, he may deem that as stressful.  Anything out of the ordinary.  Next week is a “normal” week (barring Halloween, but they cannot wear costumes to school on Halloween), so we will see if his anxiety is lessened.

Roger’s anxiety puts us all on edge.  I feel like I’m walking on eggshells and do not want to cause an episode if there is a hiccup with the day’s plans.  It is very stressful.  This is how it was a couple of years back.  It is often heralded that autism is cyclical and there will be periods of regression for some behaviors and that seems to be the case.  Poor kiddo.  A seven year old should not have so much anxiety and stress.