Just wanted to say hi, I've been reading the boards here for awhile but finally got off my 
and decided to post.
A little background on me and my difficult child - I'm a single mom who waited waaay too long to get out of a bad relationship with an ex who's AD/HD, depressed, and diabetic himself (I thought AD/HD was bad until I lived with someone who was grouchy from high BS as well). difficult child is a sweet 6 year old boy with a vivid imagination who is in training to be a hell raising 16 year old. difficult child got diagnosed last year 6 months after the separation along with depression and anxiety. This past spring ODD was added after months of tantrums, outbursts, and aggressive behavior - final straw for me was when he threatened me with a large knife while emptying the dishwasher because he didn't want to do it. Now on medications and home operating on a token economy system he's settling down and making progress at school :smile:
SO is a mellow laid back fellow who's willing to change and has been the best support for the past year. Luckily he handles difficult child's temper tantrums with aplomb and tact and is great at setting limits and sticking with them.
Professionally I'm a school based OTR (Occupational Therapist) so I've seen both sides of the table with 504s and IEPs. Took me awhile to knock it into my head that my son had a problem that was unrelated to the separation and divorce and get off my to do something about it. Most days I feel like I spend all day in the trenches (most the students I work with have some form of Autism or AD/HD or sensory processing disorder (SPD)) to come home and deal with it all night. Lately, as the medications and behavior system have kicked in, I feel like that less and less.
This summer's got me anxious - Ex has difficult child for 7 weeks starting in July and has barely communicated with me for the past 6 months about home life, behavior system, education, medication, etc. He steadfastly denies his son has AD/HD (despite only spending 2 weeks with him over the past 22 months) and at the divorce settlement in April told me that his son just needs a firm hand and steady guidance, "not unlike many young boys his age." Yeah, like I don't know how to parent.
It's great to find support and online communities for parents like us to know its not just us - we're not alone.
and decided to post.A little background on me and my difficult child - I'm a single mom who waited waaay too long to get out of a bad relationship with an ex who's AD/HD, depressed, and diabetic himself (I thought AD/HD was bad until I lived with someone who was grouchy from high BS as well). difficult child is a sweet 6 year old boy with a vivid imagination who is in training to be a hell raising 16 year old. difficult child got diagnosed last year 6 months after the separation along with depression and anxiety. This past spring ODD was added after months of tantrums, outbursts, and aggressive behavior - final straw for me was when he threatened me with a large knife while emptying the dishwasher because he didn't want to do it. Now on medications and home operating on a token economy system he's settling down and making progress at school :smile:
SO is a mellow laid back fellow who's willing to change and has been the best support for the past year. Luckily he handles difficult child's temper tantrums with aplomb and tact and is great at setting limits and sticking with them.
Professionally I'm a school based OTR (Occupational Therapist) so I've seen both sides of the table with 504s and IEPs. Took me awhile to knock it into my head that my son had a problem that was unrelated to the separation and divorce and get off my
to do something about it. Most days I feel like I spend all day in the trenches (most the students I work with have some form of Autism or AD/HD or sensory processing disorder (SPD)) to come home and deal with it all night. Lately, as the medications and behavior system have kicked in, I feel like that less and less. This summer's got me anxious - Ex has difficult child for 7 weeks starting in July and has barely communicated with me for the past 6 months about home life, behavior system, education, medication, etc. He steadfastly denies his son has AD/HD (despite only spending 2 weeks with him over the past 22 months) and at the divorce settlement in April told me that his son just needs a firm hand and steady guidance, "not unlike many young boys his age." Yeah, like I don't know how to parent.
It's great to find support and online communities for parents like us to know its not just us - we're not alone.
