Zosmum

Hi we have these problems with Zo, now 16. we took certain additives out of her diet which was quite difficult at the beginning. We removed- ASPARTAME, an artificial sweetener found in a lot of sweets, drinks, crisps etc MSG, Mono-Sodium Glutamate, a flavour enhancer also found in crisps, sweets, drinks and a lot of other things SODIUM BENZOATE, not sure what this is but it's in a lot of drinks It does get easier to get them only things without artificial additives. Zo now only drinks fresh fruit juices or water. Definately nothing containing caffeine and definately no sweeteners. Good Luck and hope this helps a little

Hi Guys Not been here for quite a long time. Zo is now 16 and about to leave school. We managed (just) to keep her in mainstream school and she is about to take her GCSE's. Not bad for a kid who was down for not being able to a couple of years ago. She has also been offered a place at college to start in September. We have been through so much over the past few years from suicide attempts to complete meltdowns to total silences but we have channeled her obsession with horses and she now has a Saturday job on a riding school yard and a place on an equine course at college. It is so nice to be able to share this good news with you all, where in the past it seemed to be all bad. Hope everyones well and also having some good times. Zo is still hard work and still has lots of meltdowns but finally we have a little bit of good to share Keep smiling Zosmum

Hi Sounds like your doing really well with your son. When my daughter was younger (she's now almost 16) If she was doing something wrong but not too bad we used to say "ooh not good Zo" and try to steer her into something else. When she was doing something really bad or dangerous it was a case of "FREEZE-some-one is going to get hurt" and things along those kind of lines. Be sure to remember boundries, if it's not allowed today then it must never be allowed and if you let him do something today then he will assume he will be allowed all the time GOOD LUCK

Hi My daughter sufferes in the same way. Hates school to the point of self destrution. We have recently been trying a new approach at school. She has the last half hour of school in the sensory room with a really nice TA to be able to talk thro' her day, what has sent her off and what she might have almost liked throughout the day. So far this seems to be helping a bit. Most days they don't even talk about what went on in school but more what she's going to be doing that evening or even what she would like to do to some of the teachers. They basically sit and have a bit of a giggle. Maybe you could try to approach the SENCO and suggest a similar tactic. I have to add that this only came about when my daughter reached crisis point. She tried to hang herself with her school tie and went completely bollistic at her head of year. She is now year 11 and things are not too bad at the mo' Good Luck

Hi dogfish Sorry Z hasn't been back to you for a while but she has been so low. She has been put on fluoxetine (antidepressants) mostly cos of school Hopefully these will lift her mood and she will get back to you The only thing that is keeping her going at the mo' is her horse riding

Hi Julieanne Iknow exactly where you're coming from on this one and can totally sympathise with you Did you know that you can get small cards(like business cards) printed up so if he is really bad in the supermarket you can hand them to people. They just explain that he has autism and that his behaviour might not be what they'd expect and then ask people to please be understanding and patient. They do work to a degree but they're a bit of a pain when you have to hand them out a lot. I am seriously thinking of getting Z a t-shirt with- I HAVE AUTISM-YOU GOT A PROBLEM- printed on the back so I can take her shopping and don't have to worry bout the mindless idiots And don't have to keep worrying bout what they're thinking. They can read the shirt and maybe they might even be a little more accepting

My DD is often bullied at school but she doesn't always realise that what happens is bullying. An wful lot of anti-bullying campaigns focus only on the physical side of bullying and not on the mental side of it. Z is often refered to as a freak, weirdo, thicko etc by kids in school but also told to grow up, act your age not your shoe size etc by teaching staff. She doesn't see this as bullying as she isn't being punched and kicked but it has had a really bad effect on her. So bad that she is now on Fluoxetine (anti-depressant) and often wants to die as she hates herself for being different As for the video, it was really difficult to watch but perhaps they should include more subtle forms of bullying in these kind of things

With Z it's horses, ponies and everything to do with them and riding I've never thought of it like this before but yes it must be so nice to have something Maybe Z and C are mine- they keep me occupied all day and take up all of my time

Hi fioelli What on earth has happened to make you feel so low ( sorry not meant to sound like a prying question) I really feel for you and hope that you soon find the answers that you need to find your inner peace Our thoughts are with you Zosmum

My user name is because I am Zo's Mum simple as that (Boring really) and the avatar kinda suits my personality (I think) OMG Am I really that boring

tennis

You have my complete respect CONGRATULATIONS Hope you get over the aching soon

Well it tried to snow this afternoon but sadly didn't lay and now is just really cold and wet Weather man says may snow tomorrow, fingers crossed I love the snow

I've toyed with the idea of a wii for xmas but still haven't decided Do be sure to buy the wrist straps if you do get one. I know of a couple of people who have had the controller thingy going through the front of the TV

This sounds very vague Can you go into school and question it? Ask them to clarify everything on it