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Hi every one. Ive had a really awful day today, i woke up this morning looking quite forward to the day, but instantly things went pear shaped. To cut a long story short we had a misshap with our washing machine last week (the motor went) much to kierans dissapointment. He noticed it wasnt turning around, so after a week of begging my mums services and doing handwashing, we finally had the new one delivered today. Only once it was unpacked we realised that it must have been dropped from 1500 feet without a parachute. The door was snapped in two, the pump was in bits and some of the buttons were missing, not to mention the whacking great buldge in the side, so after my hubby haggled with the company they agreed to send a replacement out on monday. lots of other things have gone wrong today, but its in our nature to let some things go over our heads, so we just kept saying "these things are sent to try us" and carried on as normal. But what really narked me was when i picked kieran up from school he seemed stressed, more than usual, he said a boy had been nasty to him. I soon found out just how nasty when we were confronted by him on the way home. The boy is 8 (kieran 6) he smacked kieran across the face and knocked his hat off before telling him to f*!* off. Kierans 'Crime' was he looked at him 'the wrong way'. I was so angry, kieran was devestated, he just couldnt understand what he had done wrong. I have reported the incident to the school, but im worried that if this boy can be so openly nasty right in front of me, then what hell does my son have to put up with at school? Out of everything that has happened today, this has topped it all and i feel utterly gutted, the washing machine is material, my son is real and when he hurts i hurt, and i cant understand why people are so nasty. up to now its just this one boy, but i have seen the way kieran is treated by other kids as we wait for his sister to leave school. most wont play with him, and those that do make fun of him, and get him to do silly things, and kieran does them because it makes them laugh. But it hurts when i know they are laughing at him and not with him. Right now, i want to retreat into the safety of 'our bubble' and never let anyone hurt him again. Sorry to rant, im going to bed soon in the hope that today was just a bad dream, i may wake up to find it wasnt a real day afterall, just a total ###### nightmare. hope everyone is well Take care Shaz x

Hi all Jeeez talk about been on the same wavelength. the second he started talking on friday, me and the hubby looked at each other and said almost in unison " i bet he is on the spectrum somewhere". And the more we have seen the more convinced we are. I have just been listening now to him, he was asked if he had seen Oceans 11 (the film) he replied "No i havent actually, i wanted to see it, but i never got around to it" he then started talking about a cinema he had visited in glasgow, he continued "its the largest cinema in the world, it had a big coloured plaque saying this is the largest cinema in the world" The others (max, Ant and Saskia) were giving sideward glances to each other as if to say "whats he on?" but he just looked and simply explained "well cinimas usually go outward not upward". I love this guy, but i find the treatment he is already recieving so unfair, not only from the house (which at the moment is not too bad), But the Newspapers. One paper today says ""goofy Eugene keeps making bad jokes and his press ups are a poor effort compared to ant. How long will he survive?". i think they should lay off him, hes a lovely guy, I definatly think he is an Aspie, but either way he deserves to be there without stigma. Derek is eccentric also but i dont see the papers pulling him to pieces. COME ON EUGINE UR GREAT !! Shaz

HI and thanks for your replies, He has woken up with a headache again this morning so I may take him to the GP tomorrow. He has not ever vomitted as far as i know, But this delve thing is really worrying me. Inbetween headaches, he is as lively as they come. I will keep you posted. shaz x

Hi everyone. I dont want to sound like a broken record, and i know you are not doctors, but i was wondering if anyone else had any of these problems before i go trudging Kieran off to the doctors once again !. Its not been a good week in general, but ill leave all the horror stories out of it, (for now ) and get to the point. I am wondering if some of kierans problems are linked, or if i just have hold of the wrong end of the stick again (that darn MSBP). Firstly Kieran has a 'delve' on the top of his head, near the front. Actually it used to be his soft spot, and although i have been re-assured by a couple of G.Ps it looks to me as though his bones have fused together, but with a 'dip' Secondly if he is ill. this area of his head seems to sink a little. My family all agree with me on this, but as the doctor doesnt know what it 'normally' looks/feels like, its hard to assess if its changed at all. Thirdly More recently kieran has been getting quite a lot of headaches, he tells me his head hurts and holds this area of his head. I picked him up on friday and he looked white. I instantly knew he had one of these headaches by the way he was acting. He got better as the night went on (with medicine) and by bedtime he was back to normal, bouncing around, making lots of noise etc. But then he woke up this morning and the headache was back, again as the day has gone on he has got better. He has recently got some glasses as it was found he was long sighted, but as yet he has not worn them. So there is no changes due to wearing the glasses, but on the other hand, it could be eye strain because he needs glasses and is not wearing them. im curious to know if anyone else has a problem with headaches, and do you think im been silly to think the 'delve' problems are connected to the headaches? but to be honest given the severity of them im starting to wonder if there is some sort of pressure on his brain, (Is this even possible??) Im very worried, but as he seems fine the rest of the time i dont want to appear over protective (yet again) and march him to the doctors, just to be told that im over reacting, (again) Any advice is very welcome. Thanks for your time, and i hope you are all well. Take care Shaz x

Im not laughing honest !! But well done for keeping cool !! Cant say it would have done the chest infection any good though, Take care and get some REST !! Shaz <'>

Awwwwwwwwww.. <'> Hope you feel better soon ..... Shaz x

Now dont get me wrong LOL I have nothing against sluggies, or snails, i even take to walking on the road when it has been raining, i am prone to feeding them a pellet or two with a pinch of salt thrown in for good measure !! However, I wouldnt keep one as a pet, not for the fact that they are slimey and incredibly squishy, but kieran would have it for breakfast, especially if it has eyes!! No No No all our pets have to be caged ones, for their own protection. We have 2 hamsters and 2 mice, and even then i can only safely get them out after he has gone to sleep... Have you ever tried to race a slug Amusing !! Shaz x

Baddad You have my sympathies. now i know its not just us..... Before i joined this site i thought much of what kieran did was pretty unique and thought that no other family on the face of the earth could live in such maddness (albeit happy maddness) ((well most of the time anyway)) Our morning doesnt contain slugs lol, but its equally frustrating !! At 7.30 we make loads of noise, because if you wake kieran up by gently shaking him, chances are you are in for a bad day.. contact before he has had chance to open his eyes is never a good idea. "come on spud are your eyes open yet?" "EYES yep, can i stroke your eyes?" "not yet mate, i need them to make breakfast" "can i eat them for breakfast?" "no no no i didnt mean that, i meant i need them to seeeee with, to make breakfast".. "come on then, dont want to be late again do we?" "ok, just need a wee" Kieran paddles off to the bathroom and promply turns on the water "i thought you said you were going for a wee?" "i am" "the toilet is over there" "im washing my hands" "go for a wee and then wash your hands" he shakes his hands dry then paddles off for a wee, i go down to get on with breakfast, while steve makes the drinks 10 Minutes later "KIERANNNNN Come and get your breakfast" no reply "kierannnnn its time to eat, come on," "Im washing my hands" Manually remove child from bathroom, narrowly averting disaster as keiran has made a makeshift plug out of the flannel "eat up your breakfast then" "i want my lemon" "not for breakfast mate" "need the lemon" "nooooo cornflakes" eats a handful of cornflakes with no use of a spoon, egdes towards the fridge and removes his lemon (he loves lemon and will lick it the same way the other two lick a lollypop) MEANWHILE, I make sure liam (eldest) has everything, books, bags, sport stuff, dinner money, pencil case, directions for school (he is prone to getting lost) WHILST, trying to explain to Shauna (middle lamb) that I didnt GIVE kieran aspergers and HER dyslexia, its just the way they were all made, Which sets off a discussion about DNA and genetics, Stopping short of going all the way to the birds and bees, which i have no intention of discussing at 8 in the morning to my 7 year old daughter. I shake my head and get back on track.. realise kieran has dissapeared and find him in the bedroom playing james bond on the nintendo...... "come on mate, where are your clothes?" "dunno.. want to go in the air vent" "its a game kieran you cant go in the air vent" "get me to toilets then" Grab control and swiftly move james bond into the toilets of a high rise building situation, passing the observed air vent.. give kieran control back "As soon as you have got killed i want you to get dressed ok?" "ok?" "yes" "yes?" Shrink out of bedroom, slurp coffe and make sure shauna has everthing she needs. Make packup for spud, Steve meanwhile tries his approach on kieran, and 20 minutes later Kieran appears all bright and shiny, as a damp steve appears beside him, kieran kells me "daddy got me washed, "Not before he washed me" steve says shaking water out of his hair.. "Come on then lets hit the door" Realise my mistake and promptly change the wording before kieran follows out my order "dad, can i go down the drain?" "no mate, its dirty down there" "rats live there" "well rats are dirty" "i like rats" "yes i know mate, come on then, you cant stand looking at the drains today, we are late" "can i have a bouncy castle for my birthday?" "no, it will be too cold. your birthday is in january" "i dont want my birthday in january" "well thats when you were born" "i want to be born on shaunas birthday" "well its too late now mate you are here" "can i have a bouncy castle tonight then?" "no kieran" "why" "because they cost money and anyway its not as simple as that" "why?" "ooohhh look over there, isnt that danielle from your class" "yeah but mum, i need a wee" "when we get to school" "ill wash my hands" "Ok". Finally arrive at school, with seconds to spare... deposit shauna in the correct door, turn on heel, and take kieran into the toilets, where he washes his hands, in all three sinks, shakes hands dry, gets more soap, washes in the last sink, turns around, uses both hand dryers, Looks at the grate in the floor to make sure the water is going down, shakes hands, and leaves the toilet. ..... Remembers he hasnt had a wee, goes back has a wee, repeats all the above steps, and FINALLY goes into class... PHEW. "Good morning Kieran" kieran looks blankly at his teacher "put your things away and come and sit down" Kieran sits with his back to the teacher, whilst telling the boy next to him that he has just washed his hands, and that he is getting a bouncy castle for his birthday," "Bye Kieran have a good day" NO reply...... oh well, heres going home for strong coffe, and no doubt to start the mopping up process. This must explain why my hair is grey and lifeless !!!

Hi everyone. In addition to my incoherant ramblings in the batcave, i just had to tell you about kierans latest stunt, which begs the question "how does everyone else get around the obsession situation?" Apologies if i am repeating myself here, but kierans obsessions are 1) bouncy castles (rather the fan that works them) 2) water (any kind, anywhere, including the drains) 3) Floods (pretty much comes under water, but with the added complication of -floods pretty much cause trouble) 5) The Bouncy castle video (a home video from our daughters 6th and 7th birthday party.....with a bouncy castle) 6) washing machines (he sits in front of it when its on, and constantly asks "is the water in the pipe yet?") 7) Fans, The kind that keep you cool.. he has his own personal collection, which he turns on regularly, we cant take him anywhere with a fan without him making a scene asking if he can touch it.. watch it... have it !! 8)Eyes. As i explained in the batcave, he likes to 'stroke' my eyes, like he strokes the eyes on all his teddy bears, The list does not end there, but anyway the thing is... Today started well we got the play doh out and all three of them played nicely .... kieran used a doh knife as a lawnmower (yet another obsession) and proceeded to cut the grass (the doh). All was well until he got bored and went outside to bounce on the grass. and he heard it.. i swear he has hypersensitive hearing.. he heard a bouncy castle fan right over the back of all our gardens, and procceded to scale our fence and i caught him just as he was halfway across our neighbours garden.. he was devastated that he couldnt go to the 'party' and couldnt understand why he hadnt been invited (did i mention he is 5 ?) needless to say ive had a c**p day of mega meltdowns, but now he looks so angelic, all tooked up in bed, BUT.. last night he had his second episode of sleepwalking !! Scary. so what i am rambling on for is:- i wondered if anyone else has the sleepwalking problem, and what on earth do i do when he is wandering down stairs at 4 am?? and also, has your/or your child's obsession ever led to problems?? this has turned into a bit of a novel and i aplologise, but after the day ive had, i either ramble or cry, and i certainly dont want to loose it now,... so im rambling !! Take Care, I hope you are all well. shaz x

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well. I do hope its alright to ramble and moan in the famous "batcave" I honestly never used to moan about anything, but since kieran was 3 years old ive done nothing else but moan, and i didnt want a thread all of my own because thats just taking up more room, and one day you might need that for some one who isnt MOANING !! Anyway.. has anyone else got a night owl??? Our little treasure has now decided to refuse to sleep in his own bed, so each night we have to play musical beds.. we have tried to encourage him to sleep in his own bed, but just now he aint listening !! (head and brick wall and all that).. On a more positive note, Kieran has just finished his first week in the nurture group (a class with only 10 kids in) he is really enjoying himself, they gave him a dougnut the other day, but he got upset because as he put it "if i touch it.. it will glue my fingers" The meltdowns havent been too bad this week though so i have to be gratefull there.. So why am i here moaning you might ask???? Well now lets see... 1) Theres the fact that he is at severe risk of conjunctivites (i know thats not spelt right sorry) Because his new 'stimming' is licking both fingers and then touching his eyeballs and continuing to rub his fingers down his face... Moaning factor here is that school told me to get him to stop doing it... YEAH RIGHT Head and brick wall again 2) He is been hit by other kids in the class.. moaning factor.. He looks like a bruised peach ! the class teacher tells me he looks confused when someone hits him, but ohh afterall the nurture group is for ALL behavioral problems including the bullys. 3) When will he sleep normally again?? we all got more sleep when he was a baby !! Moaning factor.. Playing musical beds at 3am whilst discussing the workings of the washing machine or the drain covers, is not my idea of a good nights sleep. 4) MY EYES !! I swear he will blind me soon, Moaning factor.. As soon as i open my eyes on a morning (thats assuming i have been lucky enough to shut them..)He is there wanting to "stroke my eyes" AGGRhhhhhh. 5) I need a new VCD he has worn out the second of the year by constantly re-winding the tape (The dreaded bouncy castle tape)! I wont go on cos im feeling much better now, Hey afterall who would want anything different of their kids, I love his quirky little ways, but boy sometimes do i feel like screaming especially when im halfway through eating my tea and i hear him from upstairs "MUUUUUUUMMMMMMMmmmmm i had a poo now wipe my bum" Bless his little cotton socks.. ( such an active little man but who cares ) Take care all Shaz x

Hi I have just posted this in another topic, but as it is appropriate here, i thought i would just do a quick copy and paste (Marvolous invention) I was just reading another topic 'passive child/pretending to be normal' a short while ago, it got me thinking of the converstaion i was having the other day with Kierans Pyschologist. She also saw Liam (my eldest) when he was 3 (he is now coming up 12) And she said she was going to dig out his reports, and make sure they didnt miss anything with liam (bit late now i say ..) I have always said (as have most people) that liam is a brilliant actor, he has the ability to make people laugh and he does understand people... But he doesnt understand himself, from age 1 he has had a temper problem, bowel problems, Facinations (latest one Death) all sorts off things, but he was as good as gold in the assessment, as he is at school, no problem what-so-ever. Yet when he gets home all hell breaks loose, im sure he and kieran feed off each other and then 'share' their meltdown.. I have always wondered about liam having ASD (AS) but have been told by so many professionals that AS children 'Cannot just switch it on and off' so therefor because he was good at school and got on with his work no one believed me !! . Take care Shaz

Hi everyone, We are new here, Our youngest son (Kieran aged 5) has just been diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome, and i came across this site whilst scouring around for answers, advice etc. Kieran has a very big obbsession with washing machines, fans, bouncy castles (the fans at the back) water, drains, toilets, pipes, eyes (always tries to touch his own and other peoples) wow the list goes on and on. He is a superb little guy and we love him to bits, But we wanted to talk to others who understand this condition (because we don't) and see how we can understand him better, there is so much to do right now including him seeing a peaditrician (because he has a 'delve' on the top of his head, where the soft spot was). we are still in a bit of shock really, but we always knew he thought differently to our other 2 children, but could not put our finger on it until his school teacher pointed it out, until then it was like (head and brick wall). Any advice on what to expect now would be so gratefully recieved. Take care Shaz