good cardiology report...but bad behavior!

[Ericsmomma]

I guess this is a two-part post.....first and most importantly, Eric had his yearly cardiology appointment today. The doc said everything looks fine...still can hear a tiny, tiney, murmur, but he wasn't concerned. Just will keep an eye on him and recheck him again next year. ( Whew! I always worry till he reassures me ).
Now the second part...Eric was a terror in the office! Very obstinate, wouldn't walk, (just did the "plop"), hitting the nurses hand away, etc. I was totally embarrassed, and worn out! It suddenly hit me that Eric has a behavioral problem! I've been trying to avoid it, making excuses, etc, but hey, its DEFINETELY
an issue. I'm not sure if he's acting out because he's non-verbal, and the frustration is getting to him, or he's sick, and can't tell me, or he's just being a BRAT! Dinner time is the worst...won't sit at the table..throws his fork, won't feed himself (I have let him get away with this and ended up feeding him), And he insists that we leave the TV on...or he throws a fit! Me thinks this child is CONTROLLING the house!! When he was small, it wasn't so bad. But now that he's getting older, (he just turned 6) its not so cute anymore. Any suggestions on turning this behavior around before my blood pressure goes higher? (i'm already on meds). What bothers me the most is not being able to communicate with him, so maybe I'm missing something....or maybe Eric is just pushing my buttons like any other kid!

[ALLISA]

Yikes Dolly...we are going through the same thing !! See my "hitting" post.....don't know a magic answer for you, but I totally understand you saying that it is a tiring, wearing beahvior...I am exhausted all of the time (so my Eyore moment continues !!)

[hannahph]

I used to have some similar issues with Hannah when she was younger until I realized she was controlling the situation. I always worried about would she understand the discipline. Every kid is different but now I will not tolerate the behaviour. It took awhile but what works for us is to do time outs(she HATES them and will usually do anything to avoid them) also we also put her favorite toy or video into a "time out" All I have to do is mention time out and she stops the behaviour. We use the "super nanny" method- same spot every time and one minute for every year of their age(we adjust it to Hannah's cognitive age) and make her apologize when she gets up.I think it's really hard to correct once they realize they can push our buttons but I think the big thing is letting them know we mean buisness and being consistant. Believe me I used to be a weak disciplinarian and now the kids know I mean what I say and it has really turned things around. that's not to say they don't have their moments but life is much more pleasant around our house now.Good luck!

[ValerieC]

This is a great question for wise MB. Where are you?

[Monique]

Hi Dolly, my son is six (almost) and we just had our yearly cardiology appointment. We have to bring the portable DVD player so he can watch videos. Plus this is the first time me and my husband went so we could hold him down while they did the echo.

Jameson isnt verbal either but we have been haveing him use assistive technology since 2 years now (like a machine that can talk for them). He presses the button with the picture on it and it says the word. It helps alleviate some of the frustration. Do you do time outs or anything?

Seems like he is pretty smart and knows how to get what he wants. I dont know how big he is but i used to put jameson in his old crib, turn it toward the wall and that would be his time out (so he couldnt escape). After a few times of that, he got the picture.

good luck.
monique

[Monique]

i meant High chair , not crib!