Well, I've finally got around to something I have been meaning to do for ages.
I am off on a journey (around the houses, I strongly suspect!) to discover if I can get the "rules" of DLA changed. Quite possibly it would be easier to scale Everest in flip-flops but, I can but try!
The reasons are quite simple.
Daisy is "recognised" as being Autistic by the folks at the DLA office. We/she were assessed again via that Devil-sent form which is enough to have me reaching for the Prozac and it was decided (quite rightly too) that Daisy is always going to be disabled and will not improve so we no longer have to fill in the form on an annual basis.
That was a bit of a painful moment, I have to admit. I mean I know it already, but it still stung
Anyways, with slightly thicker carapace than when I started, I asked why we weren't eligible for the higher rate of mobility as Daisy is a danger to herself and others and we NEED a blue badge. She is a "bolter" and will go in any direction on impulse and will also try to push me into the paths of moving cars if she is in melt-down and I need to get her to safety.
The answer I got was because she doesn't have RESTRICTED mobility we don't qualify. I understand this, but I don't accept it. Her uber-mobility makes her more of a danger to herself and others than anyone with restricted mobility. She is akin to a small frightened animal and will run anywhere she can to get away from whatever it is that has spooked her. She is very nervy around cars as they tend to start their engines (well, at least the drivers do!) and she doesn't know when it's going to happen.
The people who work for the DLA department, can't help me as they only follow the rules and don't make them. So, here starteth my quest.......Let's see what I can achieve for autistic children and autism awareness. Wish me luck.....I'm going in!
Thursday 25 February 2010
Wednesday 24 February 2010
Oooh.....done it now!
Yes.
I did it.
I finally grabbed both my courage and the moment and told Daisy that The Yellow One is no longer welcome in our house.
SpongeBob is banned!
What kind of an evil mother am I?!
Well, for the benefit of the tape:
I am tired of the continuous references to you-know-who.
I am tired of the repeated efforts to relive entire episodes of that programme....complete with voices.
I am very tired of the echolalia associated with Square Bob. It is NEVER as bad as when he has infiltrated our living room.
I have had quite enough of being spoken to like I am the stoopid one (aka Patrick) and not the pink cartoon character.
If I have to go looking for my spatula one more time because she has made off with it to grill "Krabby Patties" with I swear they will have to send round those very nice and sympathetic people in the white coats!
So....I told her.
"No more" I said. "SpongeBob is banned. Your attitude sucks."
Possibly the last comment was a bit out of order, but it worked. No hissy fit, no begging (I was dreading that!) no nothing.
Frankly, I'm a bit worried now!
It's never been this easy before......
I did it.
I finally grabbed both my courage and the moment and told Daisy that The Yellow One is no longer welcome in our house.
SpongeBob is banned!
What kind of an evil mother am I?!
Well, for the benefit of the tape:
I am tired of the continuous references to you-know-who.
I am tired of the repeated efforts to relive entire episodes of that programme....complete with voices.
I am very tired of the echolalia associated with Square Bob. It is NEVER as bad as when he has infiltrated our living room.
I have had quite enough of being spoken to like I am the stoopid one (aka Patrick) and not the pink cartoon character.
If I have to go looking for my spatula one more time because she has made off with it to grill "Krabby Patties" with I swear they will have to send round those very nice and sympathetic people in the white coats!
So....I told her.
"No more" I said. "SpongeBob is banned. Your attitude sucks."
Possibly the last comment was a bit out of order, but it worked. No hissy fit, no begging (I was dreading that!) no nothing.
Frankly, I'm a bit worried now!
It's never been this easy before......
Saturday 20 February 2010
D Day
That's "Dentist Day" to the uninitiated.
Not, as you previously thought, Thursday.
It started early....about a fortnight earlier to be more precise, so that I could really saturate Daisy with references to D Day. We had to change the appointment time to 9am so that we could be first in with no waiting around. Daisy doesn't "do" waiting. Oh, and then we had to check that the dentist was female, as otherwise it would have been a HUGE waste of time for everyone.
D Day arrived and began at a very Daisy-Unfriendly 7.15am. I was waiting for being thoroughly told-off for disturbing her beauty sleep but was pleasantly surprised by her need to listen to the alarm clock going "beepity beep beep beep". My interest in the noise wore off far earlier than hers, but at least she was awake and happy......sitting on the sofa watching.....yep. The Square Yellow One.
After the usual minefield that is getting dressed we ended up at the dentist EARLY!!
At this point I have to say that the dentist was FABULOUS!!!!!! She didn't mind that Daisy spent the whole 30 minute appointment in the waiting area. She wasn't fazed that Daisy squeaks and barks and growls and tries to bite if she is stressed. She was interested in PDA and understood it straight away and didn't look at me as if I was the one who was barking....!
OK...so she never got to see Daisy's teeth, but it's all about trust. Daisy will get there, this dentist knows the difference between goats and sheep!
Roll on our next appointment!
Not, as you previously thought, Thursday.
It started early....about a fortnight earlier to be more precise, so that I could really saturate Daisy with references to D Day. We had to change the appointment time to 9am so that we could be first in with no waiting around. Daisy doesn't "do" waiting. Oh, and then we had to check that the dentist was female, as otherwise it would have been a HUGE waste of time for everyone.
D Day arrived and began at a very Daisy-Unfriendly 7.15am. I was waiting for being thoroughly told-off for disturbing her beauty sleep but was pleasantly surprised by her need to listen to the alarm clock going "beepity beep beep beep". My interest in the noise wore off far earlier than hers, but at least she was awake and happy......sitting on the sofa watching.....yep. The Square Yellow One.
After the usual minefield that is getting dressed we ended up at the dentist EARLY!!
At this point I have to say that the dentist was FABULOUS!!!!!! She didn't mind that Daisy spent the whole 30 minute appointment in the waiting area. She wasn't fazed that Daisy squeaks and barks and growls and tries to bite if she is stressed. She was interested in PDA and understood it straight away and didn't look at me as if I was the one who was barking....!
OK...so she never got to see Daisy's teeth, but it's all about trust. Daisy will get there, this dentist knows the difference between goats and sheep!
Roll on our next appointment!
Wednesday 17 February 2010
Oh.....like THAT is it??
OK.....I am mildly aware that the world outside is having a few financial problems. I'm not completely out of touch. Well, actually that's not strictly true as I was out of touch earlier today as my ISP, in their wisdom, decided to suspend my services. Despite the fact that I was.......yeah, IN CREDIT!!! Argh. I said. Then I said some more 4 letter words. Then I called them, only to be told that the payment I made was charged to my account and not taken off it! Blimey, that's a new one. So the end result is that I get my services reconnected and I get a free upgrade. Apparently this makes my pooter go faster. Time will tell. The up-side of this is that we also "lost" the cable channels on the TV. The entire morning was a Sponge Bob-free zone. Words do not exisit to convey the extreme dislike that I have of the yellow fellow. It is rarely funny, never educational and frequently just purile. Why on earth does Nick Toons persist on showing the Yellow One all day every day through the half-term holidays? What about the kids who DON'T like the Yellow One? What about the poor parents who have to listen to him? Hell, WHAT ABOUT ME?????!!!!! Bad enough that he has taken over the TV, but Daisy runs the length of the house, rock-pooling net raised above her head, "buzzing" and catching jelly-fish! She hasn't named the net "Ole Reliable" yet.......
Monday 15 February 2010
Well...this is it. My first blog. I'm a blog virgin!
OK...Now I've calmed down I guess some introduction is required? Well, for the benefit of the hard of thinking, this blog is about Daisy. She's Autistic. The clue is in the title. It is something I find myself HAVING to say on a regular basis to those people who assume that Daisy and I are some kind of free entertainment, and that's it's perfectly acceptable to stare and point and laugh at us when poor Daisy is having a melt-down and I am getting beaten-up. Maybe I should take a hat out with us and pass it round the crowd? All donations to the National Autistic Society!
Daisy is now 8 years old and was diagnosed with PDA/Autism when she was almost 5. Oh, never heard of PDA? OK...neither had I. It's Pathological Demand Avoidance syndrome and it does exactly what it says on the tin. Daisy would rather die than comply. Not because she won't but because she can't. It just looks like won't. So she appears to be a total spoilt brat, but in fact is simply a very anxious frightened little girl who is desperately struggling with the world around her.
She is educated full time at home, by yours truely. I can honestly say that removing her from school was the best thing I could have done for her as she was becoming ill and would have had a breakdown. She has made great progress in the year since she left school and can read and write with enthusiasm which was sadly lacking when she was at school!
Well, the excitement has quite worn me out AND it's Daisy's bathtime....so TTFN!
OK...Now I've calmed down I guess some introduction is required? Well, for the benefit of the hard of thinking, this blog is about Daisy. She's Autistic. The clue is in the title. It is something I find myself HAVING to say on a regular basis to those people who assume that Daisy and I are some kind of free entertainment, and that's it's perfectly acceptable to stare and point and laugh at us when poor Daisy is having a melt-down and I am getting beaten-up. Maybe I should take a hat out with us and pass it round the crowd? All donations to the National Autistic Society!
Daisy is now 8 years old and was diagnosed with PDA/Autism when she was almost 5. Oh, never heard of PDA? OK...neither had I. It's Pathological Demand Avoidance syndrome and it does exactly what it says on the tin. Daisy would rather die than comply. Not because she won't but because she can't. It just looks like won't. So she appears to be a total spoilt brat, but in fact is simply a very anxious frightened little girl who is desperately struggling with the world around her.
She is educated full time at home, by yours truely. I can honestly say that removing her from school was the best thing I could have done for her as she was becoming ill and would have had a breakdown. She has made great progress in the year since she left school and can read and write with enthusiasm which was sadly lacking when she was at school!
Well, the excitement has quite worn me out AND it's Daisy's bathtime....so TTFN!
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