A lot to think about

by KTaltos
(Richmond, Va)

I have 2 boys. One is 9 and the other just turned 5. We recently started looking for help with our 5 year old due to violent outbursts and an inability to reason with him in cases of reprimand etc. On the whole he acts a lot like most kids but often takes things too far, is excessively risky and will shoot from playing happily into aggressive tantrum at odd times.

During our session we were quickly brought to SPD and began looking at it.

There were a LOT of things he did as a child that were typically explained away as odd but nothing to be concerned about that snapped right into place when looking at SPD. For instance as a child he would show no reaction to pain at all. At one time he had a huge knot in the middle of his forehead that turned all kinds of colors. We know generally when he got it but we were sitting in the next room and he never made a sound. We turned to help because he always has been difficult to work with and reign in and this only seems to be getting harder. He's a bright kid, but once a threshold is reached, which is very low compared to other kids he is entirely intractable.

My main concern looking at this list is that in many cases my older one also matches the chart but on the opposite side of the spectrum. For instance, where my youngest seemed immune to pain the oldest had to have the tags cut out of his clothing and wouldn't wear certain cloths and still has an incredible attachment to a security blanket. Where my youngest has to have every item at the table to taste and check out my oldest would, at the same age gag and lose his meal if he encountered an odd texture, even with items he liked, such as coffee cake.
I guess I begin to worry that I have two kids, who are both very bright children but are carrying different and sometimes conflicting facets of SPD and what that will mean to the family dynamics.

I have a feeling I've stepped onto a difficult but necessary road. Im not sure whats coming up but I want to do the best for both of them. They are very bright and I would like to give them them the best opportunity to realize their potentials.