It's important to note that the behavior described in my last post wasn't just occasional, or typical of the "terrible twos". The screaming, hitting and throwing was an every day thing, occurring for the most part of the day. It was affecting his daily life, as he was unable to use his time for playing, learning and socializing, hence increasing his global developmental delay. It's also important to mention that the concern raised because of the environment provided to Patrick: A home with two loving and caring parents, with access to a healthy an age-appropriate fun lifestyle.
When all this "sudden" change of attitude happened, we were already receiving services from the Infant and Toddler Connection, and his therapists were very helpful in dealing with this issue. They insisted on asking me why did I think he was behaving one way or another. Understanding why Patrick behaved the way he did, was the key to help him improve his playing and learning process.
The first step in figuring out why was Patrick constantly throwing, hitting and screaming, was to become extremely observant. Every time he would scream, I needed to find out what was upsetting him. But it goes beyond simply knowing what he wants. You see, when he wanted to go outside, sometimes he would come, grab my hand and take me to the door. Other times, he would throw something at me for the same reason. So, we have the same kid, the same desire, but two different scenarios. What would make him act peacefully one time, but aggressively other times? To find that out, I had to observe what was going in his environment every single time he showed a bad behavior. Every time he hit someone, I needed to pay attention to the whole situation: What was he doing right before he hit? What was I doing? What is he throwing? What time of the day was more likely to do it? In which places? Around which people? Has he been sleeping well? Eating well? Any significant routine changes? Same for screaming. Same for hitting. Being able to answer all those questions, led me to answer the big question, why.
Four main reasons surfaced:
When all this "sudden" change of attitude happened, we were already receiving services from the Infant and Toddler Connection, and his therapists were very helpful in dealing with this issue. They insisted on asking me why did I think he was behaving one way or another. Understanding why Patrick behaved the way he did, was the key to help him improve his playing and learning process.
The first step in figuring out why was Patrick constantly throwing, hitting and screaming, was to become extremely observant. Every time he would scream, I needed to find out what was upsetting him. But it goes beyond simply knowing what he wants. You see, when he wanted to go outside, sometimes he would come, grab my hand and take me to the door. Other times, he would throw something at me for the same reason. So, we have the same kid, the same desire, but two different scenarios. What would make him act peacefully one time, but aggressively other times? To find that out, I had to observe what was going in his environment every single time he showed a bad behavior. Every time he hit someone, I needed to pay attention to the whole situation: What was he doing right before he hit? What was I doing? What is he throwing? What time of the day was more likely to do it? In which places? Around which people? Has he been sleeping well? Eating well? Any significant routine changes? Same for screaming. Same for hitting. Being able to answer all those questions, led me to answer the big question, why.
Four main reasons surfaced:
- Patrick is trying to communicate. Patrick's ability to understand is superior to his ability to execute and speak. This causes frustration. Loads of it. If he wanted to play with a child, he didn't know how to tell him, so he would hit him. If Patrick wanted to get my attention, he would come and throw something at me. If he was tired, or bored, he would scream.
- Patrick's nutrition. Patrick has been dealing with constipation issues which caused a lack of appetite in him. He started to lose weight, to the point that he gained only one pound in six months, and lost that pound the following two months. We don't operate the same way when we are too hungry, or stomach sick, compared to when we have a satisfied belly, right?
- Patrick has sensory integration issues. Sensory Integration is the neurological process that organizes sensation from one's own body and from the environment and makes it possible to use the body effectively within the environment. Patrick doesn't necessarily have Sensory Integration Disorder to the full extent, but, he does process a few sensations a little different from most kids.
- Patrick's medical condition. Patrick's cerebellum is slightly smaller and a bit disorganized as shown in his MRI. The cerebellum plays an important role in motor coordination, attention, language and regulates fear and pleasure. Patrick's behavior issues are not only limited to bad behavior, but also to "odd" behaviors, such as panicking when feeling fear, and feeling fear to random things such as small pets, or stuffed animals.
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