Monday, June 16, 2008

Does anyone have/had a kid like this?

I just wanna know because I probably could use some support right now. :::fixin' to pull out my hair:::

Ryan is a very intense child and it seems as if he has been going through the "terrible twos" forever now. It started when he was about 16 months and it is still going now with him being 3 months short of turning 3. Most of the time he is not really that bad because I think that he is starting to come out of it. Plus if he has enough sleep and food, he acts pretty good. However, when he has an 'off' day, it's bad again. I will give you an example of the things that happened this morning, all before 9:30am.

Ryan wakes up a 6:15am right after I got the baby back to sleep. He comes in our room very quietly but then when he gets next to the bed, he starts screaming and telling us to get up. I get up and take him to the living room and tell him that everyone is still sleeping, that he will just have to lay on the couch and watch cartoons. After a little fussing, he finally agrees. At 6:40am Robb's alarm goes off, Ryan hears it and comes running in our room saying "I go bye-bye" about 25-30 times one right after the other. The baby is awake by this point so I get up with the both of them and start making coffee. Ryan says he wants crackers, which we don't have, so I tell him. He looks puzzled for a moment and asks for crackers again, and again and again, about 15 times total. Robb gets him some fruit snacks and that pipes him down for a moment.
Flash forward to after I have fed and bathed them all. 8:30 am I am in the kitchen doing something when Ryan keeps opening and closing a cabinet door. I ask him to stop, he ignores me. I ask him again, doesn't hear. So I go over to the cabinet door and close it with my leg and look at him and tell him to quit playing with the door. He tries to keep opening it but my leg is on it so he can't. He gets really pissed about that and screams at the top of his lungs and then bites me on my leg so hard that it broke the skin a little. So I put him in his room for a time out and while he is in there he pees his underwear which was intentional I am sure. I change his underwear and have a talk with him and show him where he bit me.
Next, 8:50am, I had to run to the bathroom real quick to pee while the boys were playing in Baylees room. Just as soon as I am coming out of the bathroom, I hear Jacob cry, so I run in there. Ryan has pushed him over (he was standing by the dresser), and his lip was bleeding. Then after I handled that situation, I sit down for a minute. Ryan says he wants cheese, so I go get him a slice of cheese (the kid is in love with cheese). Then he wants another piece, so I get him another and say that is the last piece of cheese, we are out. After he finishes that piece he asks for another. I say there is no more, its all gone. He proceeds to go to the fridge himself and try to get more cheese, which he sees there is no more cheese. I follow him in there and pull out the empty package and say "see, no more". Then he starts crying and saying that he wants cheese another 20 times or so. I try to offer him something else, but he is to busy crying and saying "cheese" to hear me.

And in between all these "incidents", he is over-reacting about everything. If Jacob cries, he has to fall over and cry too. If Baylee says she wants cereal, he wants cereal too (even if he has just ate). I know there is jealously there and I try to be sensitive to this and take every opportunity to show him extra attention.

So why is he acting like this on this particular day? It's all because we were out late last night and he didn't get in bed until 10:30pm. That is why he didn't sleep well and woke up early, that is why he behaved the way he did this morning. He HAS to be on a schedule EVERYDAY or his behavior is downright horrible the next. I like schedules and everything, but wow, this is a bit extreme. A little bit like his personality, extreme.

So, any similar kids out there?

2 comments:

Amy said...

Don't you love it when they start your morning off right! I don't have a child like Ryan, but there are certainly days like this for me. Ryan seems to like repitition. I don't know if you can can distract him with somethin else he can do before he gets to involved in what he is doing or wanting? I really can't give much advice, because I don't know what I would do. I hope you can find an answer or he grows out of this soon.

MamaDrama77 said...

I think EVERY parent can relate to you at some time. I know I can. Connor's antics don't get violent as often, but I am met with staunch resistance at just about every turn. Love those "limp noodle, lying in the floor and screaming" fits that happen in public, don't you? And then, of course, as soon as you've reached your wits' end and decide a nice swat to the hind quarters should settle things squarely, you look up and see that you've gathered a crowd of scowlers, clearly disapproving of your parenting skills, even though they have NO idea what kind of backstory this moment was preceded by.

I know your chiefest concern is not so much the meltdowns and the stubborn behavior, as it is the injuries he's inflicting on family and friends. You're doing everything I would have thought to do myself, with endless patience and love, so I can't offer suggestions for discipline. Is his pediatrician aware of the full extent of the biting and other hurtful behaviors? I think you're right that Ryan's an intense little man, and what he needs are coping strategies to deal with anger, frustration, disappointment, jealousy, etc. You might also try hooking up with an online support group with moms in similar predicaments, and see what they have to say.

In the meantime, I own a copy of "The Strong-Willed Child," by Dr. James Dobson! I'll loan it to you the next time we have a play date.