Taking A Big Bite

Perhaps a bite too big to chew.

The Boy returned from another "evaluation" at the Mental Health Facility Local.

These trips are really just a day-spa adventure for him and don't do bleeding thing to get his behaviors under control.

What they have revealed is that he can remain calm in such an environment and he can turn it on or off as he wants.

Knowing that he's in control of whether he's going to have an episode and can stop at will means we can be conventional in dealing with the tantrums.

And that means telling him 'no' even when we know it's going to set him off.  It means denying him fun stuff when he hasn't done the gotta-do's.

It means kicking The Lovely Harvey out of the house so that he thinks she's off having fun without him.

It means planting my ass at home and weathering the storm from both The Boy, who wants to remain in control and for the no-consequences-he-cares-about situation to return; and from Harvey who just wants to have some damn peace when she gets home and hates to see me, in effect, setting him off to make my point to him.

Before, we were operating under the idea that he had no control over his outbursts and enduring was all can do.  Now that we know he's in control and being controlling, we've got to do something different.

This is gonna be tough!  Send prayers!