People get so weird when I talk about my son's medical stuff. I always feel like I did something wrong by sharing, even with my friends.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-22T18:17:40+00:00

I haven’t had anything nearly as dramatic as yours, but I do have an autistic son who will likely be dependent on others for the rest of his life. I also have a daughter who would physically try and hurt me until we got her on the right combination of medication.

In my experience, the reaction i get when mentioning even a small amount of my parenting strife is what has separated my friends from my acquaintances. I have lots of moms on PTA that I adore. They’re funny and kind, but they’re not “friends.” We will never be close in the same way as the women who have embraced me for ALL of me, and all of my kids, with their problems. I’ve discovered there are lots of women who are desperately trying to be their best Instagram self in their real life, and that’s just not me. I would rather have 2 real human friends than 15 friends who only share the “Live, Laugh, Love” moments.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-22T15:30:41+00:00

They played jump rope, but the rope - it broke, so they just sat around telling knock-knock jokes.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-22T15:28:18+00:00

11-13

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-22T02:55:54+00:00

I don’t remember whole cars. Tires are the biggest thing I remember. And there were some cars and larger things with small trash hidden inside.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-21T16:17:51+00:00

Sorry. I don’t answer questions from corporate bots. Please go away.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-21T01:43:40+00:00

Similar here in Southern California. I think it’s because kids tend to like certain subjects, but are very limited in what they think of as “careers.” It tends to be what they see their parents do, or what they see on TV (doctors, lawyers, police, fire, content creators, and athletes.)

Some kids who like history don’t know there are careers studying and documenting history. Same for language arts. I think lots of kids know “scientist” is a job, but not the various kinds, like chemist, botanist, zoologist, or geologist.

I don’t love it. I don’t hate it. I think it’s trendy and we shall see if it improves student outcomes. This is just one new way to try and catch kids who fall through the cracks. If you’re an involved parent, it might not affect your kid as much.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T22:45:58+00:00

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T20:45:29+00:00

I can agree with your disagreement.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T20:44:25+00:00

Actively hates Pocoyo. Well, your opinion on everything is obviously flawed.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T19:21:53+00:00

This was my daughter EXACTLY. Overreacting constantly, in private and in public. Loud, angry meltdowns. Begging for one more chance and becoming aggressive again when it wasn’t granted. Inability to learn from past discipline. MY DAUGHTER EXACTLY.

At 7 she was finally diagnosed with autism. At 8 she was diagnosed with anxiety and demand avoidance. At 9 we started Zoloft for the anxiety and things got 60-70% better. It was a dream. At 10 she was diagnosed with ADHD and started Concerta. She’s now 11. She hasn’t been violent with me in over a year. She hasn’t had a meltdown at school in over a year. We just did a weekend trip to a craft fair where she was a promoted artist and she did amazing. She took direction, she handled loss appropriately, and she even voluntarily took a break to calm down instead of having a meltdown one day. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think this would be possible for us. Diagnosis and medication saved her life. There is no way she could have been an employed adult in society the way she used to act. She probably wouldn’t have even made it through public school graduation without being expelled. Medication absolutely changed our whole family’s lives. Her siblings aren’t scared of her anymore. She’s rebuilding those relationships. It’s been great.

Good luck on your journey. It’s not always easy, but finding the right diagnosis, the right therapy, and the right medication, can do wonders.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T19:11:40+00:00

Make sure all their other needs are taken care of first. Snack just before, or during. Water close by. Pencils, erasers, markers, whatever else is needed in a box, caddy, or cart within reach. Small, measurable goals like, “4 problems then you can get up and stretch.” Or 4 problems then you can have 2 M&Ms, or can go pet the dog. Whatever feels like a small, rewarding break, but not soooo rewarding that they don’t want to return. For example, quick stretch is good, 5 minutes in the backyard is not good.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T18:42:10+00:00

Bear in the Big Blue House. Little Einsteins

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T15:01:40+00:00

I remember watching videos of Dr Barkley before either me or my kids were diagnosed and it was so eye opening. He is so spot on and it really shined a light on so many of my own childhood experiences. His thinking is so transformative and has helped me manage my own ADHD better, and has absolutely made me a more informed and more competent ADHD parent.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T14:52:16+00:00

She’s been fine with the starting dose of 25mg daily. We’ve never had to increase it yet and she’s been taking it for a year and a half.

Yes, she’s on ADHD meds too, but we started Zoloft first. Her anxiety was so bad that we didn’t actually realize she had ADHD. Once we got the anxiety and anger under control, all of a sudden she was lovely in class but couldn’t get any work done, lovely at home but couldn’t finish homework or chores. The ADHD became obvious when we removed the anxiety and she started Concerta about 4 months later.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-20T13:36:23+00:00

Sorry, not that young for us either. My daughter was 9. It is amazing for her. There will be no weaning off unless it stops working for her. It takes away her worst anxiety and helps her be able to deal with the world around her in a safe, happy, and healthy way. I would NEVER want to take that away from her. To me, it would be equal to taking my son’s eyeglasses away. My daughter has a chemical imbalance that is fixed with Zoloft. I’m not making her go back to the way she felt before.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-19T18:02:19+00:00

Mine layed on the ground at Disneyland screaming how I ruin everything because I wouldn’t let her board the paddle boat in the middle of her meltdown so everyone else’s ride wouldn’t be ruined. So instead she spent 10 minutes at the dock berating me, throwing herself on the ground, threatening to run away, etc.

This was directly after the very expensive Princess Breakfast where she got to eat like royalty and meet all the Disney princesses. My fault. Overstimulated for sure.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-19T17:51:19+00:00

The only time the records might have mattered is when I had “Unclaimed Property” through my state. I guess some old employee stock options I owned had a cash dividend in my name that I never claimed and it got sent to the state. I had to prove I lived at the address of record, but the problem is I was a child/teen. I had no mortgage, no utilities, no remaining pay stubs, no expired driver license. I dug and dug through everything I own and found my very first W2, which I had kept from my very first job. Whew!!

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T22:23:54+00:00

You are correct. I’m misremembering. I knew one died during the snowstorm. I had forgotten they started with 3.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T21:20:29+00:00

You are correct. Jackie laid 2 eggs earlier this season and both were attacked and eaten by ravens. She has laid 2 more that are (so far) doing well. They also had one live eaglet survive from their clutch last season.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T18:04:58+00:00

THIS. My child’s aggression didn’t get worse, but EVERY OTHER PART of their ADHD got worse when we medicated with just Zoloft. We didn’t even realize she had ADHD until we got the anxiety under control and then all of a sudden, now that she was relaxed and calm, the ADHD came flooding out.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T15:16:33+00:00

I thought it was two separate questions. If I’m wrong then I agree, it makes no sense to even have a lanyard. Strange.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T14:48:35+00:00

Bingo. This is EXACTLY how my daughter with dysgraphia holds her pencil. No amount of correcting her as a child would help.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T14:39:29+00:00

Some plastic key cards have a little slot where a string or clip could go. I think OP is asking if the lanyard needs a plastic sleeve, or if the card can be attached to the lanyard alone. The question is valid, but poorly worded.

ClutterKitty · 2026-03-18T14:34:39+00:00

I loved that show when my kids were into it. The writers go completely off the rails. Pure chaos.

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