Grant and I have decided to switch therapists for Tyler. We had gotten as far as we could with this therapist and have now opted for a psychologist who specializes in OCD, phobias and Tourette’s Syndrome. The doctor practices Cognitive Behavioral Therapy which has been shown to be an effective treatment for the issues Tyler has. Grant and I saw the doctor alone for a history on Tyler and then Tyler met the doctor too. His first real session starts next week.

Tyler has another diagnosis that he’s had for a while that I just haven’t written about. It was something I’ve never heard of before. It’s called Primary Motor Stereotypy . Tyler is classified as having Complex Motor Stereotypy and his symptoms include hand and arm flapping, wiggling his fingers in front of his face and finger wiggling. The movements often appear or increase in frequency when a child is stressed, fatigued, anxious, excited or engrossed in an activity.

There is no real treatment for Stereotypies and the type Tyler has usually lasts for life.

We are less than a month away from school and I really worry about Tyler being teased or bullied, whether it’s the stereotypy, the OCD or the tics. The older he gets the more noticeable these things will become as children are expected to sit still during class. In his second grade class last year the only thing that happened was that Tyler was humming and the girl sitting next to him told him to stop it.

Tyler is taking tae kwon do, so hopefully he won’t have to be a victim of bullying.

Every night I pray I have the mental and physical health to parent and support Tyler the way he needs. We think we have found him a good therapist and for now that’s the best we can do.

Tyler’s idea of a perfect summer; the pool and video games!