Skip to main content

Suck It Out of Your Ear

Logan has had these strange bumps on the side of his face, just below the ear lobe. They felt like pebbles under the surface of his skin. They seemed to develop after he fell a few years ago. Because of the pain they caused Logan whenever we touch that area, we finally took him to a plastic surgeon for a consultation. We learned that they were most likely not scar tissue from the fall. It was in fact something else, fairly common, but  needed to be removed and sent to pathology. The doctor assured us that it would be benign.

At the appointment, Logan asked how they would remove the bumps. The doctor went into a fairly detailed explanation that included the words knife and cutting. Logan freaked out. And Logan does freak-out really well. I quickly gave the doctor the evil eye and told Logan they would suck it out of his ear. He stopped crying immediately, I think he was trying to imagine how that would work. Then the doctor gave me the evil eye.

I was later admonished for my white lie, but my thinking was the kid will be asleep, why make him think about his face being cut open. I later had to go back and tell Logan the truth. It did not go so well.

That all happened in December. The procedure was set for last week. We had not discussed it since that day. After talking to other parents, my parents and the doctor's office, we decided to tell Logan the night before he was going to the hospital. We even toyed with the idea of letting the doctor tell him as the gas mask went over his face.

Ryan and I were ready for drama, complete with crying, screaming, yelling and a chase around the house. This is how it went:

Ryan: Logan, remember I am taking you to the doctors tomorrow to get that bump on your chin taken out.
Logan: No response

I observed this interaction and I was convinced that Logan could not have possibly heard Ryan's remark. So I nudged Ryan to repeat himself. He did.

Logan: Okay.

Later that night, right before bedtime, Logan told Ben, "I am going to have stitches just like you." Once again Ben comes to the rescue in his big brother role, someone to be envied and copied.

Keep Voting - 2 more days to go! Thank you.

Comments

  1. I would have told my kids the same thing! I am so pleased that the real explanation went well and that Ben's experiences are proving very beneficial for his younger brothers. That's awesome!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thank you for reading my post. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. If you wish to contact me directly, please let me know and I will email you.

Popular posts from this blog

Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities

  "Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities" is a series on eSpeciallyBen. As Ben approached 18, it was clear our role changed as parents. We needed to help Ben transition into adulthood. These stories are meant to assist other families who face, or will face, some of the same challenges. Talking About the Future Guest Post - Matt Wilson Legal Guardianship, Medicaid and SSI Researching Group Homes Questions to Ask at a Group Home Visit Referral Packet for Group Homes Getting Assistance from a Care Manager From Group Home Placement to Discharge Reaching for Independence

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother

After my post, Brotherly Love , I received an email from a reader who reminded me of this song. I knew the song, but had never really thought about the words and the meaning behind them. I looked it up and thought others might see the lyrics in a new light.   He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother The road is long With many a winding turn That leads us to who knows where Who knows when But I'm strong Strong enough to carry him He ain't heavy, he's my brother. So on we go His welfare is of my concern No burden is he to bear We'll get there For I know He would not encumber me If I'm laden at all I'm laden with sadness That everyone's heart Isn't filled with the gladness Of love for one another. It's a long, long road From which there is no return While we're on the way to there Why not share And the load Doesn't weigh me down at all He ain't heavy, he's my brother. He's my brother He ain't h

ABC's of ABA

A few weeks ago I attended a workshop presented by a behavior therapist. As it turned out, I went to a conference on the same topic over a year ago. I will describe what I have taken away from these methods in my own words - but please take a look at the links I have provided below. After I learned about this, life with children made a lot more sense to me. Not that this is earth shattering material, but it helped me to better understand the hows, whats and whys of behavior in children, and occasionally husbands. I am in no way an expert in this - just a parent who wants to share a behavior strategy that has worked in our home. I hope to inspire others to explore it further.  Any errors in information comes from me and cannot be blamed on the presenters. Also, you may have seen ABA - Applied Behavior Analysis - connected most often with Autism - please do not let this deter you if your child is not autistic. I use these methods with all my children, none of which are labeled au