Are we cursed groomers?

[CountryCanines]

Wow we have some groomers on here who have had a rough week! My son was diagnosed w/ PDD. (he is 7) Thats what Austism/Aspergers fall under. I am glad we finally have a diagnoses but its been a very rough road. Between meetings w/ his school & Psych appts, weve been so busy. Plus owning a shop thats only been open for 4 1/2 mos on top of that......my stress level has been a tad high! However, Im hoping now that we know what we're dealing with we can move forward. I hope everyone elses week gets better!
(((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))

[toomuchfunbnme]

Definately big hugs to you. Wishing you the strength and courage to work with each challenge and the satisfaction of knowing that you can overcome. Best of luck.

[Poodlefluff]

My heart goes out to you and your son. My step sister has Autism She was diagnosed as being borderline, when she was 2. She is pretty amazing, most autistic kids have a weakness in learning and then they have a super strong point as well, She has a hard time comprehending things like how much a candy bar cost, But she could read books out loud when she was 3. No one taught her to read either it was weird. She is also very artistic she can draw amazing pictures. She is 18 now, and is in most all regular high school classes, instead of Special ED. And she made an A in advanced art, she is pretty cool. I am not familiar with PDD though I don't know how much they are alike. I don't think we're cursed I think these things just happen. My step mom says god gave her an autistic daughter because not to many other people in this world can handle it. When she was a baby it was many a sleepless night. She would only sleep 3 hours a day total.

[pamperedpups]

Edited.

[Wisconsin]

***HUGS*** for everyone going through some "ruff" times right now!

I'm with you pampered pups...ditto on the hugs.

[Mary1980]

My son also has Aperger's Syndrome and he's also 7. I'm starting a support group on February 28th. I wish you were in New Jersey, I just want to let you know we're going to have an uphill battle. I work closely with ASPEN that's the Asperger's Educational Network. It's mostly New Jersey though. They have such great people to help me and my fight with the school system. Right now they placed my son in a behavioral disabilities class, with children that physically hurt him...a lot. If you read up on it...that's the completely wrong placement. Since his social skills are so low he's the perfect victim for bullying. Boy what a fight. He's going to be out of there soon with all the support I'm getting from ASPEN. There are a bunch of web sites out there to read up on it. Get all your info. I'm not sure if your son's in public school or if our information's the same. One thing I learned though....Never, I repeat never say you want what's best for your son (regarding school) Always say I want what's appropriate for my son. You'll hang your self with your own words, I did. They always reply we are not required to give your son the best, just what's appropriate.

Good luck and I totally feel for you and your situation.

Wow we have some groomers on here who have had a rough week! My son was diagnosed w/ PDD. (he is 7) Thats what Austism/Aspergers fall under. I am glad we finally have a diagnoses but its been a very rough road. Between meetings w/ his school & Psych appts, weve been so busy. Plus owning a shop thats only been open for 4 1/2 mos on top of that......my stress level has been a tad high! However, Im hoping now that we know what we're dealing with we can move forward. I hope everyone elses week gets better!
(((((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))))

[CountryCanines]

Mary, its so great that your're on this board! My son is also VERY small so he is picked on already, says no one likes him and they call him stupid. It breaks my heart! I hate seeing him go through all these things.....Great to meet you! I wish we were in NJ also!

[Mary1980]

I'm ready to cry just reading your post. I know exactly how it is. It's so hard for them to make friends. Kids can be so mean. I'm really looking into this school called the Newmark school. All the children have Asperger's so maybe for once my son can make a friend. The school is excellent, I hope your state has a school like this. They really focus on the children especially with social skills to prepare them for the future.The tuition is $40,000 a year and I have to fight my school district to pay for it. I don't know if your in the process of dealing with your son's school yet but your gonna have to request social skills training, executive functioning and even speech therapy. Speech therapy isn't just for pronunciation it also teaches how to begin and end a conversation. They usually have trouble with that I'm sure you know lol. There such great people though and there responsible for so many great things in this world. The creator of Pokemon has it (that show annoys the **** out of me) but my son loves it. So if you tell your son he has it tell him that, if he likes pokemon he'll think it's so cool. I wish you and your son so much luck!!

Autism just ten years ago was 1 to every 10,000 children
Now it's 1 to every 150 children. It's turning into an epidemic.

Sorry, when I'm talking about Asperger's I ramble lol.

[mustluvdogs1]

Not cursed

Naaaah, it is just life at it's hard times. I am sure you hear sad stories about your clients too. Groomers often mess up bodies with lifting and hard long days of work. The other things just happen. Life is touch. Life is Precious...that is why I try to be nice to people...life can be cut short....i never know when or if I have cancer from the B cancer I had. To let anyone spoil your hours , days left is the worst theft of all....we can't get time back. Look at that anna Nicole...like Marilyn Monroe...so sad so young...gone so easily. Poor child left to fight over. Fame...you can keep it. I don't even need to be a famous best groomer.Kennedys...no it was wealth and circumstances...and money to own the plane. Active people, public figure etc.

[poodle_Trouble]

CountryCanines:
Don't let anyone distroy his dreams, either. Even if he has to find other ways to do it. I'm 19 and also disabled. I have Attention Deficit hyperactive Disorder as well as the Attention Deficit Disorder. From the time I started school I was teased and bullied. I had low self esteem and to this day I am very shy. I was very lucky as a child I had my grandfather. He always told me go for my dream and never give up. To this day, even with him gone I still hear him. Before he died I wanted to through grooming out the window because I was told that I couldn't do it because I didn't have the attention span to learn. In 2004, my friend who Is a groomer allowed me to volunteer with her for one year. I will admit I DID have problems with following what she said because I'd forget. She was patient though. I bathed and dried dogs there for 2 years. I never learned to groomed but I learned something MORE important. In the 2 years helping around with her I learned how to Focus and Concentrate. I learned how to be mature and many many skills I needed. Grooming did more teaching than my special Eduvcation had ever. today I'm back in High school and the other day my drama teacher had called me after class to talk to me. She explained that sh had read my IEP (Individual Education Plan) and that it says I am ADD/ADHD. In the conversation she said "I can't believe your file. You have superb concentration and focusing skills." I ran over to the groomer that day and thanked her for helping me and told her what the teacher said.
Honestly, I still have moments where I lose my concentration but i an now refocus myself without someone helping me. Just have faith in him.
Being in the "grooming world" taught me many life skills and to this day I believe that if any person has a passion they should go for it. My grandfather was right. If your son has a passion help it grow. Mine is growing. I'm on this board lol I'm going to grooming school Later on next year after i finish my grade 12. By the way, I still have a Support teacher but I Am now in regular classes and 3 out of them are without help. I am taking a Computer business course without any assistance and I am doing very well so far. Every pice of work I have handed in has been a perfect 100%. So good luck to you and your son.

[greymom]

Poodletrouble I have to tell you I am very impressed! My daughter is 14 and finally after years of battling we finally got her diagnosed with ADD. I know it can be an uphill battle, but it sounds like you have made it and have a wonderful outlook on life.

Country and poodlefluff:

Along with my 14 year old with ADD I have a 17 year old son with multiple handicaps (no definate diagnosis, severe delays across the board). When he was younger I had many battles with the local school system to get the approriate education plan for him. I know how frusting it all can be. The best advice I can give both of you is to not give up fighting for what you know your child needs. I went as high up the ladder as I could to finally get what my son needed. Document everything even if it seems small and insugnificant (sorry I know I spelled that wrong). We also had issues with my son being the smallest in the class and an easy target for some aggresive kids. I took pictures of any and all visible injuries and took them straight to the Super Intendent. I told them they had two options 1) Put my son in an appropriate setting or 2) I would take the photo's to the proper athorities and press charges. My son has been in the approriate classes and therapies since then (yes there still have been a few bumps in the road, but not nearly as severe as they were in the begining). Good luck to both of you, it does get easier with time.

[poodle_Trouble]

Greymom:

It was difficult. And I did make it worse. Before I actually volunteered my time for 1year without school and 1 year with school. I was into Partying and drinking.I gave up I had teachers and principals telling me I'd never learn or accomplish anything more than being on a street corner or a in a bar. So I decided there was No point on going to school if I wasn't going anywhere and quit and just drank more and more. When my grandfather died, My Friend the Groomer(My Hero) Stepped in with the offer and I said Okay. I wanted to be a dog groomer. So I bathed and dried dogs for 2 years lol. Today, I don't care that I didn't make it as a groomer because I got my life back in order and learned so, so,sooo Much more. I'm now enjoying my life again and not drinking to this day. my self-esteem has improved, not perfect but I'm not afraid to talk to people anymore lol. I have the BEST teacher now who is right there if something is wrong.
Quick story of Last year:
I'm in Canada as some you may know. here High School students must pass a major test called the "Literacy Test." Students with disabilities that can write it are given a "Scribe" Some one who helps the student understand what is being asked. I was assigned one. Well I tried my best Before the test not to get one but had to. So then the woman in charge of All the "disabled"kids came over and spoke to me during the test and asked why I the Scribe wasn't helping me. So I explained to her that I did not need the help so she asked me if I was sure(about 3 or 4 times to make sure). I insisted I didn't need it so shesent him away and allowed me to complete it by myself. We never find out our scores. Only if we failed or Passed. I Passed.
CountryCanines: hope this gives you a littleinspiration. I know it's not the same as what I have but it does involve the mind.Good luck to him and I hope he is as lucky as I have been. If he's intested in grooming let him help you when he's older ok Sometimes a passion is the cure and no medication can give him that same happiness as his passion. I know that because after being in the grooming I didn't need medication. I just eeded something that I loved and I'm thankful I have some one in my life that helped me. Good luck again.