So we are on a new journey, it involves our sweet boy Jonathon, who is almost 8!! He is a sweet, sensitive, yet impulsive young man. He has a huge heart and while it has been a challenge at times as his impulses swing out of control, I wouldn't change him for anything in the world.
I know each child is different, nothing tells me that more than when I say one thing and they all react in completely different ways. Our journey involves learning how to help Jonathon control his impulses during school, while he is SO incredibly bright, his lack of control causes him to be a distraction in class to his classmates and his teacher. His teacher is very patient and called me in to talk about it, he was so positive, telling me over and over again how sharp he is, and how his impulsive behavior is not affecting his academics, but affecting the way others react to him.
As a parent, it's hard to hear that your kids aren't perfect, that they aren't making good choices, yet it's my job as a parent to get to the bottom of this and be an advocate for my son and help him on this journey. We aren't sure of the next step, we are being encouraged to possibly fill out a Connors evaluation which is a form that parents and teachers fill out when ADHD is suspected. Now-- just those letters bring fear to my heart, probably because I don't know that much about ADHD, but also because it's a label that has so many negative connotations in our society! It makes me think of kids who are out of control, who are overly aggressive, who are mean, who treat others with contempt....yet none of these things describes my Jonathon. His impulses are more like making animal sounds in class when the class is expected to be quiet. He bumps into the wall when his teacher has just asked the kids NOT to walk near the wall. He bounces up and down on the yoga ball when the teacher has asked the kids to sit quietly on them. He has a hard time controlling his impulses and the teacher is concerned that maybe, truly, he can't control them on his own.
So where does this journey lead us? For me, it's a huge step of faith to trust that we are taking steps in the right direction. I want to help Jonathon make goals to help him control his impulses, I want other kids to accept Jonathon the way he is, but most of all, I want Jonathon to accept the way God has made him and be proud of who he is. I love you Jonathon.
