Guest guest Posted August 12, 2009 Report Share Posted August 12, 2009 Hi, this is difficult, I know. My son (7yrs) does the same thing with video games, the obsession was so bad that we had to put them away for awhile. He and his brother were only allowed to play on weekends as it was, but he refused to get off and would play all night if we didn't yank the cord out I think the problem is both OCD and sensory. Inositol/Choline works for some OCD, but I didn't find it very helpful for this. What is working for my son is a reward system (token economy). I put the video game system up and stole the computer cord so I can control access. I have him do certain things to earn video game or computer time. I can get him to do almost anything to earn the poker chips. Each chip is worth 10 minutes of time. I have him work on things that are easy for him, and put some things in that are more difficult for him. We use a thick, white laminated paper about 6x8 inches, it has six velcro spots on it in a row. I put velcro on 4 poker chips (can go up to 5), stick them on in a line, and put a " free choice " icon at the end. He has to do each task I ask in order to earn the chips. As he earns the chips, I give them to him and replace them with a star icon. If he does not do a task (has a fit or whatever), he gets a red X and has to start over. If he continues refusing, he is not able to earn it at this time and I do not let him get it out. (I try not to let this happen, but I have to let him know he has to try or he will not be rewarded). I started off with really easy stuff for him to do so he could earn it right away, then gradually I made the tasks a little more challenging. When he earns his time, I take out a kitchen timer and have him watch me put the 40 minutes on it. I start the timer when he begins playing. The timer gives a warning signal at 5 min left. He knows this means he will have to stop soon. You should have something rewarding take place after the timer goes off, like a snack or other fun activity he can do, so that he won't dread it going off so much. I bring a snack right over to him when he is done. This is working for us. Sometimes I tell him that he can't earn it that day. I often find him practicing the things he has learned while earning video game time and in my mind I'm going " Yes! We are doing a good thing! " Hope that helps. My older son jumped on board with it too (he's 11), he was asking to do all kinds of chores to earn the time. I taught him to wash dishes, do laundry, sort recycling stuff, etc. Great motivator...maybe you could adapt it to work for your son. Take care, Liz > > My 14 yo son is obsessed with being on the computer/internet, playing his hand held Nintendo DSI, and reading compilation books of newspaper funnies like Foxtrot, Pearls before Swine, and Calvin and Hobbes. If we go out, he must take either the DSI or the books and bury his head in them. He gets mad when anyone tries to engage him in conversation, because it pulls him away from what he is doing momentarily. > > When kids or teachers from school recognize him and say " hi " , he does not seem to recognize them out of context. I think this is partially because he is always in his own head all the time. > > I have posted before about being tired of experimenting on him, and broke as well. We will see his regular pediatrician for a well check before school starts. Is there any chance he could test for some of the bacteria associated with PANDAS? I've seen on talk shows that this syndrome happens to kids off the spectrum as well, so I'm hoping I won't be seen as the desperate mother in denial, grasping at straws. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 12, 2009 Report Share Posted August 12, 2009 You are not a desperate mother grasping at straws! You are a warrior mom who is looking to " rule out " all possible aspects of your son's issues. Go in to the dr with that attitude! You are the consumer. Just a heads up that many drs do not " believe " in PANDAS. When I called our pediatrician's office in July to ask about PANDAS, our regular dr was out, so they asked if I wanted to talk to another dr. This other dr pooh-poohed the idea of PANDAS as ridiculous without even knowing my child or wanting to examine him! I waited until my son's dr was back, and took him in. He took us seriously (he's one in a million and very humble) and ran the tests I asked for. It showed up negative (and I know from reading other posts that a negative doesn't mean it's not there), but I felt in my gut instinct that I could lay the issue to rest. My son is hyperimmune and rarely gets sick and has never even had an ear infection, which makes the possibility seem even more " crazy " but I learned from this group that hyperimmunity is just as much of a problem as hypoimmunity. I was pursuing the PANDAS thing because of my son's out of control OCD. I am trying the inositol right now (Kirkman's brand that I bought from OurASDKids) and trying to get up to the optimal dose. We are now at 2500 mg/ 3 times a day. I am starting to see some improvement in the OCD behaviors, but I notice it seems to be especially bad when he is nervous and/or excited (happy). He will compulsively lick his finger then touch each ear, then lick his finger again and touch each foot. My son (10, Aspergers) also has to be constantly doing something like reading or on the computer, so I understand what you mean. I'm sure this is probably all part of OCD, but not sure. Nanci > > My 14 yo son is obsessed with being on the computer/internet, playing his hand held Nintendo DSI, and reading compilation books of newspaper funnies like Foxtrot, Pearls before Swine, and Calvin and Hobbes. If we go out, he must take either the DSI or the books and bury his head in them. He gets mad when anyone tries to engage him in conversation, because it pulls him away from what he is doing momentarily. > > When kids or teachers from school recognize him and say " hi " , he does not seem to recognize them out of context. I think this is partially because he is always in his own head all the time. > > I have posted before about being tired of experimenting on him, and broke as well. We will see his regular pediatrician for a well check before school starts. Is there any chance he could test for some of the bacteria associated with PANDAS? I've seen on talk shows that this syndrome happens to kids off the spectrum as well, so I'm hoping I won't be seen as the desperate mother in denial, grasping at straws. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 12, 2009 Report Share Posted August 12, 2009 Obsessed is different than ocd. Does it cause him considerable distress when having them taken away, in the thought that something bad will happen? In ocd, there is a ritual that takes away the compulsion, so "if I only stare at the top part of the picture when I pass, then my mother won't die." and if that doesn't happen, it has to be done over and over again. My son has a different type of ocd, pure o, which is bad thoughts. His ritual is confessing his worries or bad thoughts. He needs constant reassurance that what he did was okay, that he didn't tell a lie, etc. His thoughts are regarding people being hurt "we hit a bump in the road, but now I think it was a person -- what if we killed them." He also worries the air is poison, the food is poison,etc. If the only distress is that he wants to play, then I would classify it more as addiction than ocd. Also, there is something called ocpd, which is an obsessive compulsive personality, but the difference is that taking away the item does not cause the same distress -- it is just something that they truly prefer to do. Don't take away my game because I just want to play it all the time, instead of don't take away my game because if you do something bad will happen. In addition, he could possibly be playing the games all the time to try to stop other things that are going on in his head. My son played alot of video games at one point because it gave his brain a rest from all the constant obtrusive thoughts. Subject: is this ocd?To: mb12 valtrex Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2009, 9:04 AM My 14 yo son is obsessed with being on the computer/internet, playing his hand held Nintendo DSI, and reading compilation books of newspaper funnies like Foxtrot, Pearls before Swine, and Calvin and Hobbes. If we go out, he must take either the DSI or the books and bury his head in them. He gets mad when anyone tries to engage him in conversation, because it pulls him away from what he is doing momentarily.When kids or teachers from school recognize him and say "hi", he does not seem to recognize them out of context. I think this is partially because he is always in his own head all the time.I have posted before about being tired of experimenting on him, and broke as well. We will see his regular pediatrician for a well check before school starts. Is there any chance he could test for some of the bacteria associated with PANDAS? I've seen on talk shows that this syndrome happens to kids off the spectrum as well, so I'm hoping I won't be seen as the desperate mother in denial, grasping at straws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 12, 2009 Report Share Posted August 12, 2009 I hope I didn't sound like I was saying to go in to the dr and be disrespectful. That is not what I intended. I just meant to go in and be " steadfast " and your child's advocate. > > > > My 14 yo son is obsessed with being on the computer/internet, playing his hand held Nintendo DSI, and reading compilation books of newspaper funnies like Foxtrot, Pearls before Swine, and Calvin and Hobbes. If we go out, he must take either the DSI or the books and bury his head in them. He gets mad when anyone tries to engage him in conversation, because it pulls him away from what he is doing momentarily. > > > > When kids or teachers from school recognize him and say " hi " , he does not seem to recognize them out of context. I think this is partially because he is always in his own head all the time. > > > > I have posted before about being tired of experimenting on him, and broke as well. We will see his regular pediatrician for a well check before school starts. Is there any chance he could test for some of the bacteria associated with PANDAS? I've seen on talk shows that this syndrome happens to kids off the spectrum as well, so I'm hoping I won't be seen as the desperate mother in denial, grasping at straws. > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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