Relieved.

Well, Wednesday has come and gone, and I have to say I'm one relieved Mama. This doesn't mean they didn't see some issues, but it was all done in such a positive manner. Gosh, I am so relieved. The behavioral therapist was super positive, and that for me, made all the difference in the world. Rather than approaching me after the class and telling me all the faults in my daughter, she began by talking about Abbi's wonderful personality and incredible verbal skills. For me, that was a great way to start that conversation.

They did see issues, and from the sounds of it, Abbi's day was pretty standard - for her. So this was good because it allowed them to really understand where the teacher was coming from. They heard a lot of "I'm tireds" from Abbi. This generally has nothing to do with being tired, but not wanting to do something. So they somewhat concluded that perhaps she has difficulty expressing her emotions in a positive way. Rather than saying, "I'm really enjoying playing this game, and don't want to stop." She says things like, "I'm tired," "leave me alone," and "I don't like anyone." Not super appropriate responses. So they hope to help her understand what those feelings mean, and how to appropriately deal with them.

So the fabulous thing about being in a preschool that is attached to the Catholic school board is that they came at me with so many support options. Seriously, I'm floored at the support that they can just throw at you. I mean first of all, the fact that they even have an early intervention support team, with a behavioral side is incredible. I know a lot of schools do en early intervention, generally focusing on speech issues in children. But apparently this behavioral side is quite new. So how wonderful that we even had this option available to us.

So they would like the psychologist to do a bit more one on one with her (they mainly just observed Abbi) to get a better grasp on where she is at. She will also have a more regular connection to the behavioral therapist, who will be dropping in on Abbi a few times a month, working with her throughout the class time, helping her deal with those situations when the breakdown normally occurs.

They have also referred us to a program that will help all of us. The goal is to teach the child and the parents, effective skills to deal with the behaviors. From the sounds of it, it is in a classroom type setting, and I think for portions of it the children are allowed to freely play, and as situations arise that cause conflict, the leaders will step in and show the child the proper response. Which I so appreciate, because you can talk until you are blue in the face about the situation, but I think its only when the actual situation arises and you have to deal with it, when the real learning occurs. So this will be weekly for two months. They provide childcare, so that both Rob and I can attend. I am thrilled about this resource and the opportunity.

And seriously, I'm just so impressed with the Catholic School Board. I mean the resources are incredible. They had to register Abbi as a student to be able to give her all of this, so it appears to be a bit of smudging the lines, as she technically is only in preschool, but because the preschool is in one of their schools, its do-able. Rather than giving us some diagnosis (which they will not give at this point), they give us options, and referrals. I'm thoroughly impressed, and relieved. Not like this is the end of the line, and I imagine we have a long road ahead of us, but how wonderful to know that there even is a path! The best part? When the behavioral therapist said, "Remember, she is young, we are stepping in now, and this should hopefully resolve itself so that she can have a long and positive school career." Isn't that really what every parent needs to hear? So we are feeling optimistic around here, and look forward to our classes and our new learning, which starts in a few weeks.