For the first time in Ian’s life, we went to a movie, he sat through it, although of course there was plenty of popcorn, and responded appropriately to the film. It was a sensory screening of the Hero Dogs documentary at The Science Center. I’ve heard of sensory screenings but they are usually set up for sensitive toddlers to get the most out of their first movie going experiences. They are always on the weekday mornings while Ian is in school.
This is not Ian’s first movie experience. But the first one where he wasn’t trying to escape the theater, or only sitting there until the popcorn ran out. And heaven help us if the popcorn spills. Because then it is a fight to keep him laying on the ground in the middle of it, rubbing himself on the floor and enjoying his snack.
We’ve tried quite a few times, always hopeful. The first time, we had plenty of popcorn, it didn’t spill and it was a silly movie. I think the novelty of it all allowed us a larger slot of time to stay somewhat engaged. But since then, there has never been an experience not filled with my complete anxiety ending with Ian and I, or on the off chance Mike is with us he might go, leaving the theater and trying to find something to occupy us until Lila, and whoever else might be with us, is finished.
As we walked in he said “no” only once but continued on. We sat down with our friends and he looked around and chomped on popcorn. We had his fabulous Behavior Therapist with us but she was also with us the last time that was a bit less of a disaster than usual ;) He actually sat through that one and only fought it about 69% of the time. Which led me to feel I just need to give up again for a couple years. But this one was set up for kids like him. And it was only 45 minutes so I thought I’d give it a go, fully expecting to either leave after a few struggling minutes, or possibly to not even be able to make it into the seat.
So as we sat there with the movie beginning, much louder than I expected for a sensory friendly showing, he responded by watching. And commenting. And enjoying himself! And we were there with our other SN friends and parents. Which was so lovely! And to top it off, the film was wonderfully done!
We all learned so much about these amazing dogs who are trained to rescue from all points of need. And the last dog’s story really hit home. Since our sweet do passed in 2016, I’ve been thinking if it would be helpful to Ian to have a service dog. I’ve heard it’s expensive and time consuming, the training supposedly takes a couple years. And then once you get it, you’ve got to keep up on the training of course. We also have been extremely fortunate to be traveling for a month over the summer the last 3 years. What do we do with the dog then? And then there’s the responsibility. Honestly, it’s been great to not have to worry when the front door is open for a bit. Bella had been a runner and had an issue with other dogs that was very stressful. I know it was probably more my fault than hers as I didn’t spend the time training her to get over her life on the street before we adopted her.
I just feel I’m finally at a place where I can really engage with both of my children. Half home-schooling Lila and being involved with WISH, where Ian attends. And of course really pushing academics now that he’s finally more receptive, which takes a lot of time. And this year, we’ve travelled more than ever. The Bahamas for the FMT treatment. Would we bring the dog everywhere we went? I think we’d have to for it to work. But how would it work.
And Lila has been begging for a dog for years. I’ve shared I’m not up to taking that on for now but she swears she’ll take care of it. I’ve offered her a deal that when she shows she’s responsible enough to keep her room clean for a certain amount of time, she can get one. But if we are working on getting a service dog, we probably can’t have a pet. So many considerations!
After the film, the last service dog was there to meet. We sat down next to her and pet her. Ian just kept saying “She will help you.” And that just melted my heart. It was as if he was saying, “Mom, I need this.”
So what to do. I’m joining a conference call with a company Monkey Tail Ranch at the beginning of June. And I’ll do much more serious research. We shall see.
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