Not sure why but DS12 had a very difficult weekend. He was highly stressed, defiant, and argumentative. Multiple episodes of screaming both days. We're trying to figure out the problem, but nothing is obvious. A few random thoughts:
1) He has been struggling through a language arts assignment that triggers his anxieties. I've written about this sort of thing before. His LA teacher seems to understand him one day but then seems clueless and insensitive the next, not to mention unaware of his IEP accommodations.
2) We've decided to take him completely off of prozac. That will leave him on clonazepam and abilify. The thought is we'll see how he's doing after a month off prozac and them maybe introduce a different SSRI. But today was the first day off prozac so that probably can't explain his behavior.
3) He has been bored with everything lately and unable to find pleasure in activities he used to love. I'll put some of this down to puberty, but it has been troublesome. He no longer enjoys the games he used to, don't want to go outside, and refuses to try anything new. My wife even took him shopping to a couple of stores this weekend and he didn't want anything he saw.
4) He has admitted being depressed. When asked, the depression is not of the scary sort, but still troublesome.
5) He is very strong at math and this year's topics are boring for him. We get him reduced math assignments, but he still hates doing them.
This has been a difficult time for the whole family. Luckily my wife and I are holding it together, but I feel sorry for DS14 who is mostly getting ignored through the process. He is a good kid, however, and doesn't need a lot of attention. We try to make time for him when we can.
In any event, suggestions are welcome. We're exhausted.
