E Is For Earplugs

One of the things you might not know about autistic children is that, they aren't necessarily quiet. It's a common misconception. People assume "they don't talk therefore they are quiet". Well no.
See,first of all, just because they aren't talking TO you doesn't meant they don't TALK. I have one who has serious echolalia. That means like a parrot he'll repeat the same things over and over and over.

For HOURS.

It's pretty good times.

The other boy, will moan, or scream, or kind of say random things. They both hit things and knock things and bang things. So, no, they aren't QUIET. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

It's worse for me at night. If they won't sleep, and sometimes they won't, then I can't sleep. I have to have QUIET. I have downloaded a wave machine app onto the iPhone but even that won't count through the singing of the ABCs or whatever the song is this week. Over, and over, and over and over into the wee hours of the morning.

It's been a long 8 years of having two little boys that have no regard for my need for sleep, nor anyone else's.

Then the husband had this idea.

Earplugs.

After a night of me nearly being crazy and in tears due to sleep deprivation one too many times, he came home the next day with earplugs and insisted I try them. I am usually a very "NO I WILL MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS" sort of princess but really, his logic was sound.

Can I say how brilliant earplugs are? Last night, I opened my eyes in the middle of the night and saw an 8 year old running around my room - followed by my husband who ushered him in to the bathroom silently, and I closed my eyes & went back to sleep. Soundly, like the dead my brain wasn't activated or bothered by noise, and sleep wrapped itself around me. A bit later they were back, and again I fluttered my eyes open with my mommy radar - saw all was well and my brain shut back down into blissful quiet sleep.

Sleep, we are friends again.

Tweet