Evaluation

We finally got an appointment for The Boy up in Portland at Dornbecker Children's hospital for an evaluation. I'm not sure what all will be done, but we will be there for about 6 hours, and he will see different specialists. My Mom is coming down to take us up there, which works out since she was able to get an appointment for some tests she needs. Hers are at the same hospital one floor up and near the end of the time we expect to spend with The Boy's appointments.

My concerns are:

• He drools nearly all the time. He says that he isn't aware of it when it's happening.
• He's still behind other kids in the way he communicates, to me it seems like he's 6 months to a year behind. The kinds of things he talks about, what he is interested in, and the way he behaves with other kids is part of this.
• He runs awkwardly, can't really catch a ball, and doesn't really draw or color well.
• Sometimes, when he is stressed or tired his head shakes and he blinks his eyes more than usual.
• He over reacts, emotionally, to some things, and under reacts to others. Mostly over reacts.
• He is unaware of basic social cues, he doesn't understand about personal space, even though we have been talking to him about it for years.
• He has a very big imagination, and sometimes it seems that he forgets that he isn't Lava Girl or someone from some other movie or TV show. (Usually girls.) He doesn't understand why people might feel uncomfortable with that when dealing with him.

So, we are hoping that they can help us figure out what is happening, and if there is a medical reason for any of it. We need to know so we can help him work with whatever is happening so he can do as well as possible in school and in his social life. He's a good kid, he is fun to be with, he's usually well behaved, and he's learning to read in leaps and bounds.