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Aug. 28th, 2009 09:18 pmOn Wednesday, Guppy and Frogspawn took Alex for his eight month check up, and to mention his problems at nursery.
It wasn't their usual GP. Ten minutes later, the theory had drifted to Guppy's anxiety being projected on the child, and a vague instruction to come back in three months if he was still having problems.
They sat in the park outside the health centre, watching Alex playing on the grass. He was finding twigs and lining them up in straight lines.
"Look, Guppy." Frogspawn said, looking at him. "I know I said at first that I thought you were worrying too much. But I've watched him and I agree with you. It's not that there's necessarily anything wrong with Alex, but he's definitely different from other children. And we will work it out."
Things calm down over the next few days. Alex thrives mixed in with the older kids at nursery; Barney uses it as an opportunity to teach the two-year-olds about personal space, likes and dislikes. Suitably stimulated by the toys higher than his age range, the staff report a significant decrease in the amount of time he spends banging his head on things. They make a note of it, with a slight bit of guilt that perhaps they've been letting him get a bit bored.
On Thursday, Guppy and Frogspawn make some calls, trying to call in favours from other medical friends. But nobody in the right field seems to turn up.
"He's doing a bit better this week anyway." Guppy says, when they sit in the park with him on Friday night. "Takes the pressure off slightly while we work out what we need to do."
Alex seems more than content playing with the twigs again. He picks them up, he takes them to his pile, and lines them up next to each other. After a while another little boy, about three, comes over and looks at the twigs. Guppy braces himself for one of the twigs to get moved and Alex to get cross, but the second child just joins in.
Guppy looks around for the child's parents, in order to find who to apologise to in the event that Alex hits him. He spots two men standing nearby; one is clearly the boy's father, the other one is a man in his early twenties with a light blue shirt on. They come over to keep an eye on the boy.
"Is he yours?" Frogspawn asks them both, in order to establish whether the second man is a partner to avoid later confusion. The father nods, the man in the blue shirt shakes his head.
"No, I'm a family friend of sorts." he says. "Just come to see Billy there."
They chat and watch the two children for a while, then Billy and his father head off. The family friend lingers.
"I'm actually a child psychologist." he remarks, seemingly casually. "My name is Max. I visit kids in nurseries and schools who are having trouble." Beat. "Mostly autistic spectrum."
Guppy looks at Frogspawn, then at Max. They're obviously on the same wavelength, and the man looks reputable enough. They can always Google him later.
"Um... I don't suppose you have a business card or anything?" Frogspawn asks tentatively. Max passes one over.
"Go through the proper channels as best you can. But if you want any general advice, my number's on there." He smiles slightly, watching Alex. "If I'm not in, one of the others in my department should be able to help."
"Thanks." Guppy says. "We really appreciate it."
It wasn't their usual GP. Ten minutes later, the theory had drifted to Guppy's anxiety being projected on the child, and a vague instruction to come back in three months if he was still having problems.
They sat in the park outside the health centre, watching Alex playing on the grass. He was finding twigs and lining them up in straight lines.
"Look, Guppy." Frogspawn said, looking at him. "I know I said at first that I thought you were worrying too much. But I've watched him and I agree with you. It's not that there's necessarily anything wrong with Alex, but he's definitely different from other children. And we will work it out."
Things calm down over the next few days. Alex thrives mixed in with the older kids at nursery; Barney uses it as an opportunity to teach the two-year-olds about personal space, likes and dislikes. Suitably stimulated by the toys higher than his age range, the staff report a significant decrease in the amount of time he spends banging his head on things. They make a note of it, with a slight bit of guilt that perhaps they've been letting him get a bit bored.
On Thursday, Guppy and Frogspawn make some calls, trying to call in favours from other medical friends. But nobody in the right field seems to turn up.
"He's doing a bit better this week anyway." Guppy says, when they sit in the park with him on Friday night. "Takes the pressure off slightly while we work out what we need to do."
Alex seems more than content playing with the twigs again. He picks them up, he takes them to his pile, and lines them up next to each other. After a while another little boy, about three, comes over and looks at the twigs. Guppy braces himself for one of the twigs to get moved and Alex to get cross, but the second child just joins in.
Guppy looks around for the child's parents, in order to find who to apologise to in the event that Alex hits him. He spots two men standing nearby; one is clearly the boy's father, the other one is a man in his early twenties with a light blue shirt on. They come over to keep an eye on the boy.
"Is he yours?" Frogspawn asks them both, in order to establish whether the second man is a partner to avoid later confusion. The father nods, the man in the blue shirt shakes his head.
"No, I'm a family friend of sorts." he says. "Just come to see Billy there."
They chat and watch the two children for a while, then Billy and his father head off. The family friend lingers.
"I'm actually a child psychologist." he remarks, seemingly casually. "My name is Max. I visit kids in nurseries and schools who are having trouble." Beat. "Mostly autistic spectrum."
Guppy looks at Frogspawn, then at Max. They're obviously on the same wavelength, and the man looks reputable enough. They can always Google him later.
"Um... I don't suppose you have a business card or anything?" Frogspawn asks tentatively. Max passes one over.
"Go through the proper channels as best you can. But if you want any general advice, my number's on there." He smiles slightly, watching Alex. "If I'm not in, one of the others in my department should be able to help."
"Thanks." Guppy says. "We really appreciate it."
