Counseling Appointment

Had my counseling appointment for C today. She was dis-invited because I would be talking about all the things she has problems with and searching for some help to my frustrations. Her CASA had wanted a mental health re-evaluation and then I spilled my heart about everything that has happened as of late with the not going to time out and the dead-weight and the ignoring and the yelling and the not following directions and how she won't listen to her peers.

Which, about the not listening to peers, I have done my best to coach her to respond, "I am busy" or "I don't want to talk right now," but she has started ignoring me and my coaching in those situations. Alaska got fed up with it enough a few weeks ago and pinched C hard enough to leave a mark. I totally thought it was bug bites and when I asked C about them, Alaska was right there and she pipes up, "I pinched her because she wouldn't listen." And that's how factual it is. I have seen it happen before and I have had it happen to me and I know how frustrating it is to not get a response. We had a chat about how we can't hurt people because that doesn't make anyone feel better and we need to acknowledge others so that they don't need to feel like they have to hurt us for attention. It must not have worked all that well because the next week C had a scratch on her hand after Headstart. When I asked her about it, she said one of the kids had scratched her because she wasn't listening. No duh. It's something that has now become a serious problem and I need some extra help in getting this done.

The counselor that I go see is the one that is over the whole family and then she goes to a board of people and presents what I need help with and someone steps up and says, "I can help with that." In my particular case, though, she is going to suggest Parent Child Interactive Therapy. (PCIT). This is where we will do our thing and I will have a headset on with someone behind one of those one-way windows telling me what to say. I clarified that C does really well with one-on-one attention and that I didn't foresee us having any problems in that kind of environment and she clarified for me that somehow a situation is escalated on purpose to get her stimulated to react - creating what they call a controlled tantrum. That should be interesting and I am very curious as to how they will do that. But I'll show up in good faith and I hope they can get her frustrated enough to make it work.