What does dental work under anesthesia and awakening to your truth in life have in common? My son showed me last week just how much.
Last Tuesday morning at 9:15am I held Ian in my arms as the anesthesiologist put the mask over his mouth. The gas knocked him out in seconds. BAM he was OUT! The dentist then went fast to work to deep clean and fill four cavities that had been causing pain. Ian was grinding his teeth non-stop for a week. The whole procedure took 90 minutes. Ian never felt a thing because his body was drunk on medication to block out all conscious awareness.
What’s Your Drug of Choice?
How many times have you gone for your “drug” of choice (food, drink, TV, Internet, Facebook, sleep, etc) to numb out and disconnect from what’s causing you pain and suffering? Show compassion for that part of you that needs relief from the pain in that moment.
The doctor warned my husband and me that Ian’s reentry to consciousness might be uncomfortable for him. As soon as the doctor felt Ian was breathing safely on his own, he picked him up and placed him in my lap. With each breath Ian became more and more awake. He wasn’t very pleased with what that felt like. All my attempts to sooth him failed. Time and patience were required for the gas to leave his body completely.
Time to Wake Up
Once you start to wake up to your truth and what’s alive in you there’s no going around it and no going under it. It’s the time to go through it. Others may try to help, but in reality, no one else can do it for you. Only you know the way by trusting your body. It never lies. Sometimes it’s uncomfortable and awkward and feels strange, but on the other side awaits peace and love. So you move forward one step at a time.
The doctor sent us on our way when all vital signs reached a point he deemed safe. I guided Ian’s unsteady body to the car and we headed home. Within ten minutes Ian fell asleep and remained asleep for the next hour.
I woke him to go inside where he promptly fell into a deep sleep for SIX MORE HOURS! In the last hour I sat across the room watching him breath deeply and peacefully. His body was releasing and cleaning out the chemicals with every breath. His body knew exactly what to do – rest.
A Time to Rest and a Time to Play
Rest plays an essential role when you release and drop painful stories that are filled with conditional love. Rest supports the building of new neural pathways. When your mind goes through a deep exhale to release stressful, painful thoughts listen when you body asks to rest. It knows exactly how much you need. Apparently, Ian’s body needed six.
Then, at 6:15pm Ian woke up. He looked over at me with a twinkle in his eyes. He sat up, stretched, smiled and walked straight to me. My arms reached out to invite a hug and he welcomed a big one. He wanted to play and for the next hour, that we did with joy and abandon.
What a great way to wake up to the world, cleared of the chemicals, rested and ready to play.
He showed me just how important it is to listen when the body says to rest and have compassion for myself when my mind is in a state of deep letting go whether it be from toxins in my body or toxins in the form of thought.
When was the last time you listened when your body asked to rest? If you’re in a stage of transition, check in with your body and see what happens if you allow yourself the time it wants for rest. You just may wake to find all kinds of wonderfulness on the other side and feel renewed and ready for play.
For a little fun, here’s a link for a video on YouTube of a little boy who just finished some dental work David After Dentist.
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Recently, Mey Lau from Baby Sign Language approached me and asked to share information about sign language on my blog. The way I see it, Ian communicates all the time and sign language gives him an additional tool to help us understand his wants, desires and needs. It opened up a world of connection for all of us in the family we use it every day.
I want to thank Mey for offering to write this guest post about her experience with sign language and how it can help provide the bridge between you and your pre-verbal child.
Please sign
Those of us who have worked with or cared for nonverbal children can sometimes wonder if they just don’t want to talk. Do they need to talk in order to communicate? Sure, our culture puts a lot of pressure on verbal communication, for obvious reasons. Life is easier for those of us who can speak. But are we missing out on other modes of communication?
Like body language? Like facial expressions? Like sign language? More than 30 years of research and scores of testimonials support the notion that nonverbal children with autism can communicate with sign language. Children are usually happy to move about, happy to wave their arms and move their hands. If we encouraged this behavior, maybe life would be better for our children, and for us.
While sign language can be intimidating, it is important to know that one doesn’t have to learn the entire language in order to benefit from it. Many families simply take it one sign at a time. If a child is fond of a particular toy or object, then learn the sign for that! If one event is particularly stressful for a child, then learn a sign that can help lessen that stress.
Signing with your child promotes social interaction. Even if she doesn’t always make eye contact when you sign with her, at least the invitation is there. And watching a child you love sign is a joyous event. You get to experience the entire package. Not only do you learn what is going on in your child’s mind, but you get to see her beautiful body perform the communication, her face often supporting the thought. It can be cute enough to make you laugh, and it can be profound enough to make you weep. It’s communication at its best.
Sign language helps prevent us from limiting our children. If they are preverbal, it is not the end of the world. Nonverbal does not mean non-communicative. Give signing a try and see how your child responds. Just remember to take it slow, without any pressure, and to enjoy every word, spoken or not.
This article was provided by babysignlanguage.com a website featuring digital resources including a baby sign language dictionary, baby sign language flash cards, and a baby sign language wall chart 100% free.
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