Together We Can

It's evident that together, Charlie and Sunny can do so much together.  Sunny gives Charlie this confidence that grows each day.  A confidence we haven't always seen in him.  She gives him strength even though he tells me he's scared or nervous.  He doesn't tell me with his words because sometimes those feelings are hard for him to formulate from thoughts to words.  He tells me through his behaviors and body language. 

Yesterday was the dentist.  

When we go to the dentist I'm sure we look like a three ring circus- 1 mom wrangling 3 wild boys and a dog.  We're quite the site!

Up until a year ago at age 8 Charlie couldn't have his teeth cleaned at the dentist.  Well, he could, he just wouldn't.  The dentist has always been hard and scary for him.  It's a sensory nightmare; the bright lights, the weird sounds, the strong smells, the gross taste and feeling of things they put in your mouth.  Until last year, he couldn't make it through a dentist appointment without running down the hall away from the hygienist.  We couldn't get him to sit in the dental chair, let alone step foot in the room.  We tried.  Every six months we would try and try again.  

Enter Sunny.

We knew when we got Sunny that she would help Charlie through things that are difficult for him to do.  Every day things that you and I take for granted such as waking up and getting dressed in the morning, transitioning from the house to the car, going to the grocery store, walking safely in a parking lot.  Or yesterday it was going to the dentist.  

Leading up to the dentist was a lot of anxiety.  I knew Charlie was nervous about going.  He always is.  But we talk through it.  I remind him how amazing he is, that mom will be right next to him the whole time.  I remind him how nice his dentist is and that Sunny can be in the chair with him.  I told him we'd go out for lunch afterwards.  

Then it was Charlie's turn.  He marched right into the room where they'd clean his teeth.  He hesitated slightly to sit down, but he eventually did.  He asked for Sunny to lay on him while the hygienist finished prepping her materials.  Sunny didn't hesitate and did her job as we asked.  She stayed her lap command beautifully the whole time Charlie was in the chair.  

You see, for Charlie, the deep pressure of Sunny laying on him keeps him calm.  It helps his body to feel grounded and secure.  Deep pressure therapy is one of the most common ways Sunny helps Charlie every day.  

Yes, together Charlie and Sunny can conquer anything.  

Yesterday they conquered the dentist.