Routines are very important to Jonah.
Routines keep life predictable. Routines set an expectation. Routines can help regulate emotions and decrease anxieties.
Because when Jonah’s anxiety spikes…
Watch out.
So we try to keep a consistent routine for Jonah at all times…
But life doesn’t always work out like that.
Routines get broken.
When Jonah was younger, he had a real tough time when life didn’t go as planned.
When his routines were broken, when unexpected things happened, when the toy broke or the park was closed…
…It was a guaranteed meltdown, and it would last a LONG time.
We had a real breakthrough with this probably 2 years ago.
“Oopsies” was always a term I used when dealing with minor setbacks. I made sure to have a “happy heart” when I said it to let Jonah know that “oopsies” aren’t all that “bad.”
You spilled your water?
“Oopsies!”
The Lego tower fell over?
“Oopsies!”
And with that speech pattern and meaning, Jonah learned to “generalize” the term in the most amazing way.
It was not just for inconveniences or minor setbacks, he was able to use it in situations that previously would have caused meltdowns.
If Daddy forgot to charge the tablet overnight…
“Oopsies! Daddy needs to plug it in!”
When he has to wear shoes instead of sandals because it is like zero degrees outside.
“Oopsies! We need SHOES, silly boy!”
Any time there is an unexpected change in the routine, Jonah will actually say “oopsies!”
“Oopsies” means this is a temporary problem.
“Oopsies” means we don’t need to get upset about it.
“Oopsies” means that everything will be okay, soon.
Everything is fine, and we can carry on.
#oopsies #ausome