Whoopsie...

So we had a busy day today... went to the waterpark and wore out the kids for a couple of hours.  When we got home it was nap time and quiet time for everybody!  The husband had to run an errand, the boys went down for naps, and the little princess was watching a movie in the playroom.  I took advantage of this rare time and figured I'd wash the grime off of me from the day at the park.  As I was in the shower, I thought "Shoot!  Put new bandaids on her fingers ASAP"  Obviously they came off from being at the waterpark all day, and she was now tired, watching a movie... prime time for pulling.  But she has been doing really good lately, maybe it's ok???
Husband gets home as I'm getting out of the shower and I hear him talking to her in a very frustrating voice.  I knew it.  I knew exactly what he was angry about.  I immediately intercepted, we can NOT be upset when she has an episode of pulling.  I grabbed her and hugged her, she was clearly upset and started crying.  I fought back the tears too, but I just hugged her and hugged her and told her that it's ok.  I told her that her brows are going to grow back and she's going to want to pull them again and again, and lots of other little girls just like her do the same exact thing.  When I looked at her brows it had appeared she really only pulled maybe 3 little spots... it wasn't that bad.  I told her that you can't even tell (they are so practically naked anyways!) and that I will fix them with a little makeup before we go to the birthday party later. We even got to put some lip gloss on :)
I think I did an ok job recovering the situation quickly.  I reminded the husband that we can't have a negative reaction in front of her when this happens.  I couldn't help but get the feeling he was upset that I didn't put the new bandaids on right away, and reminded him that we can't blame ourselves when these set-backs happen.  The bandaids are only a temporary solution anyways.  If this is something we are really going to have to deal with when she's older she will learn that all she has to do is take them off to pull if the urge is that strong.  She's already done it once! 
Anyways, a quick makeup job with some sparkly lip gloss and off to the birthday party we went without a hitch.  She had a blast at the party and I'm sure she didn't even think of it the rest of the day.

NEAT Food Test

We saw the Naturopath about a week ago and it was really positive.  Unlike the first behavior therapist we spoke to who basically said there was nothing we could do and we should just accept that she may live with this the rest of her life!  We talked about some possible food allergies and how "leaky gut syndrome" can affect neurotransmitters in the brain.  By finding out what possible allergies she has and eliminating them from her diet, we might be able to at least control or decrease her urges to pull.  So far we've done two urine tests and are waiting for more info on those.  We have started her on a probiotic called HMF Neuro and in two weeks she will take the NEAT Diet Test.

Pull Free Day 8!!!

We are celebrating our 8th day without pulling by getting some new sparkly nail polish!

The little sprouts of new eyelashes and brows are starting to poke through.  I realize they might grow back and she might pull them all out again, but for now I just want to celebrate the fact that she's kept her band-aids on and she hasn't pulled for days!  Good job little girl!

A Band-Aid is just a Band-Aid:

Well, I always knew this day would come, the day she figured out she could just take her Band-Aids off whenever she wanted to pull again.  I just didn’t think she would figure it out this soon.  But she is a smart little bugger, always has been!  Today she came downstairs after quiet time to tell me her Band-Aids “fell off” and she needed new ones.  I took a look at her face and noticed the newly bald spots in her brows.  I asked her if she took them off and she said no.  But when I asked her if she pulled her brows she was immediately ashamed and said yes.  The brows were just starting to sprout tiny new hairs and that familiar feeling of hope that maybe they would grow back and she would leave them alone this time, was immediately shattered.  I didn’t let her see my disappointment, my heartbreak for her, my sadness, my frustration.  Instead I hugged her and told her it was ok, and that I’m glad she told me the truth.  We try to be very open about it, and I tell her she can tell me any time and I will never be mad at her.  I don’t want her to feel ashamed, like she has to hide it from us.  After everything she is already feeling that is the last thing I want her to worry about, is how I am going to react.  She did ask for new Band-Aids, and at first I thought, what’s the point if she’s just going to take them off again?  But if she asked for them that's a positive thing, she is realizing that they are helping at least.  So I made a deal with her:  If she keeps the Band-Aids on all day, and doesn’t take them off, she gets a surprise.  I’m trying to focus on rewarding her behavior of keeping the Band-Aids on.  Not so much rewarding her for NOT pulling, but doing something positive to help control her behavior.  If she comes home with Band-Aids on today, I get to paint her nails as a reward.  She loves this!  If not, we try again tomorrow.  Staying positive!