Early Intervention Specialist The George Family

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 In many ways, Jennifer is a good mother. She keeps the apartment clean, and has been very good lately about making sure she has the right foods in the house for him and for her. She hasn’t been using, so she is better at remembering appointments and getting to her doctor appointments and our nutritionist’s clinic. Jennifer exhausts herself trying to take care of him. I know she wants to use crack again, but every time she sees Michael she thinks twice about it. I hope this is a powerful enough deterrent for her.

Michael is definitely making progress. He rolls around on the floor; plays peek-a-boo and seem very attached to Jennifer. He still cries a lot, and he’s not a cuddler. It shows in Jennifer’s eyes how hurt she is when Michael stiffens up and doesn’t cuddle into her arms. When she is not in the room he looks for her. Michael will be walking fairly soon. He’s pulling himself up but stands on tippy toes most of the time. Michael will feed himself crackers, cookies, even a slice of apple, but has difficulty holding onto a spoon. He doesn’t like soft, gooey foods. He’s small for his age and needs more nutrition than he’s getting but he is growing. He hates wearing clothes. Dressing him must be a real chore because he arches back, goes stiff, and screams.

A real worry for us at the early intervention program is Jennifer’s past drug use and her ongoing relationship with Al. Al does not participate in Michael’s care at all but he does help her out with money. If he’s over when I’m there, he just goes into another room. He hasn’t spoken with me yet. Al is still using and I wonder if Jennifer can maintain herself with him in the picture. He’s also violent, I suspect. He hasn’t hurt Michael, to my knowledge, but I’ve seen bruises on Jennifer.

Ask Dr. Susan