As usual, it's been a rollercoaster ride over the last couple of weeks.
We’ve had seemingly endless triggers to deal with — new neighbours, a fridge on the shared path, bumping into neighbours repeatedly, bumping into people at daycare, construction workers at the back, kids playing in the shared driveway, cyclists, high-vis men, leaf blowers, and — a newly discovered trigger — a pool noodle in a neighbour’s car.
It’s been a lot. I’ve definitely had my moments of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Sometimes it feels like we just can’t catch a break.
But there have been moments of positivity mixed in with the challenges.
He had a groom where he did really well. I was nervous because when I dropped him off, they said his regular groomer had moved back overseas and he would have a male groomer he was less familiar with. Apparently, all was well — and it was a lovely haircut 😆
We’ve had a couple of lovely Sniffspot visits. He was so confident and having so much fun.
He used to be scared of long grass, and yet here he was — bounding through it, looking happy and carefree.
He even hopped into one of those blue pool shells with water in it. He’s always been unsure of those, despite them being at daycare — and we even have one at home.
It got me thinking about how much his confidence has improved. I wondered whether his reactivity is still all fear-based, or whether it’s now more of a habit that has been strongly reinforced. But whenever we go somewhere new, I’m reminded of how fearful he naturally is.
He’s been doing really well with the construction workers at the back house (visible from our garden) — ten days now and counting.
He still barks at them, but it’s becoming less frequent. He also did really well with all the noises associated with the new neighbours moving in.
We had a visit from a good friend, which he enjoyed. He even braved coming into the garden with the awning out — the first time it’s been used in a long time. Construction workers and the evil awning — quite the challenge!
I think the FOMO of my friend being here overrode his caution. He did stay quite close to me though.
He’s also been doing well with all the fireworks going off recently. They mostly don’t bother him — which is amazing, considering a neighbour coughing half a mile away will set him off 😆
We did have a very loud public display for Diwali at a nearby arena. It was very loud — the house even felt like it was shaking at times. He was scared then (understandably) but recovered quickly.
So despite the constant stream of triggers, the frustration, the feelings of overwhelm, and the upset — when I actually look back, there were definitely some positive moments.
Improvements in calm at home will hopefully keep building that resilience — for both of us!