We are going through one of the more difficult stretches we have had with Anthony. Along with his self-wetting not abating regardless of how diligent we are in having him go to the toilet in a timely manner, his oft-noted obsession with peeling and ripping things has been taken to a more destructive level: he now wants to rip tags off fabric. That fabric might be towels, or it might be clothing, and depending on how he rips the tags off--as his only concern is doing it rather than taking into consideration the status of the article afterward--we have had several items of clothing ruined in the process, some of them of reasonable worth.
I think the combination of these two problems reasonably qualifies for "at wits' end" status for us. Anthony wetting himself and whatever surface he is on can happen at any time like it did late last night when we were already very tired and past bedtime, or it can be during the period after taking him to the bathroom after a meal and before he has eaten or drunk anything else like today. Because of his limited comprehension of speech, trying to talk to him and explain what we need from him is about as effective as saying the same things to a pet, although I do try.
With regard to the tag-ripping, if he gets his hand on an object, it's too late. Amazingly, he *does* understand when we raise our voices and tell him to stop, but it doesn't matter; so strong is his desire to do it. We have to be constantly vigilant about keeping him away from closets or laundry or any place else he might find something to rip, and that is just not always feasible. Short of locking up all clothing and other fabric at all times, finding him ripping yet more items is very likely an eventuality.
Yet even with the negative aspects of these things, there is often a bit of lightheartedness. My wife asked which of us were going to grate the cheese for our homemade pizza today. My daughter jawed with me to try to get me to do it instead of her. I was quite ready to make her a deal: I would happily make the admittedly-considerable effort to grate a lot of cheese, if she would clean up the sofa cushion Anthony had wet. Surprisingly, she didn't take me up on my offer....
