I think it's odd that Simon has this levvel of panic over a missing snack. Does Simon wash his hands a lot? Does he have rituals rather than normal ways of doing common things like closing doors and turning lights on and off? Sorry, but I just don't think this is a normal thing.

Yes, I thought about this, too, but I didn't want to be a disease monger. So many children are slapped with a trendy diagnosis that does more harm than good.

You got my vote.

He's FIVE. And some kids's circuits get flooded easily, especially when they are hungry and it's close to the end of the day. It's probably a personality trait that he will need to work on in one form or another all his life, but it doesn't necessarily rise to the level of a diagnosable disorder.

On the other hand, they might want to check his metabolism; he might have blood sugar issues and really need to eat more frequently than some other kids do.

Yes, he's five. I had a couple of them; you can plan on an excessive response to something once in a while. This kid is just not showing anything like a normal response to stress. The kid is turning purple with his whole body tensed, and regularly. He can't or won't learn how to work around a simple problem, and he can't or won't ask for help.

It sounds like it's inherited, too. Mom seems unable to teach the kid some basic coping skills or flexibility, and she sounds freaked that he ate some of the other kids' treats instead of the veggie snacks. Normal people do whatever it takes to help their kids learn to cope with daily events like this.

Of couse she wouldn't want him to eat other kids' snacks, they're for those OTHER KIDS. And isn't the end of the article about how she IS helping him learn how to cope/deal with the issue?

I got the impression she was hoping he'd SOMEHOW learn to cope. Teaching a five-year-old to find something in his backpack should not be that difficult.