A Good Many Dramatic Situations Begin with Screaming.

I am on the verge of catastrophic hearing loss. I know you think I am exaggerating, but I am not! Years of loud, electronic bass enhanced music reverberating off the walls of my tiny vehicle; decibel bursting amplifications at incredibly small concert venues; and ungodly volumes seeping out of the headphones plugged directly into my ears are nothing compared to the ear piercing, shrill war cries of my small 13-month-old child!

The screaming began around the 12-month mark. It started out of joy and as a way to test his own vocal parameters. It also began, innocently enough, with just a cute little high-pitched yelp in the bathtub, or when he was thumping up the stairs.

The stairway is his favorite place to scream. That cavernous gateway echoes like the Grand Canyon, and I must admit that it seems really fun and natural to scream in that space. The first time he screamed in the stairway was when he had triumphantly climbed to the top of that mountain. It was as if he was Sir Edmond Hillary, gallantly braving the beast of Mt. Everest, in a quest for world domination. Upon reaching the summit, he tilted his little head back and let out the most blood curdling scream that little vocal box could let out. It was funny, and we laughed.

That initial laughter may have been our undoing, because his screaming has since morphed into his primary means of communication. He screams to express happiness, sadness, anger, frustration, and fear. He screams when he is playing all by himself. I can only imagine that in his head, he is pretending that he is William Wallace, on the battlefields of Scotland, preparing to take on the British troops. I can picture him, half blue and half white, yelling “Go back to England and tell them there that Scotland's daughters and her sons are yours no more. Tell them Scotland is free,”while he bangs two toys together and screams. 

I am told that it is just a phase. That it will pass. I hope it does. I hope he learns to champion that inner Braveheart and only lets it out on special occasions, and when it is appropriate. I hope he learns to speak actual words, instead of throwing shrieking loud commands our way. I hope that he stops screaming before his mommy and daddy actually do experience catastrophic hearing loss. Although, the silence might be just what this duo needs!

The many faces of Max screaming: