autistic childern

I was Just wondering if anyone else has an autistic child? My oldest son Freedom was diagnosed with autism at the age of 4 (now 7). I never felt the need to grieve over having a "special needs" child though I do get misty eyed when looking at all those Autism cites. All that info can be so overwelming.

He has his good days and some really bad ones but all in all he's a gift.
His favorite saying " take Ocean(little bro) to the 2nd hand store and granny can't buy him!"

We have him on Omega 3, multi vits and chamomile drops but if you have any other suggestions, I'm always listening.

 

My brother has Aspherger's Syndrome. It's a mild form of autisim. He's 20 now.

My parents have him on pharmies. I don't know all of them. They work with the voices I know (he's skizophrenic also) but they make him drowsy...

How do the natural remedies work? I may pass the info on to my parents.

 

the fact that you still say that your son is a gift even though he is a special needs child is AMAZING and I thank you for that! I think autistic kids are very similar to "normal" kids. i hate the word "normal" because who determines what is "normal?" They just need to be taught and communicated to in a different way. Is your son high or low functioning? I work with the autistic and go to school for special ed. I can help you if you wouldn't mind saying if he's high or low functioning. (sorry if this offends you) I'm also interested in how well the natural remedies work. If you need any help you can ask me. I believe there are a few mamas on here who have children with autism.

 

My son was recently diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome too. He's 11 & I've never really seen him as "different," just... kind of high-strung and with a deep-set need for ultra organization. We're working on trying to help him deal with some frustration issues... and try to work out what's going on with his math grades right now. But he's my bestest buddy, and we love to hang out together. Different - hah! He thinks *I* am the one with strange issues! (I'm not exactly the most organized of people, and he thinks my scatter-brainedness must be a sickness )

He & I are going to try the gluten-free diet starting next Wednesday. I've heard some people say it helps, and others say it doesn't... but it can't hurt to try, so we're going for it.
love,
mom

 

I've heard they are most diet sensitive. So going gluten free, soy free, dairy free, wheat free, corn free, dye free, preservative free for up to three months, seeing if his attitude/anger/outbursts change at all. And then adding back in the culprits one at a time (allowing two weeks between exposures, more for dairy) to see which are causing problems, will give you a good idea of how to treat him.

 

my oldest is probably autistic as well as myself, though I have not sought a diagnosis (I had various mis-diagnoses as a child, hyperactive, etc). For us, diet is key in tempering the sensory issues that often lead to an uncontrollable rage and big scary fits. As long as we eat no gluten, we function like "normal" people. Changing the diet did not change who we are, or cure anything, it simply helps us function properly and get along with people. I have no problem saying we are not normal, because we aren't. But I do have issues with doctors and other people who think autism is something terribly wrong that needs to be cured. I remember taking a child development course in college, and thinking every single day, "that's not what it was like for me as a kid"

 

going cold turkey on gluten often causes a withdrawal reaction that is worse than the problems from eating it in the first place. THis is exactly why, when I eliminated it before, I thought it was not a problem, I was still having issues, worse issues, when I wasn't eating it. I found this website to be most helpful http://www.gfcfdiet.com/ (I have many more links saved, if anyone wants them)

 

I have Asperger's syndrome and was totally misdiagnosed as a kid, went through a lot of bad stuff as a result,let's not talk about it. Anyway my son who is 3 shows some definate signs of being somewhere on the spectrum,but we haven't done a diagnosis either. He has good days and off days, he's quirky but brilliant and sweet. Everybody is a gift, just keeping loving who he is. besides normal people are boring

 

what does autistic mean?

 

Autism is " a physical disorder of the brain that causes a lifelong developmental disability."
An extreme case would be like "Rain man".
Freedom is high functioning.

 

I also have aspergers, I can tell you all kinds of ways it's shows in me, but all I can think of off the top of my head is how insanely painful being in a room near dishes being washed really is. My nerves feel like they are on top of my skin, as best as I can explain.

Eye contact, sucks. Can't do it, I try and make it worse cause I look away so fast.

I deal with it, I've improved a lot. I think the best thing is to just jump in like nothing's wrong. Yeah, I'm strange and wobbly and don't quite "get it" but at least I'm trying. I don't care how weird I seem, I wouldn't be able to tell anyways.

I know myself well enough to not judge others since I've been there/am there. I don't enjoy it, but I don't see it as something to overcome either, but something to learn from and to better myself.

 

It's gotta be somewhat easier for kids who have aspergers now. I was a kid before there was a diagnosis and was basically seen as maybe a psychiatric case,or as a neurological oddity, lots of drs,lots of tests,lots of different quackery. I was completely ostracised and teased in school and without that diagnosis to explain my differentness many school officials and teachers had the opinion that I was "weird" and if I tried harder to fit in then I wouldn't be getting the crap beaten out of me,etc. I ended up getting put in an adolescent psych ward for a while (where most of the other kids were just drug users and one was a lesbian,these were their "illnesses") I only found out it was Asperger's this year, I was so amazed reading about it and finding out all these things are part of it. Like how I can have an IQ of 160 but couldn't ride a 2 wheeled bike until I was 10 years old. still can't drive. can't swim, no coordination. I think my autistic stuff was what led me to enjoy the psychedelics so much, and I think alot of people who were in the hippie scene and the Grateful Dead scene probably just don't know it but are on the spectrum.

 

my 9 yr old step son is autistic. he lives with us full time. I dont like the term "normal" either, and I have never encountered any "normal" people. Those who seem normal are just really good at presenting a facade.... sorry about that tirade!

We don't have any neurotypical ( who don't have a neurological disorder) people in my family, and that's fine with me. My kids tell me I'm weird all the time, and I say "thank you!"
DS is functioning at about a 4 year old developmental age to 6 yr old, depending on what area is being considered. He is a very sweet boy most of the time. He gets frustrated a lot lately when he cant have what he wants.
he is on a med for seizures, and a med for adhd.
We want him to eat a better diet of natural foods, but he will just go without eating at all until he can get the processed foods he wants. He's probably seriously lacking in vitamins and minerals. His diet is the main issue we deal with, and potty training. We have to bribe him to get him to do a lot of things, like withholding what he wants- like his fav. book or movie to get him to work on counting or ABC's.
He is a blessing in our lives, as are the other 2 kids.

 

when we started cutting out the wheat and sugar from our diet, I noticed that my kids would actually start eating more different foods, healthier foods! I was so afraid they'd let themselves starve, since all they'd eat was wheat and sugar, but get rid of that addiction, and they are now open to eating all kinds of healthy foods instead! It seriously changed our lives when we changed our diet. I can't describe to you the difference it made, for all of us.

 

We do need to try gfcf again. It was about 5 years ago before he lived with us when we tried it before, and we couldnt get everyone on board with it.

He seems to have a lot of sensitivity to the texture of the foods too, and I'm not sure how to deal with that.
Then, there's his grandma, who he stays with about once a week, who will give him anything he wants, the school staff, who dont seem to understand what contains wheat and dairy, and his mom, who will let him eat whatever he wants. He has learned that even if we wont give him what he wants at our house, if he waits long enough, someone else will give it to him.

 

For me even trying to cut out any food groups is pretty difficult. Husband is not into it,the food stamps don't go far enough as it is,sure can't make everybody different dinners,and because I can't drive I usually only have access to the nearby corporate grocery,no health food places nearby. sucks big time

 

my boyfriend's younger brother is mildly autistic, has severe ADHD, Tourette's,(he doesn't cuss because of the meds), severe speech impediment(he screams everything in a loud, high-pitched, excited voice), and an OCD. autistic kids are great. studies have shown, and my experience with this child has confirmed, that autistic children aren't materialistic, are more concerned with true personality than looks and money, and are very generous,forgiving people. he runs to me and hugs me, screaming "Sawa!" (his pronunciation of Sara) everytime he sees me. i know other kids are more severe and don't even talk, but i'v heard most have special, amazing abilties and strange obsesssions, like perpetual calenders or puzzles. i just hope we can one day really get in there and learn all we don't know about this condition.

 

I did not force a gf diet on anyone. I let my children choose for themselves what to eat. But, I don't allow any gluten containing foods in my kitchen, and I point out to them to pay attention to how eating certain things makes them feel. They know that cupcake at friend's party is going to cause a huge problem and choose for themselves not to eat it. Just a few slip-ups have only reinforced why we don't eat that stuff in the first place.
I do not make different dinners for everyone. DH is along for the ride. He can either eat what I make for everyone, or he can go down the street and eat crap from McDonald's but he can't bring that stuff in our home. It's not that much more expensive, because I have to cook everything from scratch. Pre-made food costs much more than ingredients do, even if those are gf ingredients. ANd pre-made food almost always has gluten in it. Even cottage cheese contains gluten! Shopping does take a lot more time now, though, as I have to read every label unless it's marked "gluten-free" on the front. *And* I do most of my shopping at Food Lion. I've found that certain foods that do not contain any gluten, cause us a reaction from cross-contamination (like old el paso taco shells and quaker oats). But mostly we eat regular grocery store food. I do purchase flour and breakfast cereal (a rare treat) from either the health food store or online, but that's about it.

 

My oldest has Tourette's, Severe ADHD and minimal brain damage, probably from a combination of a difficult birth, vaccines and a suspected bout with Gullian Barr as a toddler.

We did go gluten free, for nearly 6 years. It helped her digestive functioning, but not behavior. Every child is different. She cannot even look at a rice cake, to this day, as that was what we often used as "bread" as gluten free bread was not only hard to come by in the early 90s, but was too expensive for us, (with 2 and then 3 kids and one income) and I did bake, but it was never too great. So, we used rice cakes and rice crackers (a really good brand that no longer exists, I loved them)

She has Tourette's, but, as most people with TS, she doesn't shout our obscenities. That is a misconception of Tourette's. MOST people with TS don't swear, unless they want to. Uncontrollable body movements AND noises is the defining factor. That and a guarenteed ADHD component. My dh also has TS, ADHD, and most likely a very mild form of Ausperger's. HE, for the life of him, cannot "read" people. He has no idea when people are angry, or when they are tired of what he is going on about. He can constantly bring a converstaion back to the same subject (something only he is interested in) even though it has naturally moved on to other things. To the point where people will actually be uncomofortable, and he has NO IDEA why. He also gets mad when I say that people have Ausperger's, he seems pretty sensitive about it.

Unfortunately, he did not get treatment as a child. (His mother still denies he has Tourette's, prefering to say "No one in MY family had that. And something like that has to be someone's fault." How do you even discuss things with that?) So, instead he self treats, with tobacco and alcohol. IF he had gotten treatment as a child, or even as an adult, I am guessing he wouldn't need to self medicate so much. It's sad, really, but, most people who grew up in the past didn't have access to good treatment.

My youngest has Sensory Integration Disorder, and we are NOT waiting to treat it. She just had an evaluation, and we are going to get right on it, and do everything we can, so she can have a happy, selfaware life, and, hopefully, not have to resort to self medication.

Most of these conditions in our family are considered "On the Autism Spectrum" but I don't think they really are. I used to work with Autistic children, when it was really the Classic diagnosis. The Therapist who will be working with our youngest said they are trying to get SND, Tourette's and even Ausperger's off the "Spectrum" as the Spectrum has grown so large, nearly every neurological quirk can fit into it. In the meantime, kids with really serious communication and expression disorders, like Classic Autism, are not getting the help, as it has been too broad an umbrella.

My hope is that the DSM next edition will do more to redifine these conditions, taking into account the neurological, physical and psychological aspects of these conditions.

 

Maggie, I agree with you about the fact that the autism spectrum is way too large. I doubt the DSM will change until we have a better understanding of what autism is. It seems to me that anything related to a communication or senory problem will label the child as autistic. We see the same thing with mental retardation. These labels are way too generalized, which hurts the child because they are deprived of the appropriate educational programs and medical procedures. It is great that you are fighting for your daughter because not many parents know what to do and where to go.