Traditional sleep advice is behavioral in nature.  You have likely heard many of the tips, and they are all good.  Some of them include….  (quoted from University of Michigan Health System)

• Make bedtime a special time. It should be a time for you to interact with your child in a way that is secure and loving, yet firm. At bedtime, spend some special time with your child. Be firm and go through a certain bedtime routine that your child is used to. At the end of that routine the lights go off and it is time to fall asleep.
• Put some thought into finding your child’s ideal bedtime. In the evening, look for the time when your child really is starting to slow down and getting physically tired. That’s the time that they should be going to sleep, so get their bedtime routine done and get them into bed before that time. If you wait beyond that time, then your child tends to get a second wind. At that point they will become more difficult to handle, and will have a harder time falling asleep.
• Keep to a regular daily routine—the same waking time, meal times, nap time and play times will help your baby to feel secure and comfortable, and help with a smooth bedtime. Babies and children like to know what to expect.
• Use a simple, regular bedtime routine. It should not last too long and should take place primarily in the room where the child will sleep. It may include a few simple, quiet activities, such as a light snack, bath, cuddling, saying goodnight, and a story or lullaby. The kinds of activities in the routine will depend on the child’s age.
• Make sure the sleep routines you use can be used anywhere, so you can help your baby get to sleep wherever you may be.
• Some babies are soothed by the sound of a vaporizer or fan running. This “white noise” not only blocks out the distraction of other sounds, it also simulates the sounds babies hear in the womb. Small, portable white noise machines with a variety of different sounds are now available.
• Make sure your kids have interesting and varied activities during the day, including physical activity and fresh air.
• Use light to your advantage. Keep lights dim in the evening as bedtime approaches. In the morning, get your child into bright light, and, if possible, take them outside. Light helps signal the brain into the right sleep-wake cycle.

These are all very good tips, though we know many families who have done all of these with little results.  We would also recommend looking into some alternative solutions as children on the autism spectrum seem to have biomedical issues contributing to sleep.  Some of these may include anemia, improper zinc levels, digestive issues that cause irritability, and other nutrient issues.  Some solutions that our families have found, in addition to testing for these deficiencies, include a couple supplements.  They include:

Calcium Magnesium close to bedtime.  Research has shown that Magnesium slows the heart rate, thus calming children.  This may also help a child, who is either physically or mentally hyper, during the day.

Melatonin helps many children fall asleep faster.  Melatonin is a hormone naturally produced in the brain; however, many of our children (and adults) need an extra boost.  1 to 3 mg is a listed safe dose in children.  Please consult with your neurologist, pediatrician or other medical professional in determining dosage.  Melatonin can often be found in a flavored, chewable at various health food stores.  (We have found that, in some children with aspergers, melatonin has been reported to cause nightmares.)

Gentle Sleep Complex is quickly becoming a favorite among many of the families we work with.  Many report that while melatonin gets their child to sleep, they still wake in the middle of the night.  Gentle Sleep Complex seems to help many of these children (and adults) stay asleep.

If you would like more information on dealing with sleep issues, safe and cost effective biomedical testing or autism consultations, please contact us at info@asdperspectives.com

Becky Cash is a Nutrition and Autism Consultant; as well as, the mother of three children at varying points on the autism spectrum.

You see, whenever we bring up Guerin to our friends, they quickly retort, “Do you know what that school costs?”  To be honest, I have somewhat of an idea, but it has not yet crossed my mind.  If you have read my book, “Healing Autism Naturally,” you know that I am a practical optimist… perhaps an oxymoron to some, but not to me.  I will bust down whatever doors it takes to get my kids where they need to be.  At this point, boarding school or Guerin seem to be our best options for high school.

Now, we are not millionaires, by any stretch and some may wonder how I can live with this absolute belief in “whatever it takes.”  Some would say we are blessed, others would say we are smart and still some would say we are just lucky.  We are all of this, but more so, we really do believe that if it is put on our hearts to do something to help our children succeed, heal or be more productive, that the means is out there.  And, likewise, to help others.  Just those means happened upon us about 9 years ago, when our then 7 month old became quite sick.  We were lucky enough to have a friend point us in the right direction, smart enough to listen and blessed abundantly.  This friend lead us in the path of nutrition, what we now know to be a biomedical approach, to deal with health issues that stumped our doctors.  I was amazed that something as basic as a really good probiotic and a couple other supplements could begin to heal her body.  Through more research, I learned I could get a rebate to pay for my own products and soon after, started a business with this company.  This propelled a career in nutrition, and now, Autism Advocacy.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where we are constantly told to be leery and say no… even when our hearts tell us to say yes.  Had I said no, it would have taken us years to possibly get on the right path to healing, we may have exhausted 10′s of thousands of dollars on testing and products that did not work, we would not have gotten in with the right medical professionals so early and our daughter would not be where she is today.  More so, Guerin would be a dream…  likely not a reality.

Today, we train Nutrition Consultants who want to work in supplementation; as well as, Autism Advocates who want to go alongside families.  Sometimes we hesitate to bring this up because we get caught by the “no” bugs, too.  Those bugs that tell us not to reach out… that we do not have time… and so on.  But, then I am struck by the fact that our daughter would not be where she is today, we would not have been empowered and Guerin… would not even be a dream had our dear friend not, unknowingly, offered us more.  If you or someone you know would like to learn more about becoming a Nutrition Consultant and helping other families in need, please contact us at info@asdperspectives.com. Our team would be honored to work with you.

Pumpkin Pie

M, E, P, S, N, Gluten Free

Ingredients:
2 cups canned pumpkin
3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1-1/2 cups water
6-1/2 T cornstarch
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ginger
pie crust*
1/4 cup brown sugar (optional)
1/4 cup coconut (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375° F. In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients but brown sugar and coconut. Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken, stirring constantly. Pour into pie crust. Bake for 30 minutes or until firm. If desired, sprinkle coconut and brown sugar on top. Bake 5 more minutes.

*To make this recipe gluten-free, use your favorite gluten-free pie crust recipe.

Key:
M=Milk-free; E=Egg-free; W=Wheat-free; P=Peanut-free; S=Soy-free; N=Nut-free

On a side note, I want to mention that The actual recipe simply called for Wheat free.  Wheat free does not always mean Gluten Free so We- At ASDPerspectives- emphasize that you need a crust that states gluten fee on the package.

Wishing you and Your Families a Blessed Thanksgiving!

Becky Cash- Owner/ Founder

watch?v=r15PuYoID94

Welcome To Holland
by
Emily Perl Kingsley
c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved.

… I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability – to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It’s like this……

When you’re going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip – to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It’s all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, “Welcome to Holland.”

“Holland?!?” you say. “What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.”

But there’s been a change in the flight plan. They’ve landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It’s just a different place. It’s slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you’ve been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around…. and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills….and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy… and they’re all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say “Yes, that’s where I was supposed to go. That’s what I had planned.”

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away… because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But… if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things … about Holland.

With Fall upon us, I thought a fun and healthy Energy Tea for those of us caring for children and adults on the Autism Spectrum would be fun!  We actually recently gave the teachers at our children’s school Energy tea, as a gift.  It is a yummy way to gain energy, while getting healthy.  the link to the product is in the recipe or can be found at www.autism.myshaklee.com.  Enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Spice Energy Tea

Ingredients:

1 stick Cinch Energy Tea Mix

6 oz. hot water

2 tbsp. unsweetened apple juice

1 tsp. orange juice

Dash of cinnamon

Directions:

Heat water and mix with one stick of Energy Tea Mix unsweetened. Add apple juice, orange juice, and cinnamon. Stir and sip.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 22 Protein: 0g Carbohydrate: 4g Fat: 0g Fiber: 0g

 

autism.myshaklee.com is owned and supported by ASDPerspectives.  Please feel free to contact us for input of supplements for your child or yourself.

INDIANA CHAPTER MEETING

How Compounding Pharmacies Can Help Your Child With Autism

Wednesday,           September 28, 2011
7:00 – 9:00 PM, with speaker(s) starting at 7:15 PM
1291 N Airport Pky
Greenwood, IN 46143
Driving             Directions

Speaker: Scott Popyk, RPh MBA FIACP

Come learn about what compounding pharmacies can do to help your child.  What is the difference between a traditional pharmacy and a compounding pharmacy?You will learn what the major differences are between compounding and traditional pharmacies, what are the two critical things to know when selecting a compounding pharmacy and how a good compounding pharmacy can improve the treatment of autism.

Read more about Scott Popyk here.

I often talk with families who tell me that they know their child is on the autism spectrum or suspect their child is; however, they do not want him/her “labeled”.  I put that in quotes because it is clearly seen as a dirty word and to some degree, I do understand why.  As parents, especially those of us in our 30′s and above, we have memories of the “special” kids who we occassionally saw in the hallway and nowhere else.  We envision those children being our children and, infact, labeled.  We do not want our children “tracked” to go nowhere.

When I work with families as an Autism Advocate, both diagnosed and undiagnosed, they leave with a variety of options.  Our goal is for them to leave knowing what path they want to follow and the ability to help their child irregardless of their choices for diagnosis.  Having said that, I would like to argue that without proper diagnosis, we cannot get our children the help they really need.  Our daughter, the first to be diagnosed with PDDnos and on the spectrum, received her formal diagnosis at 5 years old.  Up to that point, she received various therapies through first steps and private insurance.  However, at 5 years old, her needs were great and the 20 visits a year, for OT, that the insurance allowed was no longer going to be acceptable.  As her parents, we could not meet her needs.  As a school, though we had her in a private Montessori, they could not meet her needs.  The public school system said she was too smart and they could not meet her sensory needs.  And insurance, would not meet her needs.  Diagnosis became crucial.

The Americans With Disabilities Acts, along with Special Education Law and perhaps various laws in your State, protect your child, with a diagnosis from being discriminated against.  Your child is entitled to receive the best education and care.  Autism is a nuerobiomedical condition that affects the brain as just one aspect.  When we realize that autism is a medical diagnosis, not a psychological diagnosis, we then realize that our children can be helped.  However, no doctor will treat a child for cancer without a diagnosis, or for strep throat without a diagnosis.  Our children with Autism deserve the care that they need.  If you are at the point where you have exhausted the care you can get for your child without diagnosis, or you feel they could get more with diagnosis, I encourage you to look at that road.

—————————————–

At ASDPerspectives, we go alongside families to help them on the journey to healing.  Please contact us to learn more about our services.  Autism is a Journey that No Family Should Have to Walk Alone.

Both gluten and casein are protein found, respectively, in wheat and dairy.  These proteins are very long and hard for the body to digest.  Many people, and especially people on the autism spectrum, have trouble digesting these proteins… even when they are not technically allergic.  We go intot he technicalities of why this is in the book, but for the sake of simplicity, when the body cannot properly digest a food, it can cause all kinds of symptoms, which include…

• constipation or diahrea
• swollem abdomen
• lethargy
• the feeling of going crazy
• symptoms of malnutrition (the villi are blunted preventing other nutrients from absorbing).

This is just to name a few.  While many doctors will admit that their patients ont he autism spectrum often have digestive issues, western medicine has yet to actually acknowledge the direct link.  Perhaps many doctors recognize that children with autism have poor diets (a symptom that food hurts), and assume this is the reason for digestive symptoms.  Yet, they are not getting the root of the cause which is that our children do not digest properly.

Accrding to the Autism Research Institute, www.autism.com, about 60% families report noticeable differences when they remove gluten and casein fromt he diet.  Both must be removed at the same time.  If you choose to ease in, that’s okay; however, you cannot start the time clock for determining if the diet will work until the child is completely Gf/cf.  I recommend doing so for atleast 8 weeks before making a determination as to whether this works for your child.  Gluten can take 3 weeks to completely get out of the system and dairy, longer.  Therefore, a few days will not be enough to make a determination.

For more on this topic, check out www.healingautismnaturally.com  The book can also be found in paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com

We have 5 children and homeschool our oldest, whom is 11 years old.  Today we cracked open our English book and ventured on a new journey.  The opening poem, about perseverance, I believe rings true for our families, also.  And so with that, I leave you with this poem.  I KNOW the light at the end is brighter, bigger and more than we could ever imagine.

Columbus

by Joaquin Miller

 

BEHIND him lay the gray Azores,
Behind the Gates of Hercules;
Before him not the ghost of shores,
Before him only shoreless seas.

The good mate said: “Now must we pray,
For lo! the very stars are gone.
Brave Admiral, speak, what shall I say?”
“Why, say, ‘Sail on! sail on! and on!’”

“My men grow mutinous day by day;
My men grow ghastly wan and weak.”
The stout mate thought of home; a spray
Of salt wave washed his swarthy cheek.

“What shall I say, brave Admiral, say,
If we sight naught but seas at dawn?”
“Why, you shall say at break of day,
‘Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!’”

They sailed and sailed, as winds might blow,
Until at last the blanched mate said:
“Why, now not even God would know
Should I and all my men fall dead.

These very winds forget their way,
For God from these dread seas is gone.
Now speak, brave Admiral, speak and say”—
He said: “Sail on! sail on! and on!”

They sailed. They sailed. Then spake the mate:
“This mad sea shows his teeth to-night.
He curls his lip, he lies in wait,
With lifted teeth, as if to bite!

Brave Admiral, say but one good word:
What shall we do when hope is gone?”
The words leapt like a leaping sword:
“Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!”

Then, pale and worn, he kept his deck,
And peered through darkness. Ah, that night
Of all dark nights! And then a speck—
A light! A light! A light! A light!

It grew, a starlit flag unfurled!
It grew to be Time’s burst of dawn.
He gained a world; he gave that world
Its grandest lesson: “On! sail on!”

So, I received an e-mail from the principal, after they tested her last week, that she would be in 4th grade for almost all subjects and they would simply split grade her for a couple classes.  They can’t wait to have her and she can’t wait to have them.

So this is to all the parents out there, who go day to day, not seeing the milestones…. not seeing the strides… wondering if their child will ever make it in this world.  Keep doing what you are doing!  Whether your child simply learns to type, “I love you,” or learns to ride a bike or ends up solving all the political battles, one day, that hold our kids back….  you are making a very big difference for your children.

I wish each of you a wonderful start to another year full of joy, tears, blessings and prayers… little steps and giant ones and most of all, I wish you those quiet moments when you can look back and know that YOU are making a difference.