Discussing Autism

Since AJ has been on the Risperdal life around our house, (actually, my parent’s house) has been rather harmonious. He has been very pleasant, agreeable, fun-loving, and extremely easy going.

However, he still has his moments. Even though he is getting, on average, 11 hours of sleep per night, he is still somewhat sleepy during the day. He is not tired because the medication is making him tired; he is tired because he is on the go all day now. He is playing outside, running hard, playing hard and constantly on the go.

In fact, on Saturday after camp he came home, ate lunch, read a book with Grandma and then walked to the guest bedroom and decided to take a nap. This morning, after visiting the construction site, he started crying and complaining he was tired. He went back to Grandma’s and slept for over an hour. (more…)

We had a meeting yesterday to discuss AJ’s current BIP, or Behavior Intervention Plan. After a rough start to the year (and I am sure some of you remember my rantings and ravings about his Occupational Therapy) AJ is finally starting to make some really GOOD progress.

In the last few weeks we have seen tremendous gains not only at home, but also at school. We started him on Risperdal about two weeks ago after seeing a Psychiatrist because he was having rages that he was not remembering (and in public, nonetheless). We were a little nervous about putting him on a drug with so many side effects (drooling, tics and twitches (which can be irreversible), sleepiness, increased OCD tendencies, increased urination, and rapid weight gain because of increased appetite) because he also takes Clonidine for sleep but he seems to be doing very well and tolerating it well. (more…)

Although my son does not have traditional autism he has many of the symptoms of a child who has autism; developmental delays such as receptive and expressive communication delays, gross and fine motor delays, echolalia, sensory processing disorder, and even biomedical markers like a leaky gut and mercury toxins.

Currently, my son is on Clonidine for sleep, Risperdal for aggression and behavior, and miralax for chronic constipation. Additionally, he is taking numerous vitamins and minerals to help him with his nutrition and digestion of nutrients (because of his leaky gut). (more…)

AJ is giving me a run for my money lately…not that I am complaining. I am actually a little proud. Why? Because he is acting like a NORMAL four year old.

Here is what has me perplexed. (more…)

As much as AJ is hypersensitive to lights he loves them and can’t get enough. Well, this, I think is much more than enough for him!

I perused all of the Christmas light displays on You Tube and this one is my favorite.

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I mentioned last week that a large part of the Feingold diet is the removal of Salicylates. But what exactly are salicylates?

Salicylates are chemicals found in plants but are also found in foods, medications, and cosmetics. Salicylates, when intolerable, can cause immediate effects such as headaches, nasal congestion, flushed cheeks, rashes, stomach pain, and trouble breathing.

But, for some children, like AJ, salicylates have a different reaction. AJ reacts by getting hyper, by stimming, and making odd noises. The problem is that he just can not control it.
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AJ spent the entire day today trying to lick my shirt sleeve, trying to scratch my arms, face, and all of the couches. His eyes were glazed over the entire day, he was laughing uncontrollably and not listening, clearing his throat simply because he knew it made upset, hitting me and everyone else, kicking me, throwing things at me and the dog, screaming at me, and testing me to the limits. I just wanted to send him to time out.

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