Someday, Pee Pee May Spare a Mama from Fighting with EI Over Service Eligibility!

http://www.wfmz.com/health/23779303/detail.html

Behavioral and Disorder. Two Words that Don’t Belong with Autism.

Mama does not like the words “behaivoral” or “disorder.”  It’s time to smack those negative associations down when referring to autism.  Smack them down!!!  lol

You would be surprised at how many people still think of autism as a behavioral disorder, a mental illness or even refer to autism using the “R” word – which Mama hates SO much, that I won’t even reproduce it in reference for you – you can figure it out, I’m sure.  I tell people this all the time, and they are always surprised – Autism is a NEUROLOGICAL condition.   Yes.

Snackie and I were having a long discussion while watching the Oscars the other night (which I thought were really good this year, but that’s for another post) and we were griping about how even the words “Autism Spectrum Disorder” have such negative connotation to them.  We need to come up with another way to talk about this!

I’m not saying autism is a walk in the park for anyone touched by it, but the way some view the words associated with the labels, the depreciating way that someone with autism is sometimes viewed – well, Mama doesn’t like that!  I’m sure other individuals with autism don’t love it either.

First, we need to throw “disorder” out.  Does this mean that any pain suffered by those with autism or their families should be discounted?  No, but we don’t say Cancer Disorder, do we.  The person who has the cancer is not defective, it’s the cancer itself that is causing the pain.

Then, even the word autism is looked at in a negative light.  Like Mama said, so many people have no idea what autism really is, and they just assume that this means a child with a behavioral problem, or that the child is that stupid “R” word.  They assume that they are intellectually “less than.”  And Mama doesn’t like that reference for anyone, regardless of whatever “label” that individual has been “crowned with” from our society.

We ended up enjoying “Spectrum Processing.”  We thought it was important for the individual with autism to be able to categorize their challenges for themselves, but by doing so in a way that wouldn’t depreciate them.

Scientist Carl thinks that we should add another word to make it an even three-letter acronym, like HBP or ESP, because it’s easier for people to reference that way.

Mama has to think more about that one.  Hmm.

Click the link below for a good site to dispel some autism myths…

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/autism/detail_autism.htm

Six New Autism Insurance Reform Bills Introduced

Kansas, Massachusetts, Missouri, Mississippi, Utah and Washington have kicked off their 2009 legislative sessions with the introduction of autism insurance reform bills, joining New Jersey, Michigan and Virginia, which currently have active bills making their way through their respective state legislatures. All nine bills are supported and endorsed by Autism Speaks, and require private insurance companies to provide coverage of medically necessary, evidence-based autism therapies, such as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Each bill has been referred to a committee and is awaiting a hearing. For more information and to take action on these bills, click the following links: Kansas — “Kate’s Law (Senate Bill 12); Massachusetts — House Bill 0067_001; Missouri — Senate Bill 167; Mississippi — House Bill 720; Utah — “Clay’s Law” Senate Bill 43; Washington — “Shayan’s Law” (House Bill 1210, Senate Bill 5203).

Us Quacks are gaining quackability!

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/video/?clipId=2973672&topVideoCatNo=75393&c=&autoStart=true&activePane=info&LaunchPageAdTag=homepage&clipFormat=flv

5-htpee your pants with nightmares!

I love a natural alternative for something that’s ailing you.  When Ro got his diagnosis at 16 months, I started researching like a Mad-Mama on crack for anything and everything that would help with some of the digestive problems that he was having – a common problem for many on the spectrum.

We found natural alternatives to prescription medicine for constipation, runny poopies, gas, yeast, thrush and everything else under the sun that your gut might be suffering from.  See my post on coconut and kombucha for two of our favorites that we still use.

After we got Ronan moving (so to speak) with that issue, I resolved to tackle the sleep deprivation that we all were suffering from – another ASD commonality. 

We tried magnesium citrate, which is supposed to calm one down, but instead, Ro bounced off the walls well into the wee hours of the morning.  We tried melatonin, and this worked at first, but then it wore off after an hour or so of sleep, and Ro was whiny and grumpy the next day. 

I got the advice to try 5-htp, an amino acid that supposedly  boosts serotonin without all of the nasty SSRI side effects.  I was too afraid to give it to Ro, but I filed it away for future possibilities anyway. 

I have been reading more about it this disgusting winter, because I have a nice little case of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) going on.  Hmm, 5-htp might help with this, AND it’s reported to help with appetite suppression and sleep, too!  Mama likey!

I went to Whole Foods yesterday and bought some.  Last night before bed, I took a small dose.   I had a nice night with the boys, and we all fell asleep peacefully.  A short time later, I was awoken by SATAN hovering over me. No, it wasn’t Ro or Lowie having a night terror, it was the actual SATAN with horns and hooves, sitting on my chest and bellowing demonic things into my face. 

After a couple of horrifying minutes of crying desperately for someone to help me, I woke up in a sweat with my heart racing.  Ok, it was just a nightmare – the most vivid and terrifying one I’ve ever had, but still, a nightmare.  Babies were okay, so I went back to sleep.

A few minutes later, I was being chased by a very angry Indian dwarf, whose one very insistent goal in life was to kick me repeatedly in the shins.  No idea what I did to him, but it was not good.

After I outran the pissed-off small person, I was bombed in Target by KGB agents in giant bug-like helicopters, got stuck in a basement with 10,000 blood-sucking “Food of the Gods” size ticks, lost Ronan and Loudon repeatedly in a maze of gray hallways, and for the grand finale, my mother’s ghost, complete with fangs and yellow eyes, crawled out of my bathtub “The Ring” style. 

Hmm, Mama missed the little section that listed nightmares as one of the brief side-effects that should improve within a week or so.  They suggest lowering the dose if you experience vivid dreams. 

  I guess Mama needs to lower the dose tonight. 

If I make it through without heart failure, I’ll let you know who tries to kill me tonight in the morning.   If it actually works to help with bitchy, Winter-hating Mamas who have to lose a few pounds, it might be worth a few nights of visits from El Diablo!!

 

Try it, if you dare!!!!

Coconut and Kombucha

If you know me, you know I NEVER shut up about these two wonder supplements.  I used these to combat thrush/yeast in Ronan and I during our nursing years (yes, years, shut up).  It was the only thing that worked. 

Now, I use them for colds, flu, stomach bugs, cuts/scrapes – anything, really!

When I win the lottery (which will be tonight, because the Mega Millions is at about a quadrillion dollar jackpot – and it’s mine) I am going to buy a Whole Foods and re-name it RO FOODS.  It will be mine, all mine! 

Other people are addicted to drugs or alcohol.  I am addicted to Whole Foods, and basically, just food in general.   

Anyway, interesting study…

http://www.naturalnews.com/025038.html

(NaturalNews) An encouraging new study shows that coconut oil can offer pneumonia patients a faster and more complete recovery. The results of the study were presented in Philadelphia at a meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians on October 29, 2008 by Gilda Sapphire Erguiza, M.D. of the Philippine Children’s Medical Center and Daniel Rauch, M.D. of the New York University Langone Medical Center.

The study analyzed the results of adding in a regimen of coconut oil for 40 children whose ages ranged from 3 months to 5 years old. All of the children had been diagnosed with community-acquired pneumonia, a lung infection obtained outside of a hospital setting. The children were all treated with the typical antibiotic ampicillin.

Half of the children were also given a dose of coconut oil based on their weight. The oil was administered for three consecutive days. Children who received doses of coconut oil recovered much faster than those who did not. On average, the children who took coconut oil had a normal respiratory rate after less than 33 hours. The other children’s rate normalized after about 48 hours. The children who received coconut oil showed reduced fevers, clear breathing and normal blood oxygenation faster than the control group.

In practice, these results can lead to a reduced hospital stay, which means lower medical expenses for patients and hospitals, as well as less exposure for the patient to a hospital environment. Coconut oil itself in an inexpensive addition to traditional antibiotics, and brings with it no known side effects.

While these findings are indeed interesting, especially to those who are seeking natural methods of healing common illnesses, they are not quite definitive. The study was done on a small scale and only to children, so certain variables have not been tested. However, the study shows a lot of promise. Pneumonia is a serious childhood illness. In developing countries, it is a leading cause of mortality in children. Coconut oil may be especially helpful for children living in these countries.

So, what is coconut oil’s secret? Researchers are still looking for that answer, but the current hypothesis points to lauric acid, an antimicrobial substance found in coconut oil. This may naturally boost the body’s immune system and the effectiveness of the antibiotics administered for treatment.

The study certainly encourages parents to consider this treatment for pneumonia, but Dr. Rauch did point out it could be dangerous to try to force a child to take the oil if they don’t want it. If the child choked on the oil, it could be aspirated in the lungs. This could cause serious problems. Of course, this can be avoided by easily mixing the oil with food

 

 

Where are the honest studies?

Were there kids on the spectrum when we were growing up?  Sure.  Were there kids with Down’s Syndrome?  Absolutely.  ADHD?  Yup.  Could you go into every school and find a classroom of children speaking in echolalia and drawing with their fingers in the air?  No.  Definite NO.

WAKE UP!  We are not paranoid nuts. It doesn’t take a Rocket Scientist or a “Political Radical” to come to this conclusion…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrIM2hwrLoc

DO something!  I know I am.

 

 

 

 

This is brilliant

Vaccination Liberation Challenge…

http://www.vaclib.org/links/jockslinks.htm#press

Dammit!  If I didn’t already know how badly I react to vaccines, I’d drink the damn thing! 

Mama needs the dough.

Ooh, I know!  Let’s get Amanda Peet to drink it – then we can donate the proceeds to autism.

Yeah, what she said!

 

http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/06/what-disease-do.html

MY SEINFELD STREAK IS BROKEN!

The boys have stopped ralphing, thank the Lord, so I was so relaxed last night.  After two weeks of worrying and seeing them suffer, they were playing together like normal.  It was fabulous!  We had to celebrate!  Pizza and wine for Mom and Dad on a Saturday night!  Yum!

The Loudon got tired early, and he wanted me to snuggle him in bed, so we got under the covers with smiles on our faces.  Ronan’s Dad tucked Ro in.  What a nice night!

About two hours later, I awoke to a sound.  It was a vaguely familiar sound, but I was half-asleep, so I was still confused.  The sound again – like a rumbling.  One of the kids? No. Thunder? No.  Neighbors?  No. 

OH!  I know! My vomit and diarrhea getting ready to explode simultaneously!  Yes!  NO!  YES.

It was a good thing that I had the puke bucket brigade (clean ones) still lying around, because I have no idea what I would have done.

And after four years, just like that, my Seinfeld no puking streak was broken. 

I can finally speak this morning without vomiting.  The kids have been great, entertaining themselves, because, of course, their Dad had to work today.  Not fun making breakfast for kids when you are about to blow chunks.

It really brought me back to the days when I last got sick, while I was pregnant with Lowie.  I would lay on the cold tile floor of my sister’s house while I was trying to cook for Ronan.  My niece would come home from school and just step over me to get a snack, “Feel any better today, Auntie?”  

NO!

The boys keep asking me today, “Feel any better yet, Mom?”

Grooooooaaaaaan…