Changes

The very first change made was Elisha's diet. He is on a Gluten-Free, Casein-Free diet. We have read a lot of books about diets and supplements. Ryan and I decided to place Elisha on this diet because of the convincing studies done by ARI (Autism Research Institute). Data collected from more than 26,000 parents who completed the ARI questionnaire, found that 66% of the children got better/showed improvement with the GFCF Diet. We feel that if it works for Elisha, wonderful. If it doesn't work, he's eating really healthy. It has been a challenge. However, this change is probably one of the easier changes. He has been Gluten-Free, Casein-Free for 3 months now.

We also had his urine and stool tested for Candida and metals. They found Candida in his system and a high level of Lead, Nickel, Platinum, and Tungsten. So basically, when Candida is present his digestion does not work properly and therefore can not absorb nutrients properly nor can his body excrete metals as a typical, healthy person/child would.

So the first task is to deal with the Candida. We have been giving him Proboulardi which is a pro biotic that helps kill of the bad yeast. I have done some reading (Breaking the Vicious Cycle by Elaine Gottschall) about Specific Carbohydrate Diet. The idea is to consume only monosaccharides, which is already broken down for digestion, so that the intestine can heal itself. The difficulty in starting the diet is that it must be follow rigidly for it to work properly. I am not ready to start it with Elisha. Each day that passes, though, I feel a sense of guilt. If time is critical when dealing with Autism, with whatever approach one takes, I don't want to waste time.

Elisha has been on Proboulardi for a month and a half. We will probably retest him for Candida in another month and a half. If it is gone, then we will start the chelation to help his body get rid of the metals.

Since we have begun everything, we have noticed that his eye contact is almost back to normal, he responds a little better to his name and he is starting to use words again. The progress is slower than I had hoped. However, any progress is very good.

I have started to read about Applied Behavior Analysis. It is the "breakdown of all skills into small discrete tasks, taught in a highly structured and hierarchical manner." The difficulty with children with Autism is that imitation, which comes quite naturally to typical children, is not present in children with Autism. If imitation is a huge tool by which we learn, then learning does not come without a lot of work.

I would really like to start ABA with Elisha. However, the task seems so overwhelming. I feel so unqualified for this job. I definitely feel a lot pressure to do everything perfectly. This is a matter of the well-being of my child. Applied Behavior Analysis therapists cost around $250/hr which comes to $480,000/year (if the child receives 40 hrs a week of therapy, which is recommended if the child is lower functioning). Also, there are only select cities in the country that have these specialty therapists. So hiring a ABA Therapist is out of the question. This then leaves me and Ryan to apply this technique. Like I said, I feel completely unqualified for this job.

He does receive 45 minutes, once a week, of speech therapy and occupational therapy. It does help. However, it definitely is not enough for what he needs. I am thankful that at least he receives some outside help.