I spend all winter looking forward to Spring and Summer. I thrive in the sun, the warmth and the renewal promise that Spring brings. But I'm a special needs mom and May brings with it some unexpected and unwanted challenges. And those challenges ALWAYS serve as a lesson for growth but damn, growth hurts sometimes. What could possibly make May more difficult than the rest of the … [Read more...] about May is Hard for Special Needs Families. Six Ways to Make it Easier.
Slow and Steady Wins the Race
Today I gave my son a haircut. And by normal standards, it was uneventful. And the fact that it was uneventful means by Autism standards – IT WAS AMAZING! My son is 15 years old and has always had sensory issues and nervous system challenges with haircuts. I’ve spent a huge amount of money on different tools over the years. I’ve spent a huge amount of mental energy on figuring out how to make … [Read more...] about Slow and Steady Wins the Race
Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth – SIBO. What it is and how to treat it.
This last week at the AutismOne conference in Chicago, I attended a few really informative workshops. Here is a summary of information from Dr. Logan’s presentation on Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth – aka SIBO. We are dealing with SIBO and honestly, most of you probably are too to one degree or another. It’s difficult to definitively diagnose so as with much that we have going on with … [Read more...] about Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth – SIBO. What it is and how to treat it.
What to Expect When You Attend AutismOne
When my son was first diagnosed in 2007 and I was desperately seeking information, I stumbled across a website called autismone.org I felt like I had hit gold because on this site was an amazing collection of presentation materials and some videos on all things autism. Treatments, causes, therapies, science, science, science – it was all there in one amazing place for me to explore and reference. … [Read more...] about What to Expect When You Attend AutismOne
Why Should I Change My Diet?
Every conversation I have with someone who has a health concern or question leads up to diet. I simply cannot stress enough how foundational gut health is to overall health and expression of life. If you have skin issues, auto-immune issues, mental health issues, joint issues, fatigue issues, brain fog, immune issues, don’t poop at least twice a day with normal looking stools, low tolerance to … [Read more...] about Why Should I Change My Diet?
Your Navigational Tool for Staying the Course – The ATEC
When you have a child whose growth and development progresses on its own timeline, it can be very hard to recognize growth or if things are "getting better". And "better" can be pretty subjective because as some things become resolved, it reveals another issue that requires as much if not more attention so it feels like you are always working, never resting, relaxing or even seeing … [Read more...] about Your Navigational Tool for Staying the Course – The ATEC
Introducing – Navigate Your Healing University!
As a parent of a child with autism, you are thrust into what feels like a new dimension. So many things to learn about RIGHT NOW, so many options, so many acronyms and foreign terms, so much unknown, so much to focus on but how do you figure out what the priorities are? Wouldn’t it be great if someone provided you with what you needed to know, in the time you needed to know it? And then also … [Read more...] about Introducing – Navigate Your Healing University!
Diagnosis Story
Every parent of a child with autism (or any other life-altering condition) has a diagnosis story. You would think with 1 in 36 children being diagnosed with autism in this country, that diagnosis delivery would be done with support, factual, current information, empathy and understanding. Sadly, it’s not. There was a recent thread on a facebook group where a mom had asked others what … [Read more...] about Diagnosis Story
Help – My Kid is Constipated, What Can I Do?
I get this question all of the time. It’s scary when your kid stops pooping because it can lead to pain, holding, impaction, loss of motility, reabsorption of toxins and megacolon. Once a child starts to experience pain with pooping, it doesn’t take long for them to avoid further pain by “holding”. I’ve read all sorts of papers and articles about holding and the ‘experts’ will often proclaim it … [Read more...] about Help – My Kid is Constipated, What Can I Do?
Gift List for Kids with NeuroDevelopmental Challenges
Finding toys for children with neurodevelopmental challenges can be daunting sometimes. Many or our kids have preferences and obsessions that we DON’T want to keep feeding yet we can buy all sorts of toys that they will never look twice at let alone play with appropriately. And then there are the relatives wanting to know what to give them. They don’t get it when we give them our honest answer “I … [Read more...] about Gift List for Kids with NeuroDevelopmental Challenges
Healthy and EASY Snack List
I was recently asked about recommendations for kid-friendly snacks. In particular, snacks that kids can take to school. If you’re anything like me, it’s hard to be motivated every.single.day. to cook/bake/plan/prepare/clean/shop for the other humans that live in our houses because let’s be honest, house chef is just ONE of our daily duties. If we are in low motivation mode for long, we often … [Read more...] about Healthy and EASY Snack List
Guilt Free Lemon Gummies
A great way to get some gut healing food in your child is to make gummies. These lemon gummies are super easy to make and provide a ton of nutritional goodness. Ingredients: ¾ cup Organic Lemonade ¼ cup Organic Lemon Juice 1 Tablespoon Xylitol (from Birch, not corn) *You could also use Stevia 5 Tablespoons Great Lakes Unflavored Gelatin Silicone candy mold The only silicon mold I … [Read more...] about Guilt Free Lemon Gummies