Day 29

Today we had a good day with him and the diet with supplements. We went to a party this afternoon and he was very content to eat his food. The only thing that he really wanted was chocolate covered strawberries. But they had fresh strawberries and he was content. However, we did have to give him some more potato chips to get his mind off of the chocolate covered strawberries. He was great at the party, no meltdowns, and played great with the other kids. His behavior was excellent and he really was able to interact with others at the party. Another party that Dawn and I could enjoy without having to run after him constantly.

He is taking the supplements but we have been using OJ to help get him to take them easier. However, OJ is high in sugar and Phenols and we have to start getting him off these two. Now that we have him on the GF/CF diet, it is time to start the sugar and Phenol battle. We will keep you informed.

Today I took Ryan to the A&P (which is not a very friendly store for GF/CF products) to do a regular food shopping. It is the biggest food store that is closest to our house. We have switched to a lot of Organic products, one of those being Organic chicken. We can all now taste the difference with the chicken. There was none on the shelf so we asked the butcher. He was able to look in the back and get us a package. He asked us about the taste of the chicken and we told him that we could taste the difference, especially the kids. We also started talking about Ryan's diet since Ryan asked if this was his or Julia's chicken. As I was talking about the GF/CF diet and autism, the person behind me interrupted us and asked us if he heard us correctly that Ryan was diagnosed with Autism. He then called over what I found out to be his son and daughter-in-law and told them that this little boy was diagnosed with Autism. Which at this point Ryan said that he was not a little boy he was Ryan. This blew the couple away. They asked how old Ryan was an he responded that he was four and that he had a pirate party but not today. The asked what types of therapy was in and what medications he was taking that made such a big difference. I told them the he was granted OT, which did not start yet and that he was only on the GF/CF diet and supplements. No medicine. To say they were shocked was an understatement.

We talked some more about the Diet and they were amazed that I brought Ryan to the store and Ryan chimed in that we went to the Library first. I found out that they were visiting and that they left their son, four and a half at the house and that this was their break. Apparently their son was much farther down the spectrum then Ryan and was difficult to bring to different places. They wanted to know about what we were doing and how we found out about the diet. I told them to start with Dr. Bock's book Healing the New Childhood Epidemics, to find a DAN! doctor, and research the diet. I told them that this diet does not always work, but for us it has been a total life saver with Ryan. I shared a few stories about Ryan, how he would act, re-act, and how he would eat before we started the diet and they just nodded their head in agreement. I forgot to tell them about this blog but I hope that I gave them a good start. At the end of our 20 minute conversation (Ryan was telling me that it was time to go and getting antsy sitting in the cart) they thanked me and the mom started to cry. I wish that Dawn had been with me for she would have been such a better resource for her and a better source of comfort. I hope that I gave them what so many parents of children with Autism need: Hope.

PC