Is My Child Autistic?

Is My Child Autistic?
By Sheryl L Polomka

More people are becoming aware of Autism these days and although no-one likes to think that their child may have something wrong with them, the number of children diagnosed with Autism seems to have increased over recent years. It is because of the increase in awareness of the disorder that people are learning more about the symptoms of Autism and then may relate them to their own children.

There are many symptoms of Autism and these symptoms will vary from child to child. Some symptoms are also similar to symptoms of other disorders so if your child has one or two symptoms it does not necessarily mean that they have the disorder. So even if your child is slower at some developmental milestones than other children it may not mean that they are Autistic, some children are just later at developing than others.

If you are concerned about your child’s development then you should speak to your health care provider who should be able to recommend whether further testing should be considered. There are no blood tests to test for Autism and it can only be diagnosed by several visits with a paediatrician or psychiatrist and so it is important to seek the help of these professionals rather than to self diagnose your child. The earlier that you have your child diagnosed by a professional the better chance of successful treatment for your child.

All children are different and each child will develop at their own rate so don’t compare your child with other children and immediately assume that something is wrong with your child because they haven’t reached a particular milestone that everyone else’s children seems to have reached already. You will find with children also that even though they may reach some milestones later than normal, they may excel at others and reach them much earlier than normal.

As a parent, sometimes you just ‘know’ that something isn’t right. You just know in your heart that your child has something wrong and that it is a bit more than just ‘normal late development’. If your gut instinct is telling you that there may be something wrong then by all means consult a doctor and if they don’t agree but your gut is still telling you something is wrong then get a second opinion. Don’t under estimate a mother’s instinct.

If your child is Autistic it can change your life in a big way. You will need to learn as much as you can about the disorder and you will need to change your lifestyle to suit it. Although a diagnosis may take some time, once you have that diagnosis it does bring some measure of relief as you know that there is a reason for your child’s behaviour and once you know what it is then you can take steps to treat it.

Here are some of the signs of Autism that if your child shows then they may need further evaluation.

1. No eye contact

2. None or minimal communication

3. None or minimal show of emotions

4. They do not pretend play

5. May use repetitive movements

6. Is very upset with any changes in their life or schedule

7. May be unresponsive when spoken to

8. Will have repetitive habits

9. May lose skills that they previously had

10. Experience greater sensory reactions, such as they may be sensitive to certain smells, lights or noises.

If your child shows any of these signs then you may want to seek professional help and get a diagnosis so you can start a treatment plan. Remember though that children do develop differently and some will take a little longer than others and that is completely normal, so don’t stress too much over a little delay in reaching a milestone.

Sheryl Polomka is a mother of three boys one of whom suffers from Aspergers Syndrome which is a member of the Autism Spectrum Disorder. She has now dedicated her life to helping her son deal with this disorder and live a normal life. To find out more about Autism, Aspergers Syndrome and ADHD visit her site at http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com

Or visit her blog at http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com/blog

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ADHD Symptoms – Does Your Child Have ADHD?

ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders is a disorder that seems to be on the rise in recent years. There certainly seems to be many more children diagnosed with this disorder these days than in previous years. It isn’t completely known for the reason that is has increased but could be that we have more knowledge of the disorder and are therefore able to diagnose it as opposed to many years ago or perhaps it could be related to the number of additives and preservatives that we eat and the increasing levels of pollutants in the air that we breathe.

Regardless of the cause of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder the fact is that many children are being diagnosed with it and as a parent it is important that you arm yourself with as much information about ADHD as you can.

Many of the symptoms of ADHD are typical symptoms of many children and may also be symptoms of other disorders so in many cases it can be difficult to diagnose. As a parent you may become aware or feel that your child’s behavior is just a bit beyond the normal range of these symptoms and that is when you should seek professional help.

The symptoms of ADHD include:

• A child who cannot sit still and is always restless
• A child who doesn’t listen to what his parents or teachers say
• A child who cannot concentrate for even a short period of time
• A child who is extremely fidgety
• May take risks easily without considering the consequences of their actions
• May be very talkative and will just blurt out anything he thinks regardless of whether it is appropriate or not
• May be easily distracted and will find it difficult to complete a set task

They symptoms of an adult with ADHD will include the above and may also include:

• Inconsistent performance
• Decreasing work productivity
• May show signs of hypertension and nervousness
• May find it difficult to maintain relationships
• Will seek out stimulating activities
• May suffer from bouts of depression
• May lack organisational skills

As I mentioned earlier these ADHD symptoms often relate to many people but it is to the extent of which these symptoms appear that separates a person with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder from any other person. The symptoms in an ADHD person will be quite extreme and for the parents of a child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder it can be very exhausting.

To find out more about ADHD and other child disorder visit our website at http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com

Read our article on Autism at Ezine Articles and also our article titled ‘What Are The Signs Of Aspergers Syndrome’

Starting The Diet!!!

We started the wheat free, sugar free and color free diet on Thursday but as yet I don’t think there is any difference.  Corey is also taking the supplements suggested by the naturopath.  They say it can take a while before noticing any difference though as it takes a while to flush everything out of their system.

Corey has actually had a few reasonably good days and then today he went bad again.  I really wish I could pinpoint what it is that makes him worse on some days than on others.

I have gone on this diet myself as well as putting Ben and Lachlan on it too.  I did this for two reasons, firstly to make it easier for Corey so he doesn’t have to watch us eating things that he can’t eat and secondly just to see if we feel any benefits from this diet.  Although we don’t have as obvious behavior issues like Corey, it is still possible we may be sensitive to some foods that we are eating but we may have more subtle symptoms.  So it will be very interesting to see how we all go.

Lachlan is the worst one and as he is only six he doesn’t really understand why all of a sudden he has to stop eating his favourite foods.  I’m sure he will get use to it soon enough though, Ben is being very good about it and so is Corey actually.  He will actually ask me if something is ok for him to eat and if it contains wheat or not, he really does want to get better.

Anyway, I will keep updating on our progress and hopefully my next post might bring some good news on the diet results front.

Take care
Sheryl
http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com

Visit To The Naturpath

Just got back from the naturopath.

The naturopath took a blood sample and looked at it under the microscope and put it on the TV screen, that was so good. She said his blood isn’t unhealthy but she can definitely see that there is something diet related going on. The red blood cells should be floating around individually, like 2 negative magnets that when they meet they repel each other. Corey blood cells are joining together and so aren’t moving around as freely as they should be. She said this happens when you eat foods that your body is sensitive too and therefore can’t process and so it sends out these positive things that then make the blood cells stick together.

She also saw this big orange thing that looked like a ball of fire on the screen (it was really amazing to watch) and she said that is leaky gut. She said that is a partical that has gone through the stomach lining into the blood stream. She said there was also something in the blood culture that showed that his liver isn’t processing as well as it should be.

So we are putting him on this elimination diet and she has also put him on acidophilus to fix the leaky gut (she said that leaky gut is very common in children in the Autism Spectrum Disorder category), she said to keep taking the fish oil tablets and she may increase his dosage for a little while to fix up any problems and then put him back to the normal recommended dosage. He also has to take a childrens multivitamin particularly for the B vitamins which will help the liver and also zinc to help the leaky gut. And she put him on a herbal supplement that is called Neuro Care for Kids which is to help with the behaviour and it helps calm his whole nervous system.

The elimination diet is for wheat, sugar and color additives for two weeks and then re-introduce them one at a time and see how we go with that. She also tested his blood type which is type O and she said that people with different blood types process different foods differently. The O blood type, the main things to watch out for that the body doesn’t process too well are wheat, gluten and sweetcorn. I think I’m an O blood type – not sure.

They can do an actual allergy test which costs around $250 but we thought we’ll try all this first and see how we go. I think while I’m doing the diet I might as well do all three of the kids on it (maybe even myself) and re-introduce the foods to all of them just to see if the others have any reactions also. Certainly wouldn’t hurt.

So that’s my update today, I have to do my grocery shopping soon which I’m not looking forward to since I have to buy all new types of food. It will be quite hard without sugar since most things these days tend to have sugar in them. I think I may run down the book shop and see if there are any good recipe books for wheat free and sugar free foods.

I have hope again, I know these diets are hard and I’ve failed the last time but now that I have someone helping me and someone that I have to report back to with it I think it will be better. Fingers crossed these things are going to make a difference.

Take care
Sheryl

http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com  

Back To School - Holidays Are Over!

The school holidays are over and today was the first day back at school and just as I predicted Corey refused to go to school.  I’m sure the number of days he’s missed this year must be getting close for the school to put a report in to the education department.  I’m not sure of how many days you can be absent for before that happens.

We have a new symptom or habit now that Corey has just started over the last week.  Now he wont go to sleep at night and cries because he is scared.  He has never been scared in his room at night before.  He use to share a room with Lachlan and then we moved them all into their own rooms which he was really happy with and liked having his own room.  However, Lachlan wasn’t very happy and was scared in his own room and wanted to go back to sharing with Corey.  That is the weird bit, when Corey was with Lachlan before he was fine, when he was on his own he was fine, now he’s sharing again he’s scared.  The last few nights I’ve had to lie down next to him until he has fallen asleep. 

Tonight I put a radio on in his room as he says he hears noises - they have pet rats in another room which I’m sure are the noises he hears.  So I’m hoping the radio will keep him from hearing the noises that the rats make.  It seems to have worked tonight so fingers crossed it will keep working.

Last night lying in bed I thought that maybe I should try a naturopath so today I rang a couple but couldn’t get in for a while.  I really am not thinking straight lately, someone then recommended to me the one on the corner of a particular street and as soon as they said it I couldn’t believe I didn’t think of it, it is right across the road from our house just about.  So I went over there and made an appointment for Wednesday.  They do allergy testing too which should be good, it will make it easier attempting an elimination diet if they can actually find if he is allergic to anything.

So anyway I will keep the blog updated with how the naturopath goes, I really am hoping they can help us since nothing else seems to have helped.  I really want to avoid medication if at all possible so this naturopath really is my last hope.

Thanks for reading and take care
Sheryl
http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com

Whenever It Feels Like We’re Getting Somewhere Things Take A Nose Dive For The Worse

Do you ever feel like that?  You have a couple of reasonably good days and you just start to feel like you’re getting somewhere and then things just take a nose dive for the worse again.  It’s school holidays here and I must admit the kids bedtimes have been all over the place and I think they are all a bit tired and I’m sure Coreys behavior is 10 times worse when he’s tired, as with all kids I guess.

We had a terrible, terrible day today.  Derek had to work this morning which he doesn’t usually do on Saturdays and boy was I glad he only worked half the day.  I was in tears by the time he got home, it is just so incredibly hard when things just seem to get worse and worse instead of better.

I have given up on the gluten free diet and I

I’m not sure whether I have done the wrong thing by giving up, but it was just too hard.  I was really starting to think that sugar was effecting him but today was really bad and I don’t think he had any sugar today.  I am really at a loss to know if there is anything like food causing his behavior it is just so hard to pick.

I don’t know if I already wrote about it but someone suggested to try fish oil tablets and so I went out a bought a bottle of 125 capsules and within a week the kids had eaten the lot of them.  I was giving them the recommended 2 tablets a day and they were on a high cubpoard in the kitchen (not that that stops them) and they got to them at some stage and ate them all.  Not one of them would own up to it either.

School starts in a couple of days and I know that is going to be a nightmare.  He is always worse once he’s had a break, I can almost guarantee that he wont go on Monday.  I am still working my way through the Fed Up book although I got behind with it as I lost if for a couple of weeks.  I searched the entire house and couldn’t for the life of me find it but eventually I did under my bed - I have no idea how it got there.  Anyway, that book has a list of preservatives to avoid in foods so I’m thinking I may go down that road of avoiding the preservatives listed in the book and see how we go there.  I am also going to cut down the amount of sugar.  The psychiatrist said that the diabetic diet is a really good one to be on and it is one that everyone can benefit from and talked about how a healthy diet and lifestyle can all play a role in behaviour and anxiety.

We had an appointment with Dr Callary last week which Corey wouldn’t even go to.  He went to the clinic but stayed in the waiting room he wouldn’t go into to talk to Dr Callary, so it was just a session on my own with him.  He did bring up medication but I really don’t want to go down that road if I can avoid it, although I have to admit that his behavior lately and in particular today makes me think that might be our only option.

I am trying some EFT at the moment on myself and a little on him.  I think it’s helped me a bit but I can’t see any changes with it in him as yet.  I will keep trying though, at least if it can help me then that might rub off on him a bit - you never know.

Well take care and thanks for reading
Sheryl

http://www.ourexceptionalkids.com

Far Out Brussel Sprout!

I haven’t written for a while but things aren’t any better.  I’m trying this gluten free diet but it is so hard.  Bread is the hardest thing and Corey loves his sandwiches but Gluten free bread is just awful, not to mention expensive.

We have all gone on the diet to a certain extent although not fully, there are still a few things that we have been having that have gluten.  I really must try it 100% though as something has to change here.

Coreys language is just getting worse every day, the F(%$ word is just coming out his mouth quite regularly.  The way he speaks to me, his Dad and everyone else is just disgusting.  He tells me I’m a bitch, I’m a s#*thead and much much more.  I think I am going to try really cutting back on sugar though as today he had a fair bit of sugar and we had a really bad day with him.

It was Lachlans birthday yesterday and there was cake left over and Corey just scoffed it all down this morning.  Lachlans party is on Saturday and we were putting the lollie bags together this afternoon and once again Corey scoffed down lots of lollies.  His behaviour - shocking, so maybe there is a big sugar link here.

He is getting very physical too, he almost pulled my arm out the socket yesterday and today he told me that he is going to break my arm. 

Anyway, that’s my rant, things just aren’t getting any better

It’s All Too Much - Where Do We Go From Here?

Far out, I am so tired of all this.

Today we had an appointment with Dr Callary again which went quite well.  Although, he does believe now that Corey does likely have a disorder that is neurological and not just bad behavior.  He thinks it may very well be Aspergers but is still not confident enough to actually diagnose it but says that the more he learns about Corey the more that he can see the signs of Aspergers in him.

The problem we have now is that if it is Aspergers then this is something he was born with and it’s really not his fault that he acts the way he does.  But that doesn’t make it any easier for us to deal with.  How do you deal with this?

He says - and I have to agree -  that it’s not likely that we can just try to get Corey to make the effort to change because although when we talk about it he may nod his head and agree but he really doesn’t comprehend it.  He said that it needs to be a whole family effort and we will need to learn to live with this and work with it as a family.  The hope is that if we learn to deal with it differently and change a few things, become more organised that sort of thing, then hopefully Corey will be more comfortable and will be less anxious all the time. 

Asperger children like things to be done a certain way and that is just Corey, he likes things to be done the ‘right way’ or his way and so they really need some organisation in their lives and routine.  I, lately, am just so disorganised it’s not funny which really is the worst environment for Corey to be in.  So it really does mean big changes for us and it all seems so hard.

I just don’t have the energy to deal with all this anymore.

I’m still reading the Fed Up book and will be up to the elimination diet bit soon, which I know is going to be hard to put into place too.  I really hope diet can make a difference because if it doesn’t I don’t know how I’m going to cope with this much longer.

Ok, I’ve raved quite a bit now, but I really needed to get that out

Thanks
Cya
Sheryl

Not Going To School - This Is So Frustrating

Once again Corey is not at school today.

Oh man, this is getting so tiring.  Where’s that magic want when you need it????

A couple of days ago Corey got a detention which was as a result of two kids picking on him and then kicking him and when he told them over and over to stop and they didn’t, eventually he got up and punched them both.  I must admit I have always told my kids to stand up for themselves.  However, as a result it was Corey that ended up with a detention and it was the Indonesian teacher who gave it to him.  Today they were having a big Indonesian feast for middle and upper primary and after all the struggles of trying to get him to go to school, later in the morning I finally got it out of him that was why he didn’t want to go because he doesn’t like the Indonesian teacher anymore and didn’t want to have to see her.

I know he’s feeling bad but let’s face it if someone was punching him I’m sure he’d want her to give them a detention.  I know he was acting in self defense but I guess she is the teacher and it is her job to sort it out.  Anyway, he has to face her at some stage and putting it off is just going to make him even more anxious next time he had Indonesian class.

Just when I had that glimmer of hope and thought we were getting somewhere it all falls back down again.  I’m doing this reward chart thing with them and he had done quite good for a couple of days and then last night he was behaving quite badly so he didn’t move up the rewards chart.  Oh man, all hell broke loose then when he didn’t get to move up it.  I couldn’t give in to him though or that would defeat the whole purpose of the chart, it is just so hard.  It’s like whatever we do we just cannot win, we are in a no win situation.  There goes my glimmer of hope.

I don’t like to get him too upset either as I can see how anxious he is getting and I think last night he was close to panic attack stage, he was terrible.  Having been through panic attacks and anxiety disorder myself I can see by looking at him how he is feeling and it really worries me.

Oh well, we just have to keep on going I guess and deal with each day as it comes.

That’s my rant for today, thanks for visiting.
Sheryl

PS Read our article on ODD here

Does Your Child Have Oppositional Defiant Disorder?

With Dr Callary recently diagnosing Corey with ODD I have decided to find out as much as I can about this disorder and to put the information on our blog. In fact I may include information on the blog of other disorders at some stage also.

This post is basically just about the symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder and yes Corey has all of them.

 I know all children will display some of these symptoms or maybe even all of them from time to time but it really is more than the normal ‘naughtiness’ and as a parent you just know that it is beyond the normal. Take our family for example, we have three boys who have all been brought up in the same house by the same parents and yet our oldest and youngest do not have a problem with behavior. They have the general naughtiness and yes they may be defiant and they may argue from time to time but never to an extent that we have thought they had a behavior problem. Corey on the other hand is defiant all the time, he is constantly angry, hateful, uses bad language, tells me and his father to go away and that he hates us, he throws tantrums every day and punches and kills walls etc. You just know in your heart when it is something beyond ‘normal’.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) is quite common and in children that have ODD the pattern of being uncooperative, defiant and hostile is an ongoing problem and will interfered with the general daily functions of the child.

We also know that Corey has an Anxiety disorder and a little bit of compulsive behavior. It is common for children with ODD to also have another disorder such as Anxiety disorder, ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), Aspergers Syndrome or other learning disabilities. For this reason it is important to have your child assessed professionally to have all disorders diagnosed so they can treat all of them.

The symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder may include:

• Excessive arguing with parents or other adults
• Constantly annoying or upsetting people deliberately
• Frequent temper tantrums
• Frequent refusal to obey rules and adult requests
• Not taking responsibility for their behavior and always blaming others
• May be easily annoyed and very touchy
• May talk very nastily and hatefully when they are upset
• Will seek revenge and need to have the final say
• May display frequent anger and resentment

The symptoms may be seen in any environment but are most likely to be displayed in their home environment or a place where they feel most comfortable to display their emotions.

The book Fed Up (Fully Updated) that I am currently reading talks a bit about Oppositional Defiant Disorder and how diet can really affect this and how using elimination diets or avoiding certain preservatives can make a big difference in children with ODD. I am still reading and I plan on starting some diet trials once I have finished the book, but it really does sound quite good.

Read more of this articles here

Thanks for visiting our blog
Take Care
Sheryl