my son kieran

[shel]

hi everybody, my son was diagnosed severly autistic on may 1st 2001 after a long battle with my unco-operative GP. we would appreciate any help or ideas on therapy diet etc. I have never been part of a group like this before so am v.nervous! hope to hear from some of you soon:)

[Dad]

One of the first things you can try is removing all dairy from the diet. If your child has leaky gut syndrome, he will have bad reactions to casein (milk) and gluten (wheat). See www.gfcfdiet.com

Casein is easier to remove than gluten, and will tell you if you need to go 100% on the diet. It will take up to 3 weeks for the casein to clear out of the system. Try removing all milk, cheese, butter, etc including all preprocessed foods containing milk solids.

If you see obvious signs of improvement, both in behavior and cognition, then you need to put him on the Diet.

Good luck to you.

[Dave]

Hi Shel,
No need to be nervous, welcome to Autismtalk. Since our kids aren't cookie cuttered per say, I and others would probably like to hear something more about your son.

[Judith Doherty]

I agree with Dave. I have two children with autism, a boy 15 and a girl 9. They are very different, and require different treatment and therapies.

My daughter is dyspraxic, my son has very articulate speech. My daughtere has no gastro issues, my son has had a lot of serious gastro problems, and for him, modifications in diet were helpful, for my daughter, seemed to have zero impact.

Tell us more about your child. What does the Dr. mean by severely autistic? What is his actual diagnosis, (like PDD/NOS, or autism spectrum disorder) on the report you received. And what kind of behaviors does he exhibit? Does he have any speech?


I would suggest you contact your local ARC chapter and ask them about the nearest autism support center. There you will find resources and other parents to help you orient to this new world you find yourself in.

Good Luck,

Judy

Brendon's mom (15) and Caroline's mom (9)

[Shelly Beatty]

Hi- Make sure your son is getting all the services he needs and deserves. Leave no stone unturned, but take advice cautiously, weighing the effects it may have on your family. Helping your son will be a trial and error process, view it that way and keep going!! Not every form of therapy works for every child. I have tried many things and so far there has been no "cure all", some things have helped though. My son is 8 and is extremely severe, unable to communicate, untoilet trained and in a special ed classroom. Hang in there!!! Good Luck with your trek. Shelly

[Judith Doherty]

Hi Shelly,

I agree with what you have stated, there are lots of treatments, and no "one" answer.

I wanted to tell you to have faith, though, on the toileting issue. My son finally trained for #2 at age 10, and is pretty much trained for #1 except is often wet at night. I thought it would never happen when he was 8! The day he was too big for the biggest sized pullups (now they make them bigger) was so depressing. But I was so happy the day he actually used the toilet for BMs that I practically hed a parade. We still have to bring him to the toilet every night at 6PM like clockwork, tell him, "Time to poop" and (most nights, when not constipated, another problem) he does. Brendon is considered severely impacted with his autism as your son is, that's why I tell you to hold on to the hope.

My daughter, the one with PDD/NOS was later than most kids (5) to train, but advanced by the standards of a kid with autism. She never has accidents, the kids are SO different. She is the tough one, though, when it comes to behaviors, she has zero sense of safety issues.

Nice to hear form you, and welcome to the board.

Judy