Diet and Autism Continued

Welcome to AuSumness.

It isn't always easy finding the awesome in autism and that is why we made it our goal to bring you information, tips and share our experience as well as research in bite sized, easy to understand pieces.  We will be presenting information we've discovered on diet and autism.  There is quite a bit to be found on this subject.  However, some very contradictory.

Here's the outline of what we will be bringing to AuSumness over the next few months.

We're starting off with some of the basic biological components of diet and how certain foods can affect us in different ways.  We will be going a bit into detail, which is why we are breaking up the information in smaller blogs.  Of course, the gluten and caesin free diet will also be high lighted.  We'll round up the international research we've done.  I'm super curious as to how other countries and areas of the world are affected by autism and I wonder about treatment there as well.

In the second edition, we will take a more critical look at the various recommended diets for people with autism.  We will bring all of the sides of the story so that you can get the best idea of what will be the ideal diet for your autistic loved ones.

In the third installation, we'll share our links with more supportive information on diet and autism, charts to help you get started and through the process as well as recipes.

The fourth phase will be all about a well rounded, healthy way of living. So often, doctors do NOT recommend or even mention diet as a means of health improvement.  We truly are what we eat and what we eat has an amazing impact on us both physically and mentally.  There is a link between the brain and the stomach that is incredibly phenomenal.  It's almost inconceivable for one to understand.  You've heard about a gut feeling?

Join our journey on diet and it's impact on autism.  It isn't going to be easy, but the payoff could be great!  Prepare yourself by keeping an open mind.  View the information critically as well as intellectually and know that there might very well be a cure as well as preventative measures.  Then ask yourself, how dedicated you are to curing your loved ones of autism or perhaps alleviating autistic symptoms.

We'll see you next week!

Diet and Autism, Get Them To Eat Healthy

Welcome To AuSumness,

We understand how difficult it can be to continuously come up with healthy snack ideas that the kids will love.  We've got lists, charts, printables and links to supply you with ideas.  We also want to remind our readers of the importance of eating healthy.  Believe me, we get how difficult it can be encouraging your Autistic children to eat healthy food, but you CAN'T give up.  You just can't.

It's been proven that diet certainly has an effect on behaviour.  You truly can minimise some of the symptoms of Autism through diet.  Well be back with another blog speaking more scientifically and in depth on this very important subject.

Let's just jump right in to healthy, fast, kid approved snacks.

Quite possibly the easiest way to curb the tummy growls is with a tray like this one.  Freshly washed fruit and or dried fruit, vegetables like cherry tomatoes, cucumber, carrots and olives, coupled with some nuts and pretzels.  

Serve it up in smaller portions or a larger one for a party idea.  It's so easy.

This fast, easy, healthy snack idea below, has got to be the best one.  I use these canisters to store nuts and dried fruit. It's right out in the middle of our island.  It's easily accessible for all of us and it's kept stocked nice and full with a changing array of various nuts, seeds and dried fruit. I use the stash for in  lunches and school snacks.  I also allow the boys to help themselves to the contents when I'm too busy to prepare them something.  We often say, ''It's that or nothing" and it often stops the whining.  They love having control of what they eat and I don't have to worry about sugar rushes. The image below is hooked up to a great site, Nuts.com. They have tips on healthy snacking, recipes, an amazing supply of delicious snacks that will make your mouth water and much more.



  

A great way to get the veggie haters to eat their veggies is to sneak them in there.  I puree carrots, zucchini, nuts, seeds and dried fruit and add them to a plain muffin recipe with a sugar substitute or low sugar quantity.  They have no idea! I also change it up by using the batter in a donut pan because my boys love donuts.  We've got a darn good Dessert Board on Pinterest where you can find healthier types of sweet treats.  Click on the image to get there and find your family's favourite.

Go further by making the food look fun, like we did here.  We use seasonal pumpkin, raisins and sunflower seeds in these muffins and in Halloween spirit, added some crazy eye balls to help distract them from all of the healthy fruit, veg, nuts and seeds in there.  

Don't be put off by adding delicious, dark chocolate chips in your cookies, cakes, waffles and pancakes.  5 grams of dark choclate is actually really healthy for you.  Seriously!  Check out the benefits of dark chocolate right here.  Then consider other snacks with dark chocolate like dark chocolate covered nuts and my favourite, dark chocolate covered raisins.

There are several blogs dedicated to healthy, fast and easy kid favourites as well as a couple of special entries for special needs children on The Cherry On Top blog.  Check out this free printable chart with lunch and snack ideas by clicking on the preview.

This is an in depth blog for the parents out there that need help getting their children not only just to eat, but to eat healthy foods as well.  We've got two boys with Autism and they both have a lot of food issues and here we share some of our successful tips to get'em to eat.

Take a gander around nuts.com the blog and our Pinterest and you'll be set with an arsenal of goodies for the lil'uns.

Thanks so much for dropping by AuSumness. 

Happy snacking!



What NOT To Tell Parents With Autistic Children

Welcome to AuSumness.

As most readers know my husband and I have two young boys on the Autism spectrum.  Our oldest is high functioning while our youngest is not.  Our mission is to find out everything we can about Autism.  We also want to find ways to help minimise the symptoms and prepare for the future.  If you know of excellent resources, share them in the comments.

A great way to help folks with their life long journey with Autism is knowing what not to say to them.  If you're not sure, don't say anything.  It's always best.  The spectrum is huge and not all Autistic folks are the same.  Not even close.  If you know just one, you don't know them all.

Consider these suggestions.

What NOT to tell people with Autistic children:

That they are spoiling their children.

For years both my in-laws and my parents continuously accused us of spoiling our children until we received official diagnosis from a team of professionals.  What a relief it was for us.  Our own family could finally stop BLAMING us for our children’s difficult and challenging behavior.  (Our very own experience has taught us that corporal punishment increases ill behavior 10 fold.  Find out why here and read about other ways to communicate besides hitting here.)

Do NOT tell caretakers of Autistic kids that it will pass.  For one, you will sound like a complete ignoramus because we are not talking about gas here.  It will not pass.  Autism is a lifetime sentence.  There will be terrible, unbelievably challenging phases where one will want to pull hair out, slam doors and cry into the pillow and there will be less traumatic phases, but every single day is a challenge and if one thinks otherwise, then they are looking at a world through rose coloured glasses where unicorns fart rainbows and leprechauns are waiting at the other end with a pot of gold.

Do NOT tell parents of Autistic children they have been blessed.  Hello!  Logical, rational, intelligent people do not believe in being blessed.  We all know that shit happens and some get more than others.  Autism is not a blessing.  We have learned a lot through our experience and we love our children to the point of physical and mental deterioration, but if we could ditch the Autism, we wouldn’t think twice.  Why else would so many desperate souls be looking for a cure?!

I’m pretty sure when people say it’s a blessing they actually mean they feel blessed by not having kids with Autism.  Now, THAT is something I can get my head around.  

Do NOT bother with the Evil Jedi Mind Trick Glare.  For one, it doesn’t work.  You will only make things worse for yourself.  When a smart, receptive parent feels the power of a negative force, they won’t even bother to try and deal with whatever annoyance that person may be having because they only have to deal with Autism for a tiny fraction of their life while the caretakers will continue until they’ve made the grave.

Another reason this is a waste of time is many kids with Autism do not GET what the people are even doing and if it were my kids, they would probably make fun of that person, point and laugh because to them, they look funny and weird.

This goes back to the whole corporal punishment tactic and why it doesn’t work.  Many Autistic kids don’t feel guilt, shame or even have the slightest bit of responsibility for their actions.  Cause and effect is just as obscure to them as to most people’s conceptualization and understanding of Autism.

Do NOT tell folks dealing with Autism that you don’t believe in Autism.  It isn’t a religion!  It has nothing to do with faith or belief.   Autism is very real.  Autism spectrum is a “complex set of neurological disorders that severely impair social, communicative and cognitive functions” and “scientists have determined that many Autism cases are a genetically based condition” and that "pesticides and pharmaceuticals could also be a contributor."  

So what should you say to a parent whose life has been turned absolutely upside down?  Whose entire future will be dedicated to this eternal struggle?  Who will more than likely have to care for their child or children their entire life because over 90% of Autistic people are unemployed and are not capable of caring for themselves?

Nothing!  Keep the gob shut because the 5 minutes of agitated impatience and lack of compassion only makes people look like a fool.  If these are people you know and love, ask if there is anything you could do to help.  Tell them they are doing a great job and that you are there if they need you.  Be honest and say you don't understand if you don't or that you can't possibly imagine what it's like or how difficult it must be.  If it isn't constructive or helpful, don't bother saying anything.  (This goes for life in general, too. ;)

These are my musings.  It’s not a debate or open for discussion.  Just some truth laid out as I see it.  After over a decade of dealing with Autism I have been given one very important gift.  The gift of not giving a crap about what other people think about my kids and the way we are raising them.

I've got another blog entry with tips on how to host a party for special needs kids as well as tips on how to attend a party for a kid with special needs.

If you're looking for support or advice with your Autistic children, friends or family go ahead and leave a comment and we'll see what we can work out together.

Thanks for checking out AuSumess, finding the awesome in Autism.  Best of luck!

Hosting or Attending A Special Needs Party

Welcome to AuSumness.

Today, we're giving tips on hosting a special needs party.  We're asking you to ask yourself some questions as well, to make sure having a party is a good idea.  I've been to a few parties that failed pretty miserably, though I did appreciate the effort.  We'll help you make sure this is the right thing for YOU to do, help you figure out who to invite, what you should plan for, things to consider when sending invitations and considering non Autistic attendees.

I hosted another party for my son and a couple of his friends.  Jeffrey has Autism.  Not all of the guests have Autism, but they all have special needs, like Jeffrey.  Planning a party can be a daunting task for children that require a lot of attention and we are here to help.

Children with special needs already have it tough.  Not having parties for them or not allowing them to go to parties is not a great option.  It's important to learn or tolerate how to attend a social gathering.  Start with small steps, but make sure you start.

Know your guests:

Be selective with your guest list.  Make sure you know who is coming and what the children are like. I chose, low key kids that were not aggressive.  Mine are the opposite and balance is essential for a successful party.  Don't feel bad about not inviting someone who might make you or your guests feel uncomfortable.  It's YOUR party.

Some children are incredibly shy and do not do well in strange places.  Make sure you are aware of this, first.  Very often, special needs children are afraid of pets, sudden and loud noises as well as loud/harsh voices.  Consider a dog sitter or keeping them outside.  Even barking can be very scary and or stressful for your guests.

They may need help going to the toilet, redressing after the toilet and guidance with hand washing.  Often, they may need to be reminded to go to the bathroom as well.

You could always talk to the teacher to find answers to important questions.

(If you are wanting the recipe and tutorial on how to make this spider web cake, click here.)

Invitations:  Keep them plain and clear.  Often, the parents of special needs kids are special themselves.  Reading might be a problem and also consider if they speak the language that's on the invitation, if the child cannot read it for them.  Consider an invitation with an insert where the parent can fill in any special requirements, quirks or important information and send it back to you.

Contacting Parents:  This can be very difficult.  It could take a very long time to get information to and from parents.  Don't buy ahead without knowing, if at all possible.  I was planning on three children.  One said they were not coming on the day of the party and one had an extended illness and never bothered to call us to tell us that.

Consider the number of children that you wish to invite.  I only invited three, low key kids because I was on my own.  If you have more  help, then you may consider inviting more.  A ratio of 3 kids to one adult should do.  Depending on the level of experience the adult has in dealing with special needs kids.

A lot of challenged children like to play on their own.  Be ready for that.  I combat this by having stations with different activities as well as a place where we can all be together and a place where they can safely retreat.

Will your invitations include children without special needs and are they used to being around these kind of children?  There are a lot of folks out there who are inexperienced in dealing with the special needs of others.  A good explanation of what they can expect to see at the social function is highly recommended as well as what and what not to do while there.  Do they want to be there?  Think about this as well and although you may consider it a learning experience for them, if both they and the host might suffer from them being there is it worth them attending?

Over Plan:  Always, always, always have more activities planned then what there is time for.  You will thank yourself for this.  Keep the activities VERY simple or at least use activities where the level of difficulty can be adjusted.  Simple colouring pages and more difficult ones is a good example.  Many special needs children lack in motor skills.  Keep this mind when planning activities, too.

Keep it short:  Keep your party short. 1-3 hours maximum.  Working with special needs children is really tiring.  I have two and that's hard enough.  Adding a couple more to the plate is very difficult for a seasoned, former teacher and mother of two Autistic boys.

If you are not comfortable around children like this, then consider not having a party or consider having a party with family members.  It took me two years before I adjusted to being around multiple children with special needs.  I felt terrible in the beginning, but now I love it.  Don't beat yourself up if you feel this way.  Your feelings are yours, for whatever reason.  Immersing yourself in the school's environment will help a lot.  It isn't easy in the beginning, but if you keep with it, it will come.  If it doesn't, at least you tried.  I believe with all of my heart, that it takes a special someone to work with kids like this and love it and there is absolutely no shame if that person isn't you.

Prepare yourself for the reaction of others:  Many of my friends who also have children with extraordinary situations, complain about the evil looks they receive from other people who are not aware of their children's situation nor how much that parent might be doing to try to improve it.  I suggest two things.  The first is really easy.  Ignore it.  Do NOT let the insensitive cruelty of others bring you down. I actually feel sorry for them for being judgemental where they shouldn't be.  

You could try the humour card and have a few lines prepared such as:  "If you are trying the Jedi Mind Trick on my child, it's obviously not working. So, you can stop now."  or "You wanna trade jobs?!"  You could turn the tables and focus your attention and your child's on the person who is upsetting you by loudly and absurdly stating, "Look!  Yet another small mind who thinks they can alter this awkward and painful situation by their disapproving looks!!" Often, I act just as silly with them and then you get the expression of, "The nut doesn't fall far from the tree." and that seems to be more acceptable than their misinterpretation of bad behaviour due to poor parenting.  Hehehe...

These are our tips.  I hope they will help you.  I've got another blog about gift giving to Autistic people.

Here are some more links with more tips on hosting a party for kids with special needs.

http://www.metrokids.com/MetroKids/May-2012/Special-Parties-for-Special-Needs/

http://www.parentdish.co.uk/kids/party-planning-for-autistic-children/

http://www.specialneeds.com/activities/add/special-needs-and-birthday-parties

http://www.friendshipcircle.org/blog/2012/04/24/6-tips-for-planning-an-autism-friendly-birthday-party/