FUN @ the Fun Fair!

Matthew & I attended the "Chatterbox Fun Fair" on Saturday. It was sponsored by the FCPS' Assistive Technology Services and held at a local elementary school. They had crafts, games, and an appearance by Jimbo the Clown. Matthew had a great time. He LOVED the gigantic moon bounce. Here's a video with the pics.

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Attended my 1st DAN conference & loved it!

I was in Atlanta from Thursday til Sunday at the Autism Research Institute's (ARI) Defeat Autism Now (DAN) conference. I am not crazy about that title..I think Heal would be a better word than defeat...but that's another post!

I learned so much about neurotoxins, detoxification methods, diets, our kids' GI tracts and immune systems. I met some of my on-line friends (fellow warrior moms) and saw some of my scientific/medical idols like Dr. Bock, Kartzinel, Jepson, and Wakefield (who is HOT! :)

I want to list the lectures I attended to give you an idea of what ARI/DAN is about and what treatments I am researching/implementing for Matthew. [For those that don't know: we have been doing "bio-med" with the help of our DAN Dr. Megson for 1.5 years and have seen steady improvements. I am a firm believer in the protocol and while it may not recover/"cure" every child, it will certainly heal the yeast/bacteria in their guts (allowing them to focus/learn during school/therapy) and rid their bodies of the harmful neurotoxins they received from their environment (including mercury & aluminum from vaccines). We've been chelating Matthew (with transdermal DMSA) since last summer and the toxic heavy metals continue to excrete...it takes 2-3 years.]

• Defending your child from a toxic world (Dr. Freedenfeld)


• Intro to the DAN treatment approach (Dr. Mumper)


• The child as a whole: why biomedical & behavioral interventions [ABA] are both critical to growth & recovery (Dr. Granpeesheh)


• Nourishing our children, Evolving diets for autism (Julie Matthews)


• Achieving a quality elimination diet & beneficial nutritional supplementation (Dana Laake)


• The autism-digestion-brain connection (Dr. Lipski)


• Tools & strategies to survive the diagnosis, & thrive through the recovery of an affected child (Dr. Levinson)


• Biomedical interventions from A to Zinc (Dr. O'Hara)


• Mind & Gut: the GI tract & autism (Dr. Hanaway)


• The ABCs of immunology in ASDs: improving immunity & understanding inflammation (Dr. El-Dahr)


• Metabolic system in autism (Dr. Jepson)


• The brain concerns in ASD involve more than the gut-brain connection: neurotransmitters & neuroimmune issues in autism spectrum disorders (Dr. Bradstreet)


• Chronic fatigue syndrome, autism, and introducing autism360.org (Dr. Baker)


• Clinical approaches to detoxification in autism spectrum disorders (Dr. Bock)


• The road to recovery: walking with patience, peace, & perseverance (Dr. Levinson)


• T cell regulation, inflammation, & autoimmunity: resolving a chaotic paradox in autistic enterocolitis (Dr. Wakefield)

On Saturday night, I hit the town with Janine & Rebekah...2 moms that I met on-line shortly after Matthew's diagnosis and have kept in touch with on Facebook. It was great to finally meet them in person! :)

Happy Birthday Matthew!!!

Today is Matthew's FOURTH birthday. We are having a party for him tomorrow..invited all his friends from preschool (both autism classes). Here is a video montage of my favorite Matthew pictures taken over the last year. I hope you enjoy it & Happy Spring! :)

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Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Trip to GA/John's Change of Command

Matthew & I (along with my dad) flew down to Kings Bay, GA on Wednesday for John's Change of Command ceremony/reception. We were there until Saturday and it was a big break in routine for Matthew. Yes, he had some tantrums but had his good moments as well. It was his first time flying. He did better going than coming back...the flight attendant made him turn off his DVD player (he was watching Cars) and buckle up for landing & he didn't aprreciate that!

Here is a video montage I made from the pics we took...hope you enjoy it!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com
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Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Matthew's Heavy Metals & MTHFR Mutation

Above is a picture of Matthew's Fecal Toxic Metals test results. As you can see he is high in Antimony, Nickel, and Tungsten...and pulling lots of other metals. (Mercury is always the last to come out so it is low here.) I've been getting some good advice from my autism mamas on FaceBook, but if you have any advice please comment! This test was done after his 10th round...a round is 3 days on, every 8 hours of transdermal DMSA (cream applied to his feet, back, shins, thighs, or forearms), then we take 11 days off. Most people say transdermal is ineffective and go for oral, suppository, or IV chelation. Well, in Matthew's case, the transdermal is effective and we are sticking with it. His DAN wrote "incredible pull of metals" on her note..which is great that they're coming out, but not good that they're in his little body to begin with!

His blood tests showed that Matthew has the "double defect in MTHFR" which is a genetic mutation. Per LabCorp: "two copies of the C677T mutation were identified. Results for the A1298C were negative." ...so he has 2 copies of the same mutation (C677T), which means he inherited them from both John & I. I will call my doctor next week to schedule a blood test. I read some of the risks associated with this mutation are: heart disease, blood clots, stroke, etc. Our DAN noted that Matthew will have to be on B6, B12, and folate for life (all of which he is already taking - but B6 in P5P form and follinic acid which is folate broken down). This is not good news, but at least we know he has this and can plan accordingly. (BTW, I specifically asked for this test b/c I had heard it was more common in kids with autism.)

Snow Day!

We have SNOW!!! John is home visiting this week & Matthew hasn't been at school since last Friday. He had a 4 day weekend and then school was cancelled today due to snow/ice.

We took Matthew out to play in the snow and he rode on a sled for the first time.


He LOVED it!

Quick Update & A Few Pics

Happy New Year everyone! Family update: John moved to Georgia on Sunday (he's attending school & then reporting to his new submarine); Matthew returned to autism preschool yesterday (his new line: "I can-ant go to school"); and I'm almost recovered from my hernia surgery/the holidays & have begun my [annual] new year's diet/exercise program (hopefully this year it will last!). Here are a few pics from Christmas...yes, Matthew is still cute and his blinking has stopped - yay! :)

Matthew Won A Contest!

http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/12/holiday-autism-supplement-contest-from-lee-silsby.html

Happy Holidays Everyone!

It's been almost 3 weeks since my last post. It's been hectic to say the least...John has been back & forth; Matthew has been sick, had ring worm (a yeast rash), and now has a very yeasty gut; and I had hernia repair surgery last Monday and spent most of the week in bed (mom came to care for us). I'm slowly getting better and get my stitches out tomorrow.

Good news: John will be home for Christmas and Matthew's blinking has diminished. It hurts to sit at the computer, so I'll make this short and sweet: we wish everyone a merry Christmas and a happy & healthy New Year! Hope you enjoy the video of Matthew singing Jingle Bells - he knows many of the words, and when he forgets he just improvises!

3 Weeks Later - Video Update

It's been 3 weeks since Matthew's blinking started. We've seen his pediatrician since my last post on this topic. He says it's a "tic" that *might* have been set off by the dilating eye drops and "may or may not go away". Unlike the eye doc's recommendation (to punish Matthew with saline drops), the ped said to ignore the blinking/don't bring any attention to it. So that's what I've been doing. Since Friday, it seems as if he's blinking harder with one eye than the other. I took this video tonight and emailed it to his neurologist to get her opinion...I'm sure she'll reply with "let's do an MRI!" but the answer is still "no more sedation!". I don't feel they are seizures b/c he repeats and answers questions while blinking. So tell me what you think...if you have seen a child do this who in fact has seizures, I'd like to know. I'm also looking for more info on tics and what can be done to decrease them. BTW, I received the results of his blood strep tests today and they are negative (= good, no PANDAS). We go to see the DAN doctor on the 12th.

Other news: John was home for Thanksgiving. It was just the three of us and Matthew was very happy to see his daddy again! John is in Norfolk this week but will be home next week. He'll be home every other week during December...which is good b/c I am having my hernia surgery on the 15th (mom is off for a month so she'll stay with me on the days he is away). It's a 2-4 week recovery period, and I'm not allowed to lift anything over 15 pounds for 6 weeks...that includes 40 pound Matthew!