Our Son’s Autism–The Best Therapy of All
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Autism can turn a person's life and their family's lives upside down. Thankfully, there are some autism therapies that can help smooth things out so that life can be more manageable.
Following are some things that have helped us, including the best autism support of all.
Our oldest son has Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism, and we have been on the road of supporting him using therapies, diet changes, and more for some 5 years now. We've put him on a gluten-free diet, a candida diet, we use only non-toxic personal care products and we drink only filtered water.
In short, we've tried a lot of things to get him healthier, and while we've seen progress, it's been a long road.
A long “are we getting anywhere yet?” road.
The start of the road was a fast and furious one. Well–actually, I take that back.
It actually seemed like more of a major road block.
Our family physician recommended an appointment with the Dept. Head of Psychology at our local children's hospital and a mental nervous drug prescription. I had already started down the “alternative medicine” path prior to the autism diagnosis, but at this point I found myself moving quickly into a brand new world.
The following months are a blur now, consisting mainly of mom being up until midnight (or later), scouring the internet for therapies that might help, reading accounts of things others had tried, wondering if what other parents had helped children —might.just.help.mine.
I do not want to insinuate that what we have done might work for your child – and thus set up for you expectations that might not become a reality. However, at the same time, I feel that not sharing the things that have helped us would be a true disservice to others who are looking for help.
So here is a brief history of our path with autism. Some successes. Some “failures”. What we have done and what we are doing now. And what I think is perhaps the best supportive technique of all.
Natural Supports for Autism
1. Occupational Therapy
We did quite a bit of OT at the beginning of our journey with autism–both in-house and in various clinics. Sensory Integration, massage, touch, and brushing were all part of what we worked on. It was time consuming to keep going to clinics, so eventually we pulled most of it in-house and did various therapies with balls, etc.
I have to say that we enjoyed it and I think our son did improve with this therapy.
One of the books that we found to be helpful that touches on Occupational Therapy is The Out-of-Sync Child.
2. Genetic testing & Nutritional Supplementation
This was overall a flop. While the testing was interesting, the supplement regimen was completely overwhelming both mentally and financially. We could not afford the expert-directed evaluations and I was unable to handle the intense trial-and-error approach to supplement management. We spent quite a bit of money upfront and quickly moved on.
Luckily, I still had all my hair :-).
Update 4/17: After trying out several different practitioners, we are going back to this and moving much more slowly. It's based on MTHFR and other genetic testing. I've seen some improvement and am thinking we'll be checking this out more.
3. Dietary Intervention
Gluten-Free and Casein-Free
There is a lot of information available in books and on the web about gluten and casein (a protein found in cow's milk) and the roles that they are thought to have in aggravating autism.
I won't go into all of this here, but suffice it to say that I think that removing these proteins from your child's diet is imperative. There is data showing that the real effects can sometimes take quite awhile to show up, though there are plenty of stories about children showing marked improvement almost instantaneously.
While I follow more of a whole foods approach than the author, the book Special Diets for Special Kids contains a wealth of information on this topic.
To see how manageable (and tasty :-)) a gluten-free and dairy-free diet can be, take a look at my Recipes page. There, you'll find healthy, whole food ideas for some of our family's favorites like:
- Chocolate Almond Chip Coconut Milk Ice Cream
- Dairy-Free Bean Fudge
- Dairy-Free Berry Mousse
- Focaccia Flax Bread
Whole Foods
This means whole grains, and few to no processed foods. Basically, no “junk.” This is crucial. It sounds overwhelming, but basically, kids with autism have broken bodies and we need to do everything we can to support them having healthier guts and overall health.
Putting “junk” food into a broken body will just continue to muck up the mechanisms and create all kinds of problems and prevent many health gains from happening.
The Candida Diet
Our son, like many persons with autism, struggles with candida overgrowth. Candida basically is a candida albicans, a fungus that is present in all people's bodies, but, when one's digestive flora is out of balance, grows out of control and starts to cause systemic issues.
I love baking and, well, my son loves to eat. For a good part of his childhood, I was baking whole grain goodies regularly, and he ate them–well, too regularly. At one point, things really got out of hand and his trunk was covered with a rash and he was lifting up his shirt in public to scratch himself.
Suspecting that the rash might be caused by candida, we took him off of all sugars, including dried fruit and fruit, and limited his grain intake. The rash cleared up within two days, following one night of worsening, which is typical when the candida is starved of its food (sugars).
We kept him on a pretty strict diet for a while, and his skin is perfectly clear now. Simply gorgeous, in fact. He now has fruit and dried fruit occasionally, and we are not limiting his starches as much. But refined flours and sugars are out of his diet almost 100%, and I suspect that that will continue for his entire life.
And while it can be tough to keep your child (or yourself) on a special diet, here are some tips to help you do just that.
4. Nutritional Balancing / Hair Analysis
For awhile, we tried this approach, but frankly, we didn't see much benefit. I know that a lot of people think that Hair Mineral Analysis is great, I don't personally know how much weight should be put on it. So many things can skew it, and the relationship between what is in one's hair and what is in one's body seems complicated to me at best.
We spent a lot of money on the evaluations and supplements with very little improvement.
5. Essential Oils
As I mentioned in my post on Natural Sleeping Tips, I have begun gradually experimenting with essential oils. One way that I have been using these with our son is when his anxiety gets out of control.
Every night my son asks me to use lavender oil to prevent bad dreams. Seems to work :). Sometimes younger brother asks for it too. (You can read Which Essential Oils Company is Best for more information on how I chose which essential oils company to go with.)
The oils really seem to help him better manage his mood swings and get the sleep that his body so greatly needs. In fact, while I put the finishing touches on this post, my son had a panic attack and asked that I would please rub some lavender oil on his feet.
Within two minutes, the panic had subsided.
6. Perhaps the Best Therapy of All – “Low and Slow”
There are, in my opinion, a number of causes of autism. My theory is basically that it is a “whole person” affliction, affecting the nervous system, brain, digestive system, and endocrine system. The more I learn about adrenal health, the more I see how it's crucial to whole wellness.
Basically, the more stressed out one is, the fewer toxins are filtered out of the body, digestion worsens and everything goes downhill from there.
So while it is my tendency to try to find new ways to help my son and to work tirelessly at them, I find that really, one of the best ways to help him is to do whatever I do–calmly.
A dear friend told me of another mother of a child with Asperger's who called being calm with her son, “Low and Slow.”
How appropriate.
Just simply loving our son as he is, speaking softly and sweetly, and having a sense of peace has an almost magical effect on him. Literally, any day that I can slow down and live at a more restful pace is a day when I can really “see” him blossoming.
It isn't easy, but it is cheap! And keeping my own self-calm truly is the most effective healing technique that we have tried (though it is likely the most difficult).
Have you had any natural supports help your child?
I have a 17 year old daughter with autism, anxiety, and ADHD. She is also a celiac with multiple other food allergies (soy, corn, dairy, gluten, tree nuts, shell fish , eggs, and sesame seeds. She has been on a GF diet since age 5, other allergies since March 18. Anxiety I is go bad she has auditory hallucination an vomiting – misses school. I am really interested in the CBD oils for her anxiety. Would like a sample of Liv brand if you have left.
Deb
Hello Deb – I do have them and hope to ongoing. I will email you. Bless you–I know it’s hard!!!!
Hi Adrienne!
I loved your article. My son is 28 and on the Spectrum. I would love to interview you for my upcoming podcast on autism and alternative therapies. I’ll leave my contact info.
Hello there! I just emailed you. Would love to be in touch :).
Hi Adrienne,
I AM passionate about helping people! There are too many people suffering and dying who don’t know about a new scientific breakthrough technology that I’ve researched extensively and would love to ask you if you’ve heard about or tried yet. Also, I believe in…”Do No Harm!” and this supplement is 100% safe and totally nontoxic at any level! Please contact me if you’d like to talk & I could tell you more about it! Thanks! : )
Hi there. Thanks for commenting and reading. I think your email is incorrect so I tried to reach out to you via email. I edited your email here so hopefully you will get this too. I am interested in hearing more possibly but won’t have time to respond likely until late Aug or later. Thanks.
Did you know that Biome Medic has 350 mg wheat germ extract in it? Because I avoid gluten, I cannot use this. I like that it can eliminate up to 74% of the glyphosate in my system, but I will not knowingly take wheat germ extract. If you click the link that says “View Nutrition Label” to read the label, you’ll see it, “PrebioSure Digestive Wheat Germ Extract 350 mg.”
Hi there. Yes, I knew that and I looked into it a great deal. I even corresponded via email and phone w/ the developer of that particular ingredient. There is a total of .077 mg gluten in each capsule and it’s non GMO organic wheat derived. I actually just finished testing our youngest’s urine and in 2 weeks his glyphosate load dropped 2/3. I hope to test my husband’s next. Our son is markedly tolerating carbs better. I’m really aware of the problems w/ gluten but I am looking into lots of topics such as why gluten is a problem—is it b/c it’s GMO? Do the benefits of a small amount (less than what would be the case with cross contamination) outweigh the negatives?
I don’t think that a celiac should necessarily take this product but I can tell you that it’s amazing. This might be of interest to you as well to see this award that they got: https://detoxproject.org/detox-certification-brings-new-transparency-to-unregulated-multi-billion-dollar-industry/
Does that help? I’m happy to answer any and all questions :).
hi adrienne i hav autistic baby 2yr and i dont know what to do i didint try anything before zis time i am just crying i am 20yrs and i hope u help me u say zat u read about kids who heald i want to help my baby too so please email me
Hi there and welcome. I’m so sorry that you are struggling. We’re here to help. I will send you and email and you can feel free to join our Healthy Living Group as well. There are parents there dealing with similar issues: https://www.facebook.com/groups/171490083677560/
God to hear positive news anytime,thank you for sharing with us.We are on a bio Med for our wonderful son.It s slow but he s improving.Thank you fo your post.Sean
I’m so glad to hear it! So you are doing bio medical treatments or you are taking the Biome Medic?
Hi Adrienne,bio medical diet and supps.Apologies not clearer.Slow but steady improvements.I ll answer questions if I can.All the best Sean
I agree that there is a relationship with gut and brain. Very possibly it can be actually heavily impacted by food allergies. Work by Dr. Nambudripad who created an allergy treatment NAET – Nambudripad Allergy Elimination Treatment, found unexpected benefits to autisitic children and some adults. Here is a youtube video of parents testifying their relief to see their children much improved from NAET. I was so touched by these people’s testimonies that I thought parents would greatly benefit from being aware of it as an option for their children. ADults with autism may also want to apply it for their benefit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWEwKTHJ9Nc
I only have allergies and am not a parent of any children with autism. But my pollen, dust and salt allergies are greatly reduced from this therapy and allergies can be a large component of brain disorders, interupting normal functionality of the body. Thus my comment is being offered to anyone who might want to explore it.
Thank you! I’m looking into NAET. Not sure what to make of it. Really you have seen great progress?
We are in the Or. Desert some 20 miles s.e. of burns or. Wonderinh
Hi there. Did your comment get cut off? What are you wondering?
Interesting article. I must say however that it seems a bit strange that you refer to your son as “broken” and in need of healing. I am married to a 50 year old man with Asperger’s and he is in no way broken. In social situations he is overwhelmed and prefers to be alone, but he is a genius and his brain is constantly in overdrive. Socially he is a little “off” and he comes off as eccentric and odd but he is not in need of healing. He is fine the way he is. Your son is too.
Autism cannot be “healed”. It is who your son is. Relax and allow him to be how he is. He will grow up to be smarter than anyone you know and will live a full life and will figure out how to calm himself and all the other things, on his own.
Hi Patty. Thanks for reading and for your kind words.
I understand your concern but are you aware that autism is a gut-brain disorder? It doesn’t mean that there aren’t blessings that come along with the condition, but it is a spectrum that ranges from perseverating and lack of understanding of social cues, etc. to kids / people who can’t function at all in society. The severe kids wipe feces on the wall and bang their heads constantly. Yes, they are blessings too but it is a disorder.
We have tried many things to help our son and this is an old article, but he has progressed a lot and we are still working on it. In a sense he is fine but he says himself that he wants to change and it pains him to see the issues that he still deals with. I haven’t shared all that we have deals with re: his situation but it has been terrible at various times, and sometimes those times have been very consistent and prevalent.
I have seen autism healed and read about it so it does happen — have you not heard of those cases?
Thanks again.
Patty,
As the mother of a child diagnosed with ASD at 3 yrs of age, I would encourage you to think outside the box here. Have you heard the saying, “If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met ONE person with autism.” This condition affects each individual differently. Your husband is high functioning. So is my 30 yr. old nephew which means he can speak clearly, is able to work, own a home, and live a totally independent life with autism. My son was afflicted differently. He developed neuro-typically until the age of 18 mos. He was injured (gut and brain) after receiving 5 immunizations in one Dr. visit to “catch up” on shots. Within 2 hours he was deathly ill and was never the same. He lost speech, his focus was gone and so was his smile, bright eyes and ability to interact. We watched our child fade away. At 13 years old now and after years of working very hard–he has overcome the odds. The Dr.’s said he would never speak, learn or smile again. They were wrong. I believe some children may be born with ASD. Some children predisposed may “get” ASD from environmental factors. It may also be genetic for others. We had genetic testing done more than once and there is no link in our family history. Our sons 4 older siblings are all healthy and well. Our son with ASD was a thriving baby & toddler. Before him, none of children had reactions to vaccines, nor am I anti-vax. I would just suggest to you that when the author used the term “broken” she meant it in a very personalized way. When your child cannot function in a way that prevents them from living their best life, they are indeed broken. My son stopped speaking. We were told to ACCEPT it. Today he speaks. If we’d listened to the opinions of friends, family, therapists and doctors we might never have pushed forward with treatments to help our son heal. Our sweet boy has a ways to go yet before he can live a safe, independent life, but we’ll never give up on helping him heal. We are all broken in one way or another–no one is implying that they don’t accept their child’s condition. I accept and love my son no matter what, but just because he was diagnosed with autism doesn’t mean that AUTISM is “who he is.” I will never let a label or a condition define him. If he’d been born without hands I would have taught him to eat with his feet. My point is that there is nothing wrong with parents trying to help their children heal from the worse symptoms of ASD. My son feels so much more comfortable in his own skin due to the fixing of the brokenness he once was. God bless.
How precious are the words ” low and slow” and “calmly” to a mom if a child on the spectrum! I used to swing between overly emotional.– as in crying if he loved a new gfcf cupcake– to completely being withdrawn. Not any more. We have been trying most of what’s described above here. But it’s been a beautiful journey. It is the unabiding love and yearning to see my kiddo utilize his full potential that makes me research the Internet for the magic potion, the “cure-all”. Over time I have learned to enjoy my son as he is and keep the faith that it will get better. And it has from the beginning ( PL read diagnosis) to now. Thank you for the insightful blog.
Thanks for commenting and for sharing your story. ….what do you mean by PL read diagnosis? Thanks for your kind words. If you are on Facebook and would like to join, we’d love to have you: https://www.facebook.com/groups/171490083677560/
There are a few natural herbal plant’s that can be tried by anyone with only one effect “CURE”. I’m definite of one plant & knows of nine with “Super” curing capabilities,but am not a doc,or medical practitioner to recommend. I’ve studied herbal cures though! Animals have resorted to Mother Nature for cures to ailments,but Humans turn to modern treatments!