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.

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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:

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?

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346 Comments

  1. I don’t have a child with autism but if I did I would do the following:

    First, I would contact Dr. Robert Morse ‘s Herbal Health Clinic in Florida. He has been helping people to detoxify for forty seven years. He has over 700 videos on YouTube. Getting the heavy metals out of the brain is essential to healing autism. Secondly, I would follow the Medical Medium protocol for heavy metal detoxification, wild blueberries, cilantro, Hawaiian spirulina, Atlantic pulse and barley grass juice powder. These will pull the heavy metals out of the brain and release them through the lymphatic system. You can put them all in a smoothie with other fruit to disguise them. Both men say to increase fruit as much as possible. Dr. Morse will say to only eat fruit with any type of neurological problem. Fruit has the most electrical energy and he has cured paralysis, MS, and ALS with fruit. Dr. Morse also uses herbs which help the organs detoxify quicker. Medical Medium says to increase fruit because kids with autism have brains which are wired differently because of the metals blocking synapses. The extra fruit sugar allows them to use alternate pathways in the brain more efficiently. Kids with autism should never eat dairy, gluten, canola oil, eggs or corn according to Medical Medium. Fruit, fruit, and more fruit for kids with autism.

    1. Thanks Debbie,

      I think some of these recommendations are likely good, but I’m really worried about Medical Medium. I have read loads of reviews on his writings and many state that he deletes any negative reviews that he can and I am also worried that he is communicating with the dead. I think that’s a really troubling and dangerous thing to meddle in. What are your thoughts on those points? Thanks again!

      Oh finally, fruit is a big candida feeder and kids w/ autism have unhealthy guts so one must be really careful about that.

  2. Hello Adrienne,
    I read your article and you sound just like me. I left the United States 2 1/2 years ago to help my daughter recover from Autism. My daughter has been seizure-free for 2 1/2 years ago. In my research of over 11 years, I have learned many things of what not to do . I am helping my daughter completely recover from Autism through Self-Purification, 100% extractions from medicinal plants, and a lifestyle change of consuming Living Foods. I can assist you with helping you recover your child as well.

      1. FYI: When attempting to bookmark this page, I found an unusual typo. The name of the page came up as:

        “Healing for Autism | Asperger’s SYDROME”

        1. Oops, posted that in the weong place. So sorry, guess I should have proofed my own post! Wish I could fix this.

        2. I am not sure what is going on with that–I just reactivated an SEO plug in and it’s gone but just don’t know. Those words are nowhere in my post!! I’ll try to figure it out. Try again now :).

  3. Hi and thanks for the article. I have a cousin with Autism and my aunt and uncle are always struggling to find ways to help him. I would suggest looking into CBD for Autism. (site removed by blog owner)

    CBD is the non psychoactive component of marijuana. As I’m sure you’ve heard, Marijuana has been proven to be quite beneficial for people suffering from Autism, so CBD, without the “high” of marijuana, can be ideal for treating kids! I’d recommend checking it out. The link I posted above has some medical studies, and other information about it. Cheers and good luck!

    1. It’s also very addictive and the smell is terrible! Secondhand smoke can hurt people around you, too. You’re not the only one it affects. I am super sensitive to it, so I have to wear a protective mask with a filter in it to filter out cigarette smoke so i don’t breathe it.

  4. Having two young grandsons apparently on opposite ends of ASD, we are faced with the realization that our 40 year old son was misdiagnosed all his life. He is very high functioning, but impossible to discipline all his life. Finally we had to get him out of the home, fearing for the safety of our younger children. We have spent thousands of dollars trying to help him. He refuses medical and mental care, but did spend a few hours with a personal friend of mine, a psychologist who diagnosed him with Aspergers, OCD, and possible schizophrenia. We paid our son to sign up for Medicaid, but he won’t use it. He has been all over the country in the last 10 years, living on streets. We have no way to contact him, but he stays in touch. Any suggestions on the most minimal but effective way to bring him out of this mess? He is still immersed in a power struggle with his dreams vs reality. It seems he just needs money, and we don’t have enough to make his dreams come true. Honestly, no amount of money will do that.

    1. Hi there. I’m so sorry! Did you see the oil that I mentioned in the post? It has made a HUGE difference for us.

  5. I valued all your advise and comments. We have been through a similar journey. Discussions with other parents have shown us that the mother is often the trigger of stress for children with Aspergers and that the ‘low and slow’ policy truly helps.
    Our son had a blood test that showed dairy intolerance. Dairy triggers extreme anger and frustration in him. A Urine test for Mauve factor also showed a depletion of Vitamin B6 and Zinc, so we give him supplements (with extreme difficulty as he hates tablets and says they make him feel sick). We need to do a mineral test on his hair.
    We also try to give him bone broth, as this heals leaky gut. Again, there is difficulty in getting him to consume it.
    Charts or picture diagrams help him understand information and expectations that he has difficulty with. Repeated verbal instruction is less effective.

    1. Thank you! I hadn’t heard about mauve factor – interesting. I will have to look that up.

      I have been working w/ myself and my son on our guts using a product that has been proven to remove almost 75% of glyphosate from the gut and reduce C Reactive Protein by almost 75% as well. You might be interested in checking it out. I haven’t written about it much at all yet but you can check it out here and see what you think: https://ishoppurium.com/products/biome-medic-4-pack

      You can use code wholenewmom to get $50 off your purchase of $75 or more. It’s a fabulous company and I really feel it has helped me regain my energy, along w/ their superfoods. I just put my son on this.

      Have you seen this post? This is the best thing we have done for our son….we added it in just about 3 weeks ago. https://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/cbd-experience/ .

      I just added these things to the post you commented on – hope they are of help.

  6. What a lovely summary. I am a health professional with a little exposure to ASD assessment, an interest in nutritional medicine, and a child who reacts to gluten with ASD sx, but would otherwise not quite meet high functioning ASD criteria. Thanks for posting

  7. Hi there – thank you for this article. It’s refreshing to hear others have found solutions and strategies to reduce their children’s symptoms. I would like to share how I helped my daughter who had symptoms of Asperger’s syndrome. I created this free online workshop to share with others. I also summarized much of the research out there on diets and foods for our children in this video. The one thing that is often not addressed and makes a huge difference is ENERGY (your child’s energetic field, and the energetic environment they are in). You can view the workshop I created here:
    [site is gone off the internet so link was removed by blog owner)
    Thanks, Tina

    1. Hi Tina. Thanks for your comment. Sorry for the long delay in approving it and responding. I had to wade through a ton of comments and spam ones as well. I noticed your site is gone–sorry about that. Yes, diet is huge. It’s not everything, but it’s huge. Take care!

  8. Hi Adrienne,

    When your son was diagnosed, was he out on medications? I have a nephew who was recently diagnosed with autism and ADHD (I think) and has had more medication than you can fathom. I fear his growing brain can’t handle it and is making him worse. How did you come to learn about the gluten and casein free diets? All of this is very overwhelming; where do we begin? Are there clinics (alternative therapy is what I like to call it) available that “specialize” in the “road to recovery” that you know of? Not sure if I’m getting my point across quite right. Thanks for listening.

    1. Hi there. We never had him on meds. It’s been something we have considered but have chosen to go the natural route so that we could know what was triggering issues and therein have a better chance of really healing him instead of masking issues. I did so much research when I started and GF / DF was one of the diets most often recommended for autistics. I started with gluten free since our son is deathly allergic to dairy so he never had it. Removing artificial things from his diet was something we did from the beginning. Removing lots of carbs and sugar was a huge help. Gut health is a big deal for these kids and too many carbs really does a number on them: https://wholenewmom.com/health-concerns/do-you-believe-this-myth-about-gut-health-plus-the-perfect-storm-for-gut-imbalance-and-illness/

      There are lots of docs to consider. Some are called DAN docs. We didn’t have much money when we started this all so I did most of it myself. Some really like the perspective of someone like Amy Yasko. You can get tests from her and then work on the forums to see what to do. It’s confusing but good info.

  9. Autism can be healed or at least a lot improved, if we can elicit relaxed pleasure from autistic children.
    Relaxed pleasure appears at around 6-7 months old which shows the feeling of satisfaction.
    It’s roles is to feel satisfaction and peace, to let people be intimate with people, to let the mind flexible and generous. We can elicit relaxed pleasure through at first eliciting pleasure and next eliciting relaxation by arms swinging for example. When we repeat a cycle of pleasure and relaxation, gradually autistic children come to express relaxed pleasure spontaneously in daily life. As a result, autistic personality becomes flexible and affectionate. I recommend you observing your child’s emotional expressions and eliciting relaxed pleasure.
    I am a Japanese clinical psychologist. I have been treating children with developmental disorders based on emotional development for years.

    1. Hello there. This is very interesting. Thanks for sharing. Did you notice that I lived in Japan for a year? I had a heavy concentration of Japanese language and Japanese studies in college and after returning to the US I was immersed in the Japanese culture that is in this country. Just today I heard from my longest-standing student whom I taught in the US.

      I am curious to know more about this – does this work at older ages? How much improvement did you see with this? Do you have recommendations for how to do this kind of therapy with older children? Thank you greatly.

  10. Autism can’t be healed. You can do a lot to provide your child with skills and tools to cope with life as he meets it, but he cannot be healed.
    Implying that is rude, cruel and ignorant.

    1. By the way, the us vaccine court has paid for a vaccine caused case of autism. Hannna, at eighteen mos., was given five vaccines. One and one half million dollar and one half million every year for the rest of her life.

  11. I have a 12yo son with Asperger’s and I am just discovering essential oils. Anxiety is a big thing for us, and my son says YL’s Stress Away helps more than the Rx meds we tried earlier this year. I see you’ve done a lot of research since this article was written. Do you have anything about what other essential oils help with autism stuff? Thanks.

    1. Hello there. What issues are you thinking about? Focusing? There are a number of oils and blends to help with that.

    1. I wasn’t seen any progress and in fact my thyroid got very out of whack and the practitioner that I was working with didn’t seem to know how to handle it. After the fact, I heard that my practitioner might not have been good – I’m not sure what to think. But I have made a lot of progress with other things and am still moving forward. Thanks for reading!

  12. You mentioned that gelatin affected your son, do you mean gelatin as in bone broth gelatin? Our son is on a very restricted diet. He has been diagnosed with PANS. Certain foods cause the inflammation in his brain to flare up and it is like he is out of his mind. I never would have guessed gelatin could be bad for him. Thank you.

    1. Yes, I do mean that. I have heard of the glutamate issue and I discounted it for a long time but think there might be something to it after all.

  13. I saw a TED talk where the mom was a bio-chemical engineer, if I remember correctly, and she did several of the same things you have tried. One of the biggest items that helped was the removal of MSG – and there were over 50 names for MSGs in products that she shared. SHe also showed a video of a before and after incident – it was incredible: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL4SD5f2toQ

    1. Yes I have heard about this. Some of it I don’t agree with, but some I do. It’s interesting, I did find that there is more free glutamate in lemon juice than in gelatin, but I removed some gelatin from my son’s diet and he seemed to do better immediately. So it’s all very puzzling. Thanks for sharing! I will watch it later!

  14. I like the low and slow approach. I try to get to yoga at least 3 times a week to help me stay calm and cool while taking care of 3 sons. My oldest son is 7 and has high functioning ASD. We have done all the traditional therapies and he is doing well, but can be a social mess… a lot. We have him in a social group once a week at our speech therapy office. There are these amazing books by Michelle Garcia Winner, the series we use are called the incredible flexible you. Thanks for doing so much research on essential oils, I have been using EO on my son to help with his anxiety and worry. I will check out RMO as I am currently using doTerra rt now and have used YL, Mountain rose herbs and Eden’s Garden but would like to find a vetiver, cedar wood and lavender that actually works.

    1. Thanks for commenting. I need to read this post again for myself!

      I am going to be writing more about other oils companies, hopefully in the near future. Thanks for reading!

  15. To all you lovely parents,

    Has anyone tried the SCD (specific carb diet) or GAPS diet. I just got the book from Dr Natasha Campbell and have only had time for a few pages….but please have a look. I will b attempting this with my son. The books is called “Gut and psychology syndrome”.

    We have been on gluten and dairy free for nearly 2 months and it has definitely made a difference. But Dr Campbell says…removing only gluten n dairy is not enough. And that there are harmful things in the gluten free products (very high in sugar I’ve noticed and other harmful chemicals.

    It will be hard…but many people have tried and seemingly succeeded.

    Has anyone tried chlorella? I’ve just bought it and feel it will help chelate/detox metals from our kids’ toxic bodies.

    Antibiotics destroy the gut, which is where 70% of our immunity is …in the gut (intestines). I was very surprised. So diet seems a great way for treatment and one that EVERY parent must start with. Don’t waste time going gluten n dairy free first. Jump into the GAPS diet…for bout 2 years. *sigh* Let the hard times roll ??

    Just wanted to share what I’ve found so far.

    1. I have tried chlorella – the only thing I would say is that some people don’t handle detox well so be careful with that. You should make sure that you think that the person can handle it first.

        1. I didn’t take it alone, but in a greens blend. I’m not sure what to say b/c there were other things in it. My son took it w/ spirulina and I was concerned that perhaps he wasn’t doing as well on it but I know he has detox issues. It’s more an overall concern than a statement that we didn’t do well on it.

          1. I’ve managed to find your page again! That’s the trouble of constantly changing phones I guess.

            Ok…I still haven’t tried the chlorella as I’m still doing research on it, but feel that as soon as we get a few days off…we shall start using it (provided I don’t find something horrible about it) so we can observe the experience of “on chlorella” and help him go through it. definitely in the next 3 weeks or so. Not sure how long to try it for before I start seeing any effect (positive or not)….within how many days did your son start reacting to the chlorella + spirulina? is there such a thing as a “standard time” to try chlorella for before moving on?

            1. Glad to see you again!

              I never really noticed a number of days and perhaps it was something else, but there are of course different thoughts about so many things. I have read that Dr. Yasko (one of the doctors whose protocols I am looking at now for my son) thinks that there is too much copper in chlorella, and others points out that it has a high sulfur content. So I think it’s hard to know. I was mainly concerned w/ the detox effect but am still learning and not sure what to think. I typically believe that maybe watching something for at least 3 days is a good idea, but some say to start slow and would start with a small amount. Thanks!

  16. Do you have a contact info I could ask you more questions on? We tried my 6 yr old on a gluten free low dairy diet. We were good w= it for a while, but yogurt has crept in. And also we let him have the school pizza ( gluten and dairy ) once a week. He is SO picky and difficult to feed- how can I send him to school with good lunches he will eat? I think his behavior has worsened since we got him back on gluten and too much dairy.
    I am wondering about two supplements: Interplex seriphos caplsules, and restore for gut health. Have you used either of these? How do you maintain the diet without it being overwhelming?!

    1. I am at wholenewmom {at} gmail {dot} com, but sometimes comments are easier for me to keep track of and respond to. I need a better email system ;).

      I used to use seriphos and loved it but found it is going off the market now. I haven’t used Restore.

      It is very overwhelming. I am trying to work w/ Dr. Yasko’s protocol again and we’ll see but so far some progress.

      I think making favorites ahead of time and having them ready to go is key. The school food is not good – laden w/ chemicals and MSG and such that will only predispose him to more junk. Of course we can’t be perfect but I find the “junk” causes a lot of issues.

      Are you looking for things for you to feel better? Or for him?

    2. My son is also extremely picky… We were fortunate that he understood that these foods were causing him difficulties and was willing to give them up for a time. He is approaching 20, and he is introducing some of the foods he likes but that have been denied him. We never totally denied some things but tried to monitor how much he was getting. Also… probiotic gummies and digestive enzymes are a mus! My Jake’s menu has never consisted of more than half a dozen items (they have changed a bit over the years). He eats so much of something that he doesn’t want it anymore. He is mainly a meat eater, but will eat raw vegetables. He was in public school sometimes and homeschooled sometimes depending on how he was getting along in life. He had to be pulled out of the public school system for good in the 6th grade. His sensory issues were driving him crazy (and everyone around him), and he became extremely aggressive because he did not like the people who were in charge of him at the school. His lunches in public school consisted of pb&j sandwiches, carrot sticks, raisins, apples and other fruits… He always had to have his food cooked just so until the last couple of years and wouldn’t try anything new unless it was his idea. It still has to be his idea, but he is beginning to experiment (SO there is hope :0) Hamburgers or cheeseburgers (when he was allowed cheese) could ONLY have ketchup on them, and everyone around watch out if they were made wrong lol. Now he eats them with ketchup, pickle relish and sometimes… mustard! We have relied on vitamins and supplements to make sure he is getting the proper nutrition. You really have to pick your battles with these kids… always asking yourself “is this worth fighting over?” We taught Jacob to walk away and go to his room to calm down, and then we talk later if we still need to. It works most of the time… as that is where all of his favorite things are and where he feels safest. Prayers for all who are guiding a special child… We are blessed to have them! It’s heartbreaking to watch them struggle, but so rewarding when you see them succeed!

      1. Hi Jake’s mum, just read your message and was so moved I had to reply. Your son’s story sounds so similar to mine. My son was diagnosed age 11 – 12, after years of convincing the authorities to assess him. His behaviour was intolerable to others ( who where always chastising him), although to me alot of what he did seemed logical. He also had lots of issues with food and hygiene and OCD. He is now almost 22 and I wouldn’t be without him. 2 years ago I was diagnosed with Asperger’s as well at the age of 46. I had my suspicions for a long time but shelved my own life to bring up my children. What a breakthrough! So many questions answered. I have researched so much since then. Please e-mail me. There is help and hope out there for us. Alison UK

  17. I have a 19 year old with autism. He was diagnosed about age 3. Because we connected the dots and feared the multiple vaccinations (all at the same time…seriously!) had something to do with our son’s regression, we looked into what was in them. We began to give him betonite clay to detox the heavy metals. He was introduced into the educational system immediately after diagnosis and spent the next 3 years (no breaks) undergoing intense therapy in the classroom and in our home. Over the years, we’ve tried many things. Restricted diets helped. Vitamin C with Rose Hips (some call it the love herb :0), has made a huge change, he seems to have way more empathy. He also currently takes a gummy multivitamin, Dissolvable B12, a brain function complex (this also has made a noticable difference). Probiotics help with the Candida problem along with digestive enzymes. Hope this helps someone!

      1. I believe all of the things I mentioned in my original comment worked to a degree. I found that his needs constantly changed, and we were constantly adapting. We tried to focus on the digestive tract issues for several reasons. First, it’s key to your physical health. Second, as we experimented, we found he displayed a lot more anger when eating gluten, casein, anything with artificial colors, refined sugars, MSG, and a few other things (most of which we shouldn’t probably be eating anyway :0)

        After that, the focus was on finding ways to calm him. We believe in herbs and natural supplements. There are many that promote well being. I think that every mom dealing with autism has a unique and special child… I started out with a cup of patience that was overflowing… now I find myself, quite often, praying for patience. My little ray of sunshine (over 6ft tall and wears size 13 shoes) is going to be 20 soon, and though he is far from ready in mom’s eyes, he wants to spread his wings and fly…
        Sigh!!

        1. Thanks for sharing. I hear you on so many levels. Yes – praying for patience. Have you heard of Dr. Yasko? I visited her site when my son was first diagnosed but didn’t think I could handle it and now have come full circle and am working on it again. I am thinking it’s working so far. I’m trying it the “DIY” way.

  18. We have a grandson with HFA and most of us in the family have characteristics of ASD to some degree. We have been guessing, researching, and praying our way through this challenge.. You are the first family I have seen to recommend the “Low and Slow” approach by name. I saw another site that said “we as kids with Asperger’s really appreciated it when our mom gave us time and space to regroup, unconditional acceptance, and as much control as possible.” I like the term “Low and Slow.” The way we see it is that we have come to accept and even value our autistic characteristics. There is a bit of joy and peace that we feel as we understand who we are and how we need to be. This includes choosing to live differently from the Star Trek society around us. Autism is a whole person condition, and we are special for a reason. We need to take care of ourselves, and I think that one reason is that we are highly sensitive to things that are out of order in the world. I like Amos 2:11-13, which tells how God made some people special to do a job for society, but society didn’t allow them to, and their burdens were increased as a result.

      1. Hi im looking for people who I can talk to and have similar exspireneces with adhd and autisum. Ive tried to contact a dr richard saul for feed back. Im from england united kingdom. The authorites wont help me here. They just want to give him medicine. His 10 but academically in year 1. Im on fb tee tee. A friend sent me this link and I seen your message. I think if no one understands what we have to go thru you find it hard to talk and you withdraw your self. Ive been fighting for 7 years and im exhausted.

        1. Hello there. I’m sorry for what you are going through – have you tried to find an online group or local support group?

    1. I’m sorry – I hope you find some helps here. I am looking at more things to help my son. Happy to help if you’d like by sharing what we are doing.