Neurodivergent & smartcreativeawesomegenius

Putting the Pieces Together- A 10 Step Approach to Healing Your Child

As a mama of a neurodivergent kiddo you probably already know the challenges our kiddos face on an every day basis. From social challenges, to dietary preferences/restrictions, behavior dysregulation, brain fog and challenges in school. As a parent you’ve probably approached your physician with these concerns and were told what we all are told to put your child on either Ridalin, Adderal or some kind of medication. As a person who believes that medicine has a place in this world and finds medicine and medical technology as a positive thing that does help many people, I also believe that we as a society are in many cases over using medication. Medication is not the answer to all problems, it is the answer to some problems. Our MDs should be presenting solutions based on healing the body from the inside out rather than just putting a band aid on the symptoms for a quick fix. They should be considering all solutions and present medication as the last solution not the first. Just know that as a parent of a neurodivergent child, you have to create your own path and not depend solely on what your MD advises. They may not have your best interest at hand.

In this blog you’ll read about our personal experience on the discovery of this journey as well as the holistic alternative ways we’ve found to help heal our daughter on our own with out medication.

STORY TIME!

I’ve been to doctor after doctor and they all had the same rehearsed answer and said “Yes, there are side affects to this medication but the good outweighs the bad and you’d be doing her a disservice by NOT giving her medication”. Aside from the emotional manipulation that they were trying to pull on me, I also felt that they did not want to take the time to figure out a way to help my daughter. Given my experience working with some very smart families back in the 2000’s, I knew that children were able to erase symptoms based on the removal of dyes and certain foods. After diving head first into the rabbit hole, I discovered that there are ways….many, many, many ways that we can use to help our children function properly that are not advertised, told to us during doctor visits or even recommended by the medical community. In fact some of these ways are looked at as Pseudo-science, not backed by insurance, or backed by studies therefore dismissed. Before we dive into what we’ve discovered so far, we have to look at WHY no other method or treatment is ever suggested. I became pregnant with the help of modern medicine and my son was healed with the medical technology that saved his life from a serious case of pnemonia. I believe that medicine has a place in this world and it can be very helpful with somethings but not everything. Again, I do see the benefits of pharmaceutical medicine, but why always use it as a first choice in treatment? We should try to look inside the body and heal before using drugs as an option.

So why aren’t other methods suggested by our MDs? Incentives. Remember to take what your MD says with a grain of salt. Much like a car salesman has incentives to sell a car, your MD has a incentives and ties with pharmaceutical companies. There are great doctors out there and this is not a blanket statement to all doctors, but there are doctors out there that do not have your child in their best interest and may not genuinely want to help your kiddo. So be cautious and do your homework!

As a society we’ve accepted the rise in autism and ADHD over the years and see it as “something that just happens” or normal. We need to look a little deeper and consider “Why” this is happening and what we can do to help solve this problem. We need to consider the correlation between changes in the world and the significant increase in the rates of Autism and ADHD. Toxins in the food? Toxins in our water? Toxins in our health system? We have to change our perspective on medicine and look into healing rather than instant fixes. We have to look to nature and holistic practices rather than drugs as a first option. This is something that won’t happen over night but what better time to start than now? Do what you can to HELP SOCIETY SHIFT IN THIS DIRECTION and start with your own kiddo!

Our 10 Step Approach to Healing

If you want something done, you have to do it yourself! Obviously, we decided to find our own way. Yes, we were looked at as crazy because what even are these treatments? Once you get past the way you are perceived and decide to focus on healing your child, this gets easier. After trial and error to see what works and what doesn’t, this is our list of things we’ve done (in order) to see our baby girl heal and function properly. REMEMBER these steps are what we’ve done (in order) to see our girl heal and thrive. Get a calendar, notepad, and get the whole family on board. These things will take some time to get used to but once it becomes a habit then you are golden! These changes are what it will take to not only detox the body, but regenerate the body, heal the gut and help the brain grow new pathways allowing the entire body and mind to function optimally. It’s an entire system working together to make a functioning, happy, thriving child.

Our plan includes healing the gut with dietary changes, cellular detox and metal detox, getting tested for vitamin deficiences, supplementation, Methyl B-12 or Folate injections, Neurofeedback therapy, Metronome therapy, social emotional healing and techniques, music/dance therapy, and cranial sacral therapy. Let’s dive in!

1. Dietary Changes with the GAPS Diet: Start by reading this book! Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride set up The Cambridge Nutrition Clinic in 1998. As a parent of a child diagnosed with learning disabilities, she is acutely aware of the difficulties facing other parents like her, and she has devoted much of her time to helping these families. I’m not joking when I say this book was so eye opening and I learned so much from it. READ THIS BOOK! This is your starting point.
2. Cellular Detox & Metal Detox: There are different products and ways to tackle this. The one we use is Pure Body Extract by TouchStone Essentials. We started seeing a difference in a couple of months but every child is different. I noticed my daughter started eating different foods (which was insane because FOOD had been one of the biggest struggles since she was born). This in conjunction with or right after you start the GAPS diet is perfect because the body is cleaning itself out and replenishing itself with healthy, clean foods allowing the brain to operate better. My daughter’s body started craving healthier foods! It was like a miracle. Fast forward to today (after all 10 steps), she now LOVES trip-tip, chicken and salad!!! Still mind blowing when I think about it.
3. Testing for Vitamin Deficiences (Blood test, urine test, Bowl Movement test): We got our daughter tested after doing the GAPS diet. These tests will show if your kiddo can process Vitamins, if they have the MTHFR Gene mutation, if their cells have a mitocondria dysfunction etc. We used what is called GUT ZOOMER test which costs about $500-$600. This will test your gut and give you a breakdown of what the gut is deficient in.

4. Supplements: Once you know what your child is deficient in then you can supplement properly. We have found some that are undeniably effective!

*The 1st one is “CHILLAX GUMMIES”. You can buy these at Safeway, Fry’s or online.

These contain L-Theonine which has an immediate (15-20 min. effect). I mean the mood is lifted, she’s happy, positive and this lasts for half of the day. On days where we have multiple things planned, we make sure to do 2 servings (AM & Afternoon).

*The 2nd one is “Ella Ola” Vitamin packets that I add to her probiotic juice (GOOD BELLY- where you can get at Sprouts or Safeway). Ella Olla vitamins are non flavored and non colored multivitamins. I give her 1 packet each day.

*The 3rd one is “Neurobrocc Sulforaphane Gummies“. This is a game changer as well. These gummies have broccoli sprouts in them…multiple servings of broccoli sprouts. Now I’ve been OBSESSED with BROCCOLI SPROUTS for a couple of years now and to have these condensed and not have to TASTE the actual sprout is AMAZING! My daughter says these make her feel good (like happy) which makes sense because Sulforaphane is an anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and the list goes on! It is known to reduce depression, increase the happy hormones and improves processing speed in the brain. I started sprinkling these in everything- but they are kind of gross so it wasn’t something my kids actually liked. BUT these gummies make life so much easier. I still use broccoli sprouts but I hide them now and I don’t put them on everything like I used to.

5. Methyl B-12 Injections: As a result of the testing you will find out if your child has a methylation problem and then you can supplement with either methyl folate or methyl B12. The distribution and quantity of the shots will depend on weight and age but for our daughter we give her 1 Methyl B-12 shot every week and it helps her with mood regulation, socialization, and energy. Keep in mind that her body is unable to properly methylate edible vitamins so an injection essential to get these vitamins in her body. This little change was a huge difference maker in socialization and mood. We skipped these injections for about 2 months once and we saw an immediate difference. Over time, she will not need to take as many shots but until her body can catch up with all the vitamins she was missing after so many years it will be at least a couple of years of this before we stop. Even then I’m going to maintain this every couple of months. She has literally told me she can feel the difference in herself while taking this shot.

6. Neurofeedback Therapy: Do this step after steps 1-5! To maximize results and time, make sure to do this once your child’s gut has been mostly healed and you will see results fast. THIS step is a non-negotiable. This has helped our daughter to train her brain and to create new pathways allowing her to function better meaning she can concentrate more, she can problem solve better, her speech is better and she can overall communicate better. You can actually get a BRAIN MAP that will show you what parts of the brain are not “firing” optimally or are
“too busy”. This map will show you what parts of the brain are inflamed. We were able to target certain parts of the brain to improve certain things like “problem solving”, “speech” etc. This helped her to understand math more, talk to her peers more which increased her self confidence. NOW when we see her BRAIN MAP there are parts that have turned GREEN which means they are functioning properly. This shows in her behavior and because her mind is “calmer” she doesn’t get overstimulated that often and is able to control her outbursts and thoughts more.

7. Metronome Therapy: We did interactive metronome therapy 2 to 3 times per week and we’ve seen tremendous results in not just rhythm but an overall alignment in small day to day tasks.

8. Social Emotional Healing and Techniques: Consistent Positive affirmations, shaping their sense of self, breathing techniques for anxiety, social skills groups are amongst handful of ways to help your kiddo.

9. Music Therapy: Our kiddo loves and learns through music. Her passion for dance and bodily movement is something she understands well. I suspect she loves dance because she can express herself without using words, just energy and passion. Dance and music has helped her find her sense of self and purpose.

10. Cranial Sacral Therapy: Cranial sacral therapy is a massage of the skull.

You are not alone and have many parents that are starting to recognize that we can change our children and get rid of these symptoms to heal them. If this trajectory continues, you can share what you’ve learned to help other mamas and the shift in the perspective of medicine in the US can shift to a holistic approach to healing. Remember our body was meant to heal itself we just have to give it the tools it needs. So Keep connecting with parents who have tried alternative methods, keep doing research, and keep trying to heal your child!