I’m in multiple Special Needs groups online and spend part of my time trying to help parents find resources to help them. Medications, supplements, and therapies are a frequent topic of discussion because we are all trying to find something that works for our child.
Medications are a tricky issue. As a parent and advocate, I hesitate to recommend a medication or treatment. I’m happy to share with you what our experiences have been and tell you what has worked for us, but I’m not a doctor and usually, neither is anyone else in these groups.
In these groups, you have parents who don’t think you should ever be giving your child medication. I disagree, but I feel you have a right to make that decision. Then there the parents who debate over which medication/treatment is best for which issue. Here’s the thing- What works for one person doesn’t mean it will work for the next person. We all have different chemical makeup and different medications work differently for different people. Also, when you have tried one medication, or two, it doesn’t mean the next one won’t work for you. It takes a lot of patience sometimes to find the right medication, supplement or therapy that works for you or your child. I know this from hard fought experience. There are several types of medication D has tried almost (or every) medication there is for that ailment before finding one that works. It has been a LONG and FRUSTRATING process. And when I talk about medications like this, this is not to say we haven’t tried most of the alternative treatments out there. Chances are we have. Sometimes we find one that works, other times it’s like the medication and we go through trying everything.
I guess this blog post is really just about being cautious about where you get your information from. Make sure it’s a reputable source. Make sure you are working with a Doctor or Naturopath who has spent years of their lives studying so they have the knowledge to help you.
Research
Unexpected Gifts on Vacation
This summer our family was on vacation and due to a lot of reasons (sickness and allergies being chief) it was a difficult vacation. What I didn’t expect though were some unusual but great experiences we had on our vacation.
First, I had the opportunity to meet with a Mom who was struggling to find supports in her area. I don’t think I helped much as I don’t live in the area and could only offer general information, but I hopefully helped her find people who can help. This was good for me as it reminded me of why I do what I do. I remember starting this journey of Special Needs and not having any answers that I needed. I didn’t know where to find supports or how to find them. I swore to myself at that time I would do everything I could to keep other parents from that situation. This experience also gave me a chance to reflect on and say a prayer for all those who have helped me on my journey. I really appreciated that, and I enjoyed making a new friend.
Next, we were visiting some cousins and a 13-year-old with Autism kept coming by to visit. He is pretty severely impacted with Autism and kept escaping from his parent’s home. It filled me with so much joy to see how kindly these cousins interacted with him. If I could clone them and populate the world with them I would, because our kids need people like them who see their beauty and worth and treat them accordingly.
The third experience was meeting up with one of my husband’s best friends from High School. They, like us, have one boy and one girl with the boy having autism. We’ve known many children with autism and while D has enjoyed playing with them I have never seen him connect with another child the way he did with this young man. After dinner, the boys rode in our car back to Grandma’s while the girls rode in the other car. Listening to the two boys in the back of the car nearly brought me to tears! They understood each other on a level no one has understood D before. They “scripted” together (reciting movies line for line), enjoying every minute. 
D told him of what he someday dreams of doing and the young man thought his plans were awesome. I could kick myself for not having spent more time with this family over the years. The girls had a great time too, but listening to those boys in the car was something I wasn’t sure D would ever find. That was truly special.
Vacations and getting out of our bubble can be really hard for families of Special Needs kids. But in spite of everything, it can also be really worth it.
The Causes of Autism and People Who “Think” They Have The Answer
“Autism is a very complicated medical issue. There are MANY factors that cause it, and that can help the symptoms. Not every person with autism has all the symptoms. What works for some doesn’t mean it is going to work for everyone with autism due to the complex nature of Autism.”
Read more.
