The holidays are never easy, are they? Butterfly has been ALL over the place these past few days. No matter what we try she is just a mess. There is just so much going on, and no matter how much we try to shield her from it at home, it's coming at her from every other direction. But we'll survive. Tomorrow I have the day off to be home with her. I think we'll start out by making a Christmas card for BirthMom. She doesn't want to talk about her much these days at all, but I know it's still in there.
I was watching Fox News this morning and was so sad to see a woman who was trying to get their adopted son taken away by the state. She found knives under his mattress and a note saying he was sorry he had to kill her. Scary and devastating. They mentioned RAD along with numerous other problems. So sad. They will be in my prayers.
Best of luck to all of you this Christmas! I hope your little darlings handle it all as well as can be expected! Can't wait to catch up with everyone's blogs in the New Year! (assuming I survive the visit with the in-laws. haha.)
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you find peace and love this season!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Progress?
Butterfly has been taking her supplements for nearly two weeks. Any changes? Maybe, kinda, sorta, not really.
The first week she was FANTASTIC. Call it the placebo effect. She was well-behaved, loving, understanding, sweet and just all around nice. She listened and followed directions. No breakdowns, no yelling, hitting or screaming. Just a genuinely sweet girl who was excited about the thought of getting better.
Then Saturday came and she was a little cranky. Sunday came (along with St. Nick's Day), and she was a little crankier. Which, we of course expected since she was getting presents. She has stayed pretty consistent the rest of the week - a little crabby, but quick to get herself back together. Also quick to apologize when she know's she's been hurtful or disrespectful.
So, while we didn't expect these supplements to be a quick fix, they have resulted in some improvements. Now, whether they are actually working already or B just thinks they are, I don't know. However, I absolutely will not complain. Her behavior has been great compared to the last few months, and I expect far worse around the holidays. So, I know the bumps in the road are going to start popping up very soon, that's okay. I am very impressed with her ability to recollect after a problem, and acknowledge what she did wrong. Big improvements!
Regarding Dr. D - we didn't find him. Our therapist recommended him based on recommendations she had received from other clients. I have found that chiropractors tend to be the better resource for getting a hair analysis, as our pediatrician doesn't seem to be a believer of the whole thing. The website for the lab that did the analysis is www.arltma.com. Not sure if this will help, but maybe they would know of someone in your area that does this? Also, I had no idea fish oil helped kids with their concentration. We will have to give it a try!
The first week she was FANTASTIC. Call it the placebo effect. She was well-behaved, loving, understanding, sweet and just all around nice. She listened and followed directions. No breakdowns, no yelling, hitting or screaming. Just a genuinely sweet girl who was excited about the thought of getting better.
Then Saturday came and she was a little cranky. Sunday came (along with St. Nick's Day), and she was a little crankier. Which, we of course expected since she was getting presents. She has stayed pretty consistent the rest of the week - a little crabby, but quick to get herself back together. Also quick to apologize when she know's she's been hurtful or disrespectful.
So, while we didn't expect these supplements to be a quick fix, they have resulted in some improvements. Now, whether they are actually working already or B just thinks they are, I don't know. However, I absolutely will not complain. Her behavior has been great compared to the last few months, and I expect far worse around the holidays. So, I know the bumps in the road are going to start popping up very soon, that's okay. I am very impressed with her ability to recollect after a problem, and acknowledge what she did wrong. Big improvements!
Regarding Dr. D - we didn't find him. Our therapist recommended him based on recommendations she had received from other clients. I have found that chiropractors tend to be the better resource for getting a hair analysis, as our pediatrician doesn't seem to be a believer of the whole thing. The website for the lab that did the analysis is www.arltma.com. Not sure if this will help, but maybe they would know of someone in your area that does this? Also, I had no idea fish oil helped kids with their concentration. We will have to give it a try!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Hopeful
I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving. Ours was perfect....I'm still shocked. A quick recap:
Butterfly was off on Wednesday and my husband stayed home with her. They cleaned the house and B finished her placemats that she was coloring for family members. On Thursday, I cooked all day, hubby watched football, and B helped set the table and watched Tinkerbell. We also went to the nursing home to visit my grandpa. When we got home we sat down to a perfect Thanksgiving dinner - just the three of us. We had fun together, laughing and enjoying our meal. Afterwards, we went to see The Way of Lights - a big light display at the Shrine just down the road. We came home, had dessert, and B went off to bed. Patrick and I watched Four Christmases and went to bed, as I had to be up at 2:30 am for Black Friday!!
Friday, I did my shopping and B went off to Drama Camp for the day. That night we ate leftovers, watched Up, then went downtown for a Community Sing-a-long and the lighting of the Christmas tree.
Saturday, B was back off to Drama Camp to try out for the role of Jesus in Godspell, which shockingly, she didn't get. :) Patrick and I went to see New Moon then to buy our Christmas tree and to lunch. Such a relaxing day, and I love spending time with my husband. We picked B up from camp, came home and B and her daddy played Monopoly while I cleaned the bedroom.
Sunday, I made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Patrick and I then wrapped Christmas presents while B played. Patrick and B played another game of Monopoly while I ran errands. When I got home, we decorated the Christmas tree then had a pizza party and played Monopoly.
Pretty boring weekend, right??? It was FABULOUS. It was quiet and relaxed and dare I say, NORMAL. We all got along. We did things together. There was no yelling and no hurtful words. It was exactly what all of us needed. We all dreaded Monday.
And Monday did not disappoint. B woke up and with absolutely no provoking went off into a full RAD rage. Patrick and I handled it well and sent her off to school. I picked her up early so we could go to her chiropractor to get the results from the hair analysis. On our hour drive, we talked about things that happened in the morning. Then she started in on her same old story that other kids have better parents that do more for them. I let it go. Then she asked if I took a lunch break at work today. I informed her that I did not and she asked why. I explained that I had to leave work four hours early to pick her up from school and take her to the doctor so I wasn't able to take a lunch. She thought for a minute and then said "Thank you for using some of your vacation time to make sure I got to go to my doctor."
We got to the doctor's office and boy was it interesting!!! Here's what we learned.
Her Calcium and Magnesium levels are off the charts. Her cells are not absorbing these minerals at all.
She has low sodium and potassium levels, but higher potassium than sodium. This can cause anger, bad tempers and irritability. The low ratio can often lead to hostility.
Her high calcium/magnesium ratio and low sodium/potassium ratio are often associated with chronic stress.
Her indigestion issues can also be related to her sodium/potassium inversion as it is indicative of an excessive stress situation.
It is also not uncommon for an individual with a severely high calcium level to suffer from low self-esteem. An elevated calcium level literally causes chemical depression of the cenral nervous system.
She also has high levels of lead and aluminum. Both can be passed from parent to child. These are found mostly in brain cells, and are blocking her brain cells from working correctly. Lead can come from cigarette smoke (birthmom smoked through the entire pregnancy), lead paint and lead pipes (BM is from Europe and things are very old there). Aluminum can come from vaccinations, drinking from aluminum cans and using aluminum cookware.
So, the doctor prescribed three supplements - one to deal with her immune system, one to help with digestive issues and another to detox the heavy metals. He also gave us Celtic sea salt to use daily, and a new diet for her to follow.
I don't know if it will work, but I am very hopeful that this will be what we need. For so long, we feel like we have hit a wall and all the therapeutic parenting in the world can't get passed it. Her anger has been such an issue, and I am so hopeful that these changes will help break through that.
Butterfly is nervous, yet so excited about all of this. She is also very hopeful that these supplements and diet changes will help her. She is ready to change, but she struggles so much and as hard as she tries she just can't.
Our therapist highly recommends this, and has noted numerous clients having a lot of luck. So fingers crossed that this will be another thing to help in the healing process!!!!
And now, I am off to the dentist. My absolute least favorite place...
Butterfly was off on Wednesday and my husband stayed home with her. They cleaned the house and B finished her placemats that she was coloring for family members. On Thursday, I cooked all day, hubby watched football, and B helped set the table and watched Tinkerbell. We also went to the nursing home to visit my grandpa. When we got home we sat down to a perfect Thanksgiving dinner - just the three of us. We had fun together, laughing and enjoying our meal. Afterwards, we went to see The Way of Lights - a big light display at the Shrine just down the road. We came home, had dessert, and B went off to bed. Patrick and I watched Four Christmases and went to bed, as I had to be up at 2:30 am for Black Friday!!
Friday, I did my shopping and B went off to Drama Camp for the day. That night we ate leftovers, watched Up, then went downtown for a Community Sing-a-long and the lighting of the Christmas tree.
Saturday, B was back off to Drama Camp to try out for the role of Jesus in Godspell, which shockingly, she didn't get. :) Patrick and I went to see New Moon then to buy our Christmas tree and to lunch. Such a relaxing day, and I love spending time with my husband. We picked B up from camp, came home and B and her daddy played Monopoly while I cleaned the bedroom.
Sunday, I made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Patrick and I then wrapped Christmas presents while B played. Patrick and B played another game of Monopoly while I ran errands. When I got home, we decorated the Christmas tree then had a pizza party and played Monopoly.
Pretty boring weekend, right??? It was FABULOUS. It was quiet and relaxed and dare I say, NORMAL. We all got along. We did things together. There was no yelling and no hurtful words. It was exactly what all of us needed. We all dreaded Monday.
And Monday did not disappoint. B woke up and with absolutely no provoking went off into a full RAD rage. Patrick and I handled it well and sent her off to school. I picked her up early so we could go to her chiropractor to get the results from the hair analysis. On our hour drive, we talked about things that happened in the morning. Then she started in on her same old story that other kids have better parents that do more for them. I let it go. Then she asked if I took a lunch break at work today. I informed her that I did not and she asked why. I explained that I had to leave work four hours early to pick her up from school and take her to the doctor so I wasn't able to take a lunch. She thought for a minute and then said "Thank you for using some of your vacation time to make sure I got to go to my doctor."
We got to the doctor's office and boy was it interesting!!! Here's what we learned.
Her Calcium and Magnesium levels are off the charts. Her cells are not absorbing these minerals at all.
She has low sodium and potassium levels, but higher potassium than sodium. This can cause anger, bad tempers and irritability. The low ratio can often lead to hostility.
Her high calcium/magnesium ratio and low sodium/potassium ratio are often associated with chronic stress.
Her indigestion issues can also be related to her sodium/potassium inversion as it is indicative of an excessive stress situation.
It is also not uncommon for an individual with a severely high calcium level to suffer from low self-esteem. An elevated calcium level literally causes chemical depression of the cenral nervous system.
She also has high levels of lead and aluminum. Both can be passed from parent to child. These are found mostly in brain cells, and are blocking her brain cells from working correctly. Lead can come from cigarette smoke (birthmom smoked through the entire pregnancy), lead paint and lead pipes (BM is from Europe and things are very old there). Aluminum can come from vaccinations, drinking from aluminum cans and using aluminum cookware.
So, the doctor prescribed three supplements - one to deal with her immune system, one to help with digestive issues and another to detox the heavy metals. He also gave us Celtic sea salt to use daily, and a new diet for her to follow.
I don't know if it will work, but I am very hopeful that this will be what we need. For so long, we feel like we have hit a wall and all the therapeutic parenting in the world can't get passed it. Her anger has been such an issue, and I am so hopeful that these changes will help break through that.
Butterfly is nervous, yet so excited about all of this. She is also very hopeful that these supplements and diet changes will help her. She is ready to change, but she struggles so much and as hard as she tries she just can't.
Our therapist highly recommends this, and has noted numerous clients having a lot of luck. So fingers crossed that this will be another thing to help in the healing process!!!!
And now, I am off to the dentist. My absolute least favorite place...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)