Autism Articles - Important Insights for Partners

March 8, 2016

Our Natural PANDAS Syndrome Treatment

When most people think of “pandas,” they think of fluffy black and white bears. But for those of us familiar with PANDAS syndrome, “pandas” conjures up anything but cute and cuddly thoughts.

My son developed symptoms of PANDAS following a respiratory illness when he was four. His behavior and demeanor changed, and I had no idea why. That’s where the most intense part of his story begins.

What is PANDAS syndrome?

PANDAS: pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections. In other words, a strep infection causing neurological symptoms.

Kids with PANDAS frequently develop obsessive compulsive disorder, along with a variety of neurological and behavioral disorders. Tics are also a common symptom.

How we got strapped to the big, ugly bear known as PANDAS

In the winter of 2011, our family came down with a respiratory illness that lasted for a long time. I chose to treat the illness at home with herbs.

The illness persisted off an on for over a month, with the cough lasting even longer. I determined we had bronchitis, for which the hallmark is a long-lasting cough after the illness has left. I now realize that at some point, we were probably also battling strep bacteria.

And before you say we would’ve known if it was strep, let me tell you two things:

your body can be fighting a pathogen without showing outward symptoms. This is a sign of immune dysfunction, and, instead of fighting off the pathogen, your body just holds on to it, allowing it to take root and cause sickness further down the road.
strep can be a minor part of another overall illness, so the symptoms don’t necessarily reflect strep throat, but strep is part of the equation nonetheless.

I’ll never really know if antibiotics at the time would have made any difference, but I was so scared off from using them at that point, that I didn’t want to consider them. I have read plenty of stories about children who received antibiotics for strep and still developed PANDAS.

Late winter, we finally began to get over the bronchitis. But something had changed. My oldest son had developed motor tics and extremely defiant behavior. I thought it was stress due to the impending birth of his little brother.

Tics, ODD, and SPD, oh my!

The birth of our third son came and went and my son’s behavior did not improve. He had become more and more aggressive. One day at the park, when he gave his brother a bloody nose, a friend said “maybe it’s the wheat,” and advised me to try a gluten-free diet for him.

I took it a step further and removed, first, all refined sugar, then ALL grains, not just gluten. The calming effects were amazing.

I followed the instructions in this post from Heal Thyself for 14 Steps for Healthy Guts and his tics went away. The steps included giving him bone broth, cod liver oil, and fermented foods and drinks every day.

Things were better, but I still had no idea that he was infected with strep bacteria, or how cantankerous it could be. We kept it at bay by being perfect with diet, but if we slipped up, he would have a major behavioral flare… and we’d all be miserable as we rode it out with him.

We were still trying to get a handle on his behavior when my husband got transferred with his job to a town about an hour away. The move took its toll and we ate some convenience foods during the adjustment.

My son was six by this point and his emotions and behavior ruled our home. After much research, I finally put the pieces together that he had Oppositional Defiant Disorder, a disorder which causes sufferers to rebel against all perceived authority and exhibit defiance and extreme rigidity. If something wasn’t going his way, such as my making him get his schoolwork done, he would become angry and just refuse to do what he was told.

I felt powerless to parent my child.

Also around this time, the tics were flared up badly, and he would often make weird heavy breathing sounds or blink excessively. That was one of the scariest things to me, knowing he could not control functions of his body. I eventually figured out that corn caused horribly aggressive behavior.

He also chewed on rubbery and plastic toys or even his own hands, in an effort to sooth his stimulatory needs. I later figured out he was also struggling with sensory processing disorder, and was mostly sensory seeking, which explained his constant need for physical touch and rough housing, which was not always welcomed by his brothers.

Equally disturbing, he had developed symptoms of dyslexia, and would sometimes write his numbers backwards, despite knowing how to write them correctly.

What an ODD episode looks like

Aside from the aggression and defiance, there are physical things that would happen during one of my son’s behavioral flares. His eyes would become very swollen and red, and dark purple circles would form underneath.

He would become angry about something, begin rubbing his eyes, and become visibly frustrated. He would tell me “I’m not going to do that.” Or he would become angry and hit one of his brothers. And his eyes would be purple and puffy and I would know he had eaten something he wasn’t supposed to.

Almost always, he would later admit to sneaking a food he wasn’t allowed to have.

I learned to ride out these episodes, because attempts at discipline were futile. There was a period when I thought if I spanked him, he would snap out of it. Sometimes he retaliated, and I learned that physical discipline did not work for him.

Eventually, it would pass, but only until the next episode came along, at which point, we just had to hold our breath and wait for it to pass again. It was not a fun way to live.

Getting some real answers

Some time after I began putting all the pieces together, we moved back to our previous town and, again, slacked on our diet a bit. In the spring of 2015, we finally paid for a visit with a holistic practitioner.

The practitioner confirmed the behavioral disorders I suspected, but gave us hope that we could heal them. He sent us home with orders for testing, and about six weeks later, we returned to get the results.

Strep bacteria: our son had strep bacteria overgrowth in his gut. On our way home from that visit, I researched all I could about PANDAS and strep bacteria, and it all finally made sense. I knew that the behavioral changes following an illness was no coincidence.

We started an herbal treatment and things got better for about a month before the results started to wane.

The GAPS diet

This past fall, we did the GAPS intro diet. After months of various herbal treatments, my son was better, but I knew more gut healing was in order, and that the GAPS diet fit the bill.

It went wonderfully. It felt good to eat nourishing foods and we all began to feel good and healthy.

He was doing better than ever, but we were still bound to a strict diet. I wanted to try something new, so on a whim, I created a new protocol for him.

Strep and… parasites?

In the midst of all of our health battles, and all the research I’ve done, I’ve read a lot about how parasites are actively involved in disease. Another mom in a Facebook group mentioned the calming effects diatomaceous earth (DE) was having on her son. DE is a natural silica-based product which kills parasites.

I started giving my son a tablespoon everyday. Like the other mom I’d spoken with, I was astounded at the calming effects it seemed to have.

After about a week of DE, I began giving him what I now look back on as a “game changer.” I gave him oregano leaf tincture twice a day. A full dose is 30-40 drops, but I typically start with only a few drops and work up to 20-30 drops for a child, depending on weight. For my younger children, I may never go past 5-10 drops, but for my child who is almost 11, I’ve given a full dropper (30-40 drops).

The first week on oregano, he was tired and a little sick. The second week, he was a new kid.

He began offering to help out around the house. His food allergies seemed gone. The tics were gone, and he was calm and kind.

For good measure, about 10 days after starting the oregano, I put him on an intestinal tract defense tincture, which was, essentially, for killing parasites. I continued all three treatments together for another week.

UPDATE: a note on dosages

I get more emails and comments asking about dosages than just about anything else. Here is the truth about dosages: I can’t possibly tell you how much of any one supplement to give your child.

Every child is different. Their underlying triggers are different. Some kids battle strep; some kids battle mold; for some it’s epstein barr virus; some have boatloads of parasites or yeast.

Additionally, some children are terribly sensitive and will only tolerate a drop or two of a tincture, while others can tolerate a whole or half dropper.

It’s very important to start very slowly to see how your child tolerates any supplement before upping the dosage, and never start a bunch of supplements all at once because if there’s an adverse reaction, you won’t know which caused it.

Maintaining

Since the miraculous transformation, he’s been able to eat foods he hasn’t had in a long time. He has started creating and maintaining friendships like he’s never been able to before. He’s happy and kind and, at 8, so helpful around the house and with his little brother.

He snuck some soda a few weeks ago, which did set him back, and after enjoying lots of “new” foods, we’ve cleaned up our act a bit, in an effort to give him the best chance at keeping the strep under control.

Recently, our family was hit with a respiratory illness that I suspect strep was involved with, and his tics came back, though the ODD stayed away, hallelujah! I plan to start the three part treatment again this week.

Our journey

A lot of kids who develop PANDAS get really severe OCD and even hallucinate. I think the reason our case was fairly mild is because when my son was infected, we were already eating an organic, clean diet, free of food dyes and other harmful ingredients that can exacerbate the symptoms. We had also ceased vaccinating by that time, which I know helped.

I think the reason the three part cure actually worked for us, is because we had done SO much work prior, mostly through diet, and through the herbal treatments we had done. I believe every little thing we did got us that much closer to healing.

First and foremost, diet is most important. Once diet is under control and gut inflammation has eased, other treatments have a better chance of working well. If you’re looking to get started with healthier eating, read Heal Behavioral Disorders: remove these ingredients from your child’s diet NOW.

Some parents, if they can even get a doctor who will diagnose PANDAS (it’s not exactly main-stream just yet), choose to use long-term antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals to cure the syndrome.

Such was the case with Beth Alison Maloney, the author of Saving Sammy, a book about her son’s battle with, and subsequent curing of PANDAS. It worked for Sammy, and he was cured of PANDAS, without any diet changes even, but I do wonder about the long-term health effects of long-term antibiotic use.

For more information on improving your child’s behavior and quick, easy, healthy meals, click below:

To re-cap, we used the following treatments to heal the symptoms of PANDAS syndrome:

To heal the gut:

The GAPS diet

To kill pathogens and candida:

biocidin, monolaurin, grapefruit seed extract, and happy belly

To get rid of strep and parasites:

Diatomaceous earth, oregano leaf tincture, and intestinal tract defense

I don’t know what the future holds, but just knowing what it was we were dealing with gives me the knowledge I need to treat it should the need rise again. The most important thing to know is that curing neurological disorders does not begin with a psychiatric medication, but with healing the gut. You know what they say: the gut is the second brain!

UPDATE:

Following the success with these supplements, we added in another supplement to continue keeping symptoms at bay. Read about our holistic approach to oppositional defiant disorder treatment for all the details!

We have also learned that strep is a persistent and cantankerous infection, and we continue to support gut health through a good diet, and use appropriate supplementation as symptoms crop up.

Does your child have PANDAS syndrome? What have you found has helped with symptoms?

March 4, 2016

Vaccines and Autoimmune Disease: Is There a Connection?

I recently wrote about vaccination contraindications and the six types of people who should not be vaccinated. The post has been very popular and I’ve been thrilled to see the information being shared. One question has come up several times since, however, that I want to address, and that’s about the connection between vaccines and autoimmune disease.

People want to know: DO vaccines cause autoimmune disease?

Just from listening to the stories of my friends, without doing any research, I’m inclined to say yes, vaccinations absolutely do cause autoimmune disease. After all, I’ve had three personal friends who were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes following vaccination. I’m inclined to think that’s no coincidence.

But what does the science say?

Vaccines and autoimmune disease: connection or coincidence?

To understand if it’s possible for vaccines to cause autoimmune disease, we first have to understand how vaccines work.

vaccines contain a dead or weakened pathogen (a germ- bacteria, virus, etc).
your body is introduced to this pathogen via the vaccine, and an “imitation” sickness follows.
because the germ is weakened or dead, this imitation sickness provokes your immune system without any outward symptoms of illness.
as your body begins to fight the pathogen, your immune cells, called lymphocytes, create antibodies to the invader.
later, when you are exposed to the same sickness, your body will have already produced antibodies to the disease, making you immune to becoming sick from it.

That’s how vaccines work in a perfect world. It’s how they were designed to work. But we don’t live in a perfect world, and vaccinations don’t work just as they were designed for all children, because vaccinations were created to be used on healthy children.

We don’t live in a perfect world

“Let us have a look at what is happening to children in our modern society. If you look around, how many healthy children do you see? Childhood asthma, eczema, diabetes, allergies, hay fever, digestive disorders, ADHD and autistic spectrum disorders have all gained epidemic proportions! The majority of siblings of autistic children have eczema, asthma or another one of those disorders. And though all these health problems appear to be different, they have one thing in common- a compromised immune system. A compromised immune system is not going to react to environmental insults in the normal way! Vaccination is a huge insult to the immune system.

“The manufacturers of vaccines produce them for children with normal immune system which will react to these vaccines in a predictable way. However, in our modern society, with our modern way of life, we are rapidly moving to a situation where a growing proportion of children do not have a normal immune system and will not produce an expected reaction to the vaccine.

“In some of these children, vaccination, putting an enormous strain on an already compromised immune system, becomes that ‘last straw which breaks the camel’s back’ and brings in the beginning of autism, asthma, eczema, diabetes, etc.” – Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, Gut and Psychology Syndrome

I know we don’t want to think of our children as unhealthy. I work really hard to feed my family nourishing foods and keep their immune systems functioning well. But all my hard work can’t undo the years of damage caused by poor food choices, pharmaceutical use, the poor gut health I passed on to them, or, most of all, the toxic world we live in that, frankly, we can’t do anything about.

So if this is true, if vaccines and autoimmune disease are connected, due to the malfunctioning immune systems of our children and society as a whole, how are they connected? How do vaccines actually cause autoimmune disease?

Vaccines and autoimmune disease: there is a connection

Vaccines cause autoimmune disease in a number of ways, including:

Immune system dysfunction

Because we understand that vaccines were designed to illicit an immune response, it is not a stretch to imagine that the immune response could be a negative one. Indeed, vaccinations can cause the immune system to dysfunction.

T-lymphocytes can become confused and attack the body. The immune system can incite those t-cells to overreact, and begin overproducing antibodies, including those that can attack your own tissue.

When the body is overloaded with antigens following vaccination, instead of having the expected response of creating antibodies, those T-cells become overstimulated and, instead, create autoantibodies. The T-cells are then transformed into cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which, after maturation, cause injury to tissue.

One study concluded “Systemic autoimmunity appears to be the inevitable consequence of over-stimulating the host’s immune ‘system’ by repeated immunization with antigens…” (source)

Another study found that young women developed primary ovary failure following the HPV vaccine. Specific auto-antibodies were found, showing that the young women’s bodies were attacking their ovaries and thyroid. (source)

ASIA (autoimmune syndrome induced by adjuvants)

Adjuvants are the compounds added to vaccinations to increase their efficacy, by provoking a greater immune response. The term ASIA was coined to describe autoimmune syndromes caused by adjuvants, and, as such, is “an umbrella of clinical conditions including post-vaccination adverse reactions.” (source)

One study found that “vaccines are able to elicit the immune system towards an autoimmune reaction…

“Since vaccines are given to previously healthy hosts, who may have never developed the disease had they not been immunized, adverse events should be carefully assessed and evaluated even if they represent a limited number of occurrences. In this review of the literature, there is evidence of vaccine-induced autoimmunity and adjuvant-induced autoimmunity in both experimental models as well as human patients… These mechanisms are shared by different conditions triggered by adjuvants leading to the autoimmune/inflammatory syndrome induced by adjuvants (ASIA syndrome).” (source)

Another study links aluminum-based adjuvants in particular to adverse events related to vaccine adjuvants. (source)

One report implicates the aluminum in vaccinations as a cause of neurodegenerative disease like multiple sclerosis and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. (source)

Authors of these studies conclude that adjuvants are clearly to blame for some autoimmune reactions, and that the need for more studies is urgent. One author stated, “…efforts to unveil the connection between the triggering of the immune system by adjuvants and the development of autoimmune conditions should be undertaken. Vaccinomics is a field that may bring to light novel, customized, personalized treatment approaches in the future.” (source)

In other words, as I wrote about in “vaccination contraindications: six people who should not be vaccinated,” vaccination is not a one-size-fits-all medical procedure, and more studies need to be done, as well as testing of individuals prior to vaccination, in order for medicine to be responsibly practiced in the future.

Antigens actually infect organs

Let’s go back to how vaccines work: they introduce a very small amount of dead or weakened antigen to the body so that the body can easily fight it and create antibodies without actually becoming outwardly sick.

But what happens when the immune system is not strong enough to fight off even these “innocent” antigens? The antigens can, instead, settle into tissues, infecting organs and creating disease.

A report from the National Vaccine Information Center details how the viruses rubella and mumps infect pancreatic islet cells, leading to type 1 diabetes.

The report states, “Doctors started making reports in the medical literature as early as 1949 that some children injected with pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine (now part of the DPT or DTaP shot) were having trouble maintaining normal glucose levels in their blood. Lab research has confirmed that pertussis vaccine can cause diabetes in mice.

As diabetes research progressed in the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s, there were observations that viral infections may be a co-factor in causing diabetes.” (source)

A study done by J Barthelow Classen, president of Classen Immunotherapies and former researcher at the National Institutes of Health, found a causal relationship between type 1 diabetes and the Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type b) vaccine, with those receiving the Hib being more likely to develop diabetes than those who did not receive the shot, and diabetes was more likely to develope with increased dosages of the Hib vaccine. The study concluded, “The rise in diabetes, just one potential adverse effect, exceeds the benefit of the vaccine…” (source)

It has also been reported that children with autism (which many believe is, in fact, autoimmune in nature) have been found to have a measles infection in their gut. I personally know of a little boy for whom this was the case, and who improved greatly after treating the measles infection.

While you will mostly find medical literature to the contrary, there are studies pointing to the connection between measles virus infection in the gut and autism, also known as pervasive developmental disorder. One study found that “a failed cellular immune response to measles vaccine is a potential cause of autoimmunity.” (source) This takes us back to understanding that when a weakened immune system does not properly fight off an antigen, in this case measles, the antigen can then settle into the body’s tissues, in this case, the gut.

Every body is different

As the quote from Campbell-McBride reveals, today’s children may not be “healthy” enough for vaccinations. Due to immune system weakness and environmental factors, we simply cannot predict how each individual will respond to vaccinations, and every body is different.

If we do not begin to take seriously the concerns raised by researchers in recent years, the incidence of autoimmune disease, already on the rise in children, may become worse.

Do you have a child who was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition following vaccination?

Please share this post so others can learn about the vaccines and autoimmune disease connection!

January 19, 2016

Six People Who Should Not Be Vaccinated Because of Vaccine Contraindications

Even the staunchest vaccine proponents must admit: vaccines are not a one-size-fits-all procedure, and some people will suffer adverse reactions. Below are some common vaccine contraindications that may surprise you.

With recent vaccine debates ramping up due to increased legislation and reported outbreaks, there seem to be a lot of folks who think everyone should be vaccinated, and those who choose not to vaccinate should be penalized.

There’s a lot of fear-mongering in the media. Realistically, we must remember that vaccinations are a medical procedure. There are risks. Vaccinations are not right for everyone. There are contraindications to childhood vaccinations.

Vaccine contraindications

Just like a particular surgery or prescription medication won’t work well for everyone, vaccinations are not a good choice for everyone.

Some people, in particular, are much more likely to have adverse reactions to vaccinations, including:

1. Those with an autoimmune disease

When one has an autoimmune disease, it means their immune system has begun attacking their own bodily tissues. Examples of this are arthritis, thyroid disease, fibromyalgia, lupus, and multiple sclerosis. Did you know that common childhood conditions like allergies, eczema, asthma, and digestive disorders are also signs of autoimmune disease or immune system dysfunction?

Vaccinations are designed to elicit an immune response. When the immune system is already malfunctioning, it does not respond as intended to vaccinations. Instead, it may become further confused.

For adults with an autoimmune disease, this could mean a worsening of symptoms or new systems. For children with existing autoimmune symptoms, this assault on the immune system could be the straw that broke the camel’s back and lead to worsening or new autoimmune conditions like type one diabetes, or even autism.

According to Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, author of Gut and Psychology Syndrome,

A compromised immune system is not going to react to environmental insults in the normal way! Vaccination is a huge insult to the system. The manufacturers of vaccines produce them for children with normal immune systems which will react to these vaccines in a predictable way.

However, in our modern society with our modern way of life, we are rapidly moving to a situation where a growing proportion of children do not have a normal immune system and will not produce an expected reaction to the vaccine.

Curious about the link between vaccines and autoimmune disease? Read: vaccines and autoimmune disease: is there a connection?

2. Children born to a mother with an autoimmune disease

In the same respect, children of mothers with an autoimmune disease are more likely to already have a malfunctioning immune system. Children born to mothers with fibromyalgia, digestive disorders, severe allergies, eczema, asthma, or neurological disorders should not be vaccinated, according to Dr. Campbell-McBride.

Because immune dysfunction is not always visible upon birth, it is best to avoid them altogether for infants born to mothers suffering from these conditions.

3. Those with genetic mutations

You may have heard of the dreaded genetic mutation by now: MTHFR. It, along with various other genetic mutations, makes an individual’s detoxification system function less than optimally.

According to Chris Kesser,

[MTHFR mutation] affects detoxification. …Methylation is required to produce glutathione, which is one of the major molecules in a detoxification cycle, but if you don’t methylate properly, you won’t be able to detoxify properly, so what this can lead to is a higher susceptibility to heavy metal toxicity and toxicity from any source like pesticides, other environmental toxins and pollutants, mold toxicity, toxicity from lipopolysaccharide or any other bacterial or pathogen-based toxin – so just in a general, an increased susceptibility to toxic overload because the body is not able to detoxify properly.

It is estimated that 40-60% of people have the MTHFR mutation, and as such, may not be good candidates for vaccination. (Read more about what MTHFR does here.)

As stated above, those with this genetic mutation have a difficult time detoxifying heavy metals, environmental toxins and pollutants, and other bacterial or pathogen-based toxins.

What do vaccinations contain? Heavy metals (mercury, aluminum), environmental toxins and pollutants (formaldehyde, monosodium glutamate, antibiotics), and bacteria and pathogens (the diseases they are formulated to create an immune response to, among others due to contamination). Read: Heavy Metal Toxicity: How to Help Kids Detox.

4. Anyone who is sick

It is well-known that those who are immunocompromised, such as those with HIV or cancer, cannot receive vaccinations. Likewise, those who are suffering from a moderate or severe illness (with or without fever) may not be good candidates for vaccination.

During times of illness, the immune system is working hard. Vaccinations serve to stimulate the immune system, so an already taxed immune system is likely to malfunction when overloaded with pathogens and the toxins that accompany them. It is advised that those suffering from an illness use caution when considering vaccination.

5. Pregnant women

I hear from pregnant women often about how their doctors have pressured them into getting shots during their pregnancy. It can be very confusing, particularly when a mama’s gut instinct is to decline them. Vaccination during pregnancy has not been extensively studied.

One study concluded, however, that vaccination with live or live-attenuated (weakened) vaccines are contraindicated in pregnancy due to risk to the fetus. The study authors suggest that women of child-bearing age be tested for pregnancy before being immunized and women who have been recently immunized wait to become pregnant for at least four weeks.

Another study of the VAERS reporting system revealed a 4,250% increase in fetal death following flu vaccination. The study concluded “a synergistic fetal toxicity likely resulted from the administration of both the pandemic (A-H1N1) and seasonal influenza vaccines during the 2009/2010 season.”

Researchers were also unable to demonstrate the efficacy of the flu vaccination during pregnancy for mothers or, later, the babies born to them.

The CDC lists pregnancy as a contraindication for vaccinations for the live-attenuated flu, varicella (chicken pox), zoster (shingles), and MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

6. Those who have previously had a reaction to a vaccination

According to the CDC, vaccine contraindications include those who have previously had a severe allergic reaction (such as anaphylaxis) to a vaccine, as well as those who previously suffered encephalopathy (coma, decreased level of consciousness, or prolonged seizures) following a vaccine.

Other reactions that may be of note are large, swollen knots at the injection site, asthma or other autoimmune condition development soon after vaccination, or high, persistent fever following vaccination.

Adverse events following vaccination are not always easy to spot, so it’s important to know what to look for. Adverse reactions may include seizure, vomiting, headache, dizziness, fainting, or stiff joints or muscles.

If you have a child who has had an adverse reaction to vaccinations, you may find our free e-book helpful. Sign up to receive it here.

Another post you may find helpful: Five Ingredients to Remove from Your Child’s Diet. You’ll get a good starting place from which to make big changes.

Finally, don’t forget to read about Our Favorite Supplement to Treat ADHD (and other behavioral disorders).

One size does not fit all

Clearly, vaccinations are not the right choice for everyone, and each family should decide what is right for them and their children. When parents are aware of vaccine contraindications, they can make informed and safer choices for their children.

Please share this post so that other parents can learn about vaccine contraindications and decide if vaccination is right for their children.

October 2, 2015

The Autism Sessions- Gordon’s Story

My friend Tracee has told me about how her son, Gordon, used to have autism, but he doesn’t anymore. She’s told me about the hard work it took to heal him from autism, but listening to this confident, committed momma relay the entire story is something else altogether. Tracee delved into the world of whole-food health to heal her toddler about eight years ago, and today, Gordon is happy and healthy, and Tracee has learned a lot about healing her own body along with way.

A Trail of Incidences… That All Led to Autism

Gordon as a baby, before the multiple rounds of antibiotics. He was happy and hit all his milestones on time.

Gordon was about 18 months old when things really started going downhill. He was born healthy, alert and breastfeeding well, but at two days old became jaundiced. He began to have trouble breastfeeding and started having severe reflux and colic. Tracee says the pediatrician told her that her milk was “bad,” but now she wishes she would’ve known how to change her diet and stick it out. Gordon would suffer from 12-16 hours a day of colic. When they started using a special formula, it seemed to help. Around a year old, Gordon was social and would “work a room.”

However, when Gordon was about 18 months old, he had an ear infection, for which he was prescribed antibiotics. This, Tracee says, was the turning point for Gordon. The antibiotics gave him diarrhea and he stopped sleeping through the night. Over the course of a year he had the flu and strep several times. He was on antibiotics all the time. By the end of the year, he had lost eye contact, speech, and interaction with his family for the most part. He did, however, love books and would come over and make sounds if he saw someone with a book.

It was at this time that Gordon had begun throwing tantrums, which Tracee says were so bad, they could not go out in public. “He had constant tantrums and quit eating. He would go for weeks at a time without eating anything substantial,” she says. But Tracee would soon learn there was something very seriously wrong. “I knew he would need speech therapy so I got a book about what to expect from therapy. One of the things it said was if your child has lost speech or is staring at lights- run, don’t walk, to get tested for autism.”

An Important Supplement

Gordon, after beginning omega 3 supplementation. He was calmer and the tantrums had eased, but the autism was still there. You can see him lining objects up in this picture, a common sign of autism.

In that same book, there was a chapter on the importance of omega fats, which described the work of a doctor named Gordon Bell, who found that autistic kids were lacking in omega 3s, and that some kids regained their speech after fish oil supplementation, so Tracee started using them for Gordon. (Note: I suggest getting omega fats in using cod liver or other high-quality fish oil, which is well-absorbed in the body and brain. We use this brand.)

Gordon’s dry skin and cradle cap cleared up after starting fish oil. Soon, he started to make eye contact with grown ups (though he still wasn’t interacting with his peers). His babbling increased and started to sound more normal and he picked up new skills like sucking through a straw. Around this time, Tracee miscarried twins… just as Gordon got his hugging skills back. Tracee says it was a comfort to be able to experience physical affection from Gordon again.

The omega 3 had eased tantrums and Gordon had begun sleeping 5-6 hours a night. Next, Tracee removed Red40 from his diet and the tantrums completely stopped, and after a couple days he was sleeping through the night. He was also going through speech therapy and learning to sign some words, but it was moving painfully slow. After a month or two he had only about three words down.

Tracee read Jenny McCarthy’s book on a gluten free, casein free diet, and it began to make sense. Gordon had always had gastrointestinal issues, and would pass very large stools. So, Tracee, says, she read in the medical journals about what kind of issues gluten and casein could cause. “I wasn’t looking for a miracle,” she says, but the puzzle pieces were starting to fit together.

“I’d had autoimmune problems my whole life and began to think maybe I had gluten problems. I had been reading about food allergies and began to read about allergens that might be in shots,” Tracee says, “Gordon had had a bad case of conjunctivitis when he was one week old. It was cultured and it came back negative for bacteria and viruses. Later, I learned one of the newborn shots had bakers yeast, which is a common allergen for those with Chrons and celiac. I think that’s what caused the infection. When I stopped eating gluten and bakers yeast, I felt better. Anytime I ate something with bakers yeast, I would immediately start braking out in canker sores.” Removing bakers yeast made no difference for Gordon, however.

The Answer She Was Looking For

Tracee says, “Around that time, I ran across something about the SCD [specific carbohydrate diet]. It caught my interest but it took some preparation. Thankfully, I had some cooking skills. In the meantime, I pulled sugar and added kefir to our diet. I had horrible die off symptoms. I should’ve put two weeks between the two because it was too much.”

Tracee describes something called posturing: “Gordon would lay with his belly against the couch.” (This is thought to be done by autistic children because their bellies hurt and it may help to relieve gastrointestinal pain and pressure.) After starting SCD, “Gordon was happy, but when I would change his diaper there would be truckloads of nasty stuff coming out of him!” she says. She describes a smiling, happy face on one end… and something else entirely coming out the other!

By three weeks into SCD, Gordon had about 5 new words he said in one day! Before, he had lost climbing skills and the ability to ride on toys, but after starting SCD, he began riding around, climbing and noticing other kids. He had what Tracee calls “permagrin” for about two weeks- he was so much happier and more pleasant.

Before this, the rehab center wanted to start seeing Gordon twice a week. When the nutritionist saw the improvement from changing his diet, she suggested IGG food allergy testing. The test showed he was becoming allergic to everything he ate, so Tracee learned how to rotate his foods, so he could only have each type of food once every four days. Thankfully, Tracee says, working with a nutritionist while they were doing SCD with such a limited diet was incredibly helpful. She notes that she made lots of juices out of vegetables and fruits with an added teaspoon of different oils to add calories.

Gordon about two months into SCD. Tracee says it was the best Mother’s Day ever, because Gordon had come back to her!

A shot of Gordon’s “yeast belly,” a hallmark of children with autism and gastrointestinal disorders. Tracee says this symptom took a while to resolve.

No Autism Here

A couple weeks later, as Gordon was nearing age three, he was evaluated through the school district. Tracee says, “they said ‘No. Nope. No. There’s no autism here.’ But we were still worried about catching him up because he had just missed out on 18 months of development. We were then able to see a developmental pediatrician.” The developmental pediatrician has helped them to continue healing Gordon as they walk through remaining symptoms.

Gordon, now ten years old, is a typical kid. “We went from a child with full-blown autism. I had lost my child. Now he has best friends. He has a few issues that still allow for a high-functioning, mild diagnosis,” Tracee says [which they prefer to keep so that he can receive needed services].

She is encouraged because even conventional medical doctors are learning about SCD. “There is now positive research about SCD. Even our conventional gastrologist is familiar with it,” she says. But she also emphasizes making small changes as you’re able, noting what an improvement they saw just from adding the omega 3s when Gordon was 2 ½. From seeing the improvement at each step, Tracee learned “Every little degree of improvement you get makes life easier.”

Gordon at age 4 1/2, about two years after beginning SCD: happy, interactive, and playing with other children!

My beautiful friend, Tracee, and her happy, healthy Gordon, in a recent picture.

Tracee’s powerful story is such a testament to how much healing can be achieved by food alone, and that through steady changes, even over a period of time, healing can come!

July 23, 2015

Brendan’s Story: Deliverance from Autism

I pick up the phone to call Candace, and I’m excited because I know she has a story to tell. I don’t expect to be hit full force, to see God’s full-on glory in this one phone conversation. But I do. And the excited voice on the other end can’t help but spread His glory, His love, her story. A story about how He makes the blind see and the autistic see more clearly. A story of a family fighting for health, fighting against hell itself to claim the abundant life we’re offered even now.

Her story begins with autism, but autism is no longer part of the story. Candace’s son, Brendan has been healed of autism, which she says “was definitely, 100% a touch from the Lord”, but it was something she had to walk out and work through. “Some people want a miracle, where healing is instantaneous versus having to walk out a process of healing that takes time,” she says. “Too many people feel a touch from the Lord, but because they don’t have instantaneous healing, they choose not to believe it and instead partner with the enemy [and believe they are not being healed].”

Candace, a bible-believing Christian, references Revelation 21:4, saying “The bible says that there’s no sickness in Heaven. We are seated in Heaven and call the kingdom down to us.” So if there’s no sickness in Heaven, she says, we can also hope to have no sickness here on earth.

But Candace pulls no punches: “We have to make choices in the process.” She says that when she decided enough was enough, “I said, ‘I don’t want my kid to have autism anymore.’ So, we started making positive choices. We stopped putting food coloring in our bodies. We tried gluten free for a while. We took out high fructose corn syrup. We saw a difference just from the food coloring and high fructose corn syrup, but I was still sick and doing the best I could, so I wasn’t ready to make big changes yet.”

Around this time, Candace was at a gathering with other believers when a speaker called her up and told her her son was going to be healed from autism. The woman did not know Candace, but her prophetic words would have a powerful effect. Two years later, Candace says, something came alive in her: “Probably a word from the Lord. I began believing for Brendan’s autism to be healed.” They hit a turning point when speaker Chris Gore came to their town. Chris had seen kids heal from autism and Candace knew she had to take Brendan to see him. At the end of a long night of Chris praying over many people, Candace was feeling like she shouldn’t ask for prayer for Brendan, but Brendan insisted! When Chris prayed over him, Candace says, Brendan tangibly felt the autism “lift off” of him. This was May 23 of 2013.

“Did we immediately see no signs of autism? Nope. Was it immediately better? Yes!” says Candace. “We immediately weaned him off of his medicine and stopped seeing doctors. I refused to partner with doctors who would tell me healing wasn’t possible.” Candace emphasizes that medication is a personal decision and something she prayed about. She felt the Lord gave her permission to wean Brendan off his medications.

But even as healing took place, she says, “The enemy would throw things in my face.” She would notice Brendan exhibiting an autistic behavior, so she would say “in Jesus’ name, no. My son doesn’t have autism.”

At this time, Candace’s husband, Kelly, was deployed. Although he had asked her to do the GAPS diet in the past and had encouraged better eating habits, Candace had not been convinced of the importance of nutrition. She says the Lord began to urge her to give her husband authority. So when Kelly came home from deployment in October of 2013, they began to make plans and prepare for GAPS. They started the diet in January of 2014. “It was hard and it was hell. We tried to talk ourselves out of it so many times. One week passed, then a month, then 6 months. At 9 months, we felt so much better. And Brendan had started growing quickly, like he hadn’t since he was a baby.”

Brendan’s autism, Candace believes, was caused by a combination of factors. Brendan had been adopted and his mother had consumed alcohol and done drugs when she was pregnant with him. Candace says that adding vaccinations, pharmaceuticals and poor diet onto an unhealthy pregnancy, as well as several surgeries in his younger years, contributed to Brendan’s eventual diagnosis. The one beautiful and natural thing she was able to do for him? Although he was adopted, Candace was able to breastfeed Brendan at 7 hours old, and continued for many months.

In the midst of Brendan’s health problems, Candace was dealing with health battles of her own, including fibromyalgia, anxiety, and depression. Candace says she’d been in and out of mental hospitals for years and was, herself, in need of healing. “Momma has to be healthy,” she says, and being depressed and suicidal prevented her from helping Brendan get healthy. Once she decided to submit to her husband and try the diet he suggested, however, and they chose to implement it as a family, they began to heal as a family.

Candace and Brendan, post-Gaps.

Candace is quick to reiterate that “Sometimes there are things we have to do. It’s not our acts that get us to heaven. But God wants us to act. Yes, He can instantaneously heal us. But that doesn’t mean we can eat whatever we want. We have to do our part. We have to partner with Him.” She says that might not look the same for every family, and families have to focus on what they can, one thing at a time: “This month focus on gluten, then sugar, then whatever.”

Candace likes to say that “God is a God of ‘the but suddenlies’ [meaning ‘but suddenly there’s a miracle’]. He’s also the God of ‘I’m going to make you a promise’ and He keeps His promises, but we don’t know when it’s going to be fulfilled,” she says. She does know one thing: “I choose to believe that God’s good and He’s for us. He does not do this to our children to punish us or teach us a lesson. We stopped putting things on the Lord that were not from Him.”

As far as keeping up morale and putting yourself in a position to succeed, Candace says, “You’ve got to celebrate the small things. It’s also important to get in community with other people who think like you, who believe that Jesus is who He says He is. Do not get involved with people who believe more what the doctor says than what Jesus says.” Instead, she interacts with people who pray for her. She says that medication is not terrible and that God gave people minds, but that we need to be able to know when to use drugs and when not to.

And the GAPS Diet? She has some tips about that too:

“It’s going to be hard,” she says, and although her whole family hated “all the food all the time” and they were all irritable, she knew she was doing what was best for them. She reminded herself and wants to remind others: “[Your children] are not going to die or starve!” Eventually, her family began craving the nutrition their bodies so desperately needed and the much-hated foods became staples in their home. Even though they’ve transitioned to a traditional diet from GAPS, they still drink bone broth every morning because they actually like and crave it!

Finally, Candace says it’s important to keep a goal in mind. A picture or a scripture of what health and wholeness looks like to your family will help to keep spirits and motivation up when quitting seems more appealing. “You have to be able to remind yourself why you’re doing this,” she says.

For parents with autistic children, the motivation seems clear enough. And for kids like Brendan, who is now a sociable, happy part of a healthy family, the work is worth it!