Semi-Crunchy Lifestyle

According to the Online Slang Dictionary, “Crunchy” is defined as:

hippie-esque; “all-natural”. Refers to the crunch of granola, which (as goes the stereotype) hippies are likely to eat.

How did I get caught up in the crunchy movement you ask?  It basically was the desperate attempt to help my son who is a high functioning autistic.  I wanted to avoid medication because I truly believed at the time that there was no such thing as ADD, ADHD, ASD, etc.  I always thought they were excuses parents used because they had not-so-smart, naughty kids.  Then I had this sweet, super smart little boy who was soooo… quirky.  After YEARS of hoping he would grow out of it like everyone kept telling me he would, I realized he wasn’t.  After typing his traits and problems in to a search engine, I came back with hit after hit about Asperger’s and other forms of high functioning autism.  It was like I had written almost every single one.  I began the psychological testing cycle.

First diagnosis was Bipolar Disorder but I was not comfortable with the doctor, her report, or the fact that she wanted him on anti-psychotic drugs ASAP and another doctor in her office was able to write the prescription ASAP for me.  I asked my insurance company for a second opinion and got one.  This report came back as Asperger’s with signs of ADHD.  No medication necessary and he seemed to well with counseling.  Then we received military orders, moved to Ohio, and all Hell broke loose.  Despite both reports being less than a year old, I was told I had to get ANOTHER evaluation.  So I did and it came back the same:  Asperger’s.  The doctors on base (oh yeah we’re military) weren’t convinced though and we were referred to Mental Health on base where he had to undergo MORE evaluations.  Survey after survey was sent to his school (at this point we had been here almost a year!) and with the teacher surveys, my surveys, and the base doctor’s observation, we wound up with a diagnosis of ADHD-Inattentive.

By this point I had tried the Feingold Diet but had little success with it.  I had eliminated artificials dyes before and definitely noticed a difference especially when my son was reintroduced to dyes after not having them.  However the doctors all patted me on the head and informed me that there was no such thing as a dye allergy.  I was seriously depressed because 7 years worth of almost daily phone calls from teachers, conferences with teachers, emails from teachers, all concerned about his behavior and mental health, were taking their toll on me.  So I read about medications that have been shown to help children with Asperger’s and ADHD (since both conditions usually cohabit the same child) and I decided to try the medication.  It wasn’t easy.  I cried when I picked up that first bottle of Concerta for him.

But you know what?  Within less than 24 hours, he was like a “normal” boy temperamentally.  It used to be you could not talk to him without him becoming defensive.  He was always so angry and yet he would burst in to tears for reasons he could never explain.  He had major meltdowns in public situations.  With Concerta he has gotten so much better and he doesn’t have that “zombie” effect that people tell you happens.  He is still himself just less emotional.  He finished up 6th grade and 7th grade went by pretty smoothly.  It was the first time in his academic career that I did NOT receive ANY phone calls from his teachers!  After he finished 7th grade, I took him off of Concerta for the summer to see how he did.  No mood swings like before, overall pleasant demeanor, and he was a bit more organized than usual but that isn't saying much because he's an incredibly disorganized kid.  ;)

That was a pretty long story, huh?  But all the reading about artificial dyes, colors, preservatives, etc. really opened my eyes as to what is in our food.  My youngest child has been diagnosed with Childhood Apraxia of Speech.  While reading about that guess what issue came up?  Artificial dyes having an effect on language.  So once again I began cutting out junk food.  There were times when I had some in the house and as soon as she had some, her speech would become even less intelligible than ever and she would go completely bonkers.

So I’ve cut out the crap and I’m forcing my kids to eat healthy and fairly clean while they are at home.  Am I living 100% clean?  Oh heavens to Betsy not even close!  I’m probably 80% crunchy but it's better than nothing.

It’s good to be the mom.