Did anything really surprise or shock you in your research?

“Two things were shocking. We exposed ourselves to all kinds of daily products and measured our blood before, during and after that exposure. After doing those experiments, we found elevated levels of the chemicals in our blood. So, for example, I’ve been doing mercury research for about ten years but I’d never actually consciously sat down, eaten a bunch of tuna and measured my levels. I found that my mercury levels almost tripled in a few days, just by consuming several tuna meals consecutively.”

As anyone involved with autism in some capacity is painfully aware the discussion of mercury as an underlying causal agent in some ASD’s is heated and everpresent.  It is usually in regard to vaccinations, but the recent change in position of many of the most vocal autism groups (Green our vaccines campaign) has moved, to some extent, away from that line of causality.  Never the less, I find it incredibly interesting what the author found regarding his mercury exposure from eating tuna.  I also remember reading a review of a scientific paper that showedd a correlation (yes, I know what that means and does not mean) between autism rates and environmental mercury levels in Texas.

For me this just confirms that anyone that dismisses the idea that some ASD’s can be manifestations of environmental exposure to toxins is naive or has their “head in the sand”.  This book, which I might consider trying to read, sounds like it may provide some rudimentary, anecdotal data on how exposure to everyday items can have a profound impact on our internal environment. Now consider the impact for pregnant mothers and unborn babies as they develop.

Perhaps there is something to the “detox” aspect of alternative autism treatments.  At best it is helping and at worst it is unlikely to be doing any harm and is just making your bank account lighter.  I don’t think I would go so far as to support full chemical chelation as a good option for all ASD’s, but it is undoubtedly appropriate in some cases and should be considered as option for some.  Would we do this with K?  Not likely, not without some good compelling evidence from medical tests that it was warranted.

Anyone have any thoughts on the subject?  Please let us know what you think.

There is much of the book that will resonate with many parents of ASD kids. For the most part the book was very readable, and only took a few hours to finish. For me this was both a good and bad point. Her sense of humour and openness made her very easy to relate to and I think she endeavored to pass on some useful information but may have been “hamstrung” by her publisher’s legal department. For parents that have been dealing with ASD for some time, and have been doing some research, there is little that will be new here. But, as she mentions in the book this may serve as more of a “my child has just been diagnosed with Autism- Now what?” brochure.

I even found the resources section at the end of the book to be very limited, especially in light of the amount of research/reading she alludes to, and of little help to us at this point. I also took issue with other aspects of the book but as they are my opinions and not really relevant to the information she tries to convey I will keep them to myself, but suffice it to say dads get a bad rap in my opinion.

I do commend her for coming out so strongly in the public. As someone with a certain amount of celebrity, in a culture so focussed on appearance and the perception of perfection it speaks loudly of her resolve and commitment to the subject matter to speak so candidly. I hope, as I’m sure she does, that this will draw more attention (and resources) into this area as it is so badly needed (read some of her statistics).

For someone just starting to investigate ASD this would not be a bad choice. It paints a realistic picture of what is required to not only cope with ASD but to struggle and labour to ensure your child is getting what is required to make as much progress as possible. However, it is definitely just a starting point and much more research and reading would be required to keep your child on the path to improvement.

This portion of the site is to help organize information as well as add a personal bent to it. We are hoping that this added dimensionality will enhance the content and add a different perspective to it and, perhaps, make it more useful or meaningful.

On a more personal note, my hope is that the site can act as an electronic organizer for our thoughts and experiences and ensure that information is kept safe and not tainted by time, or my poor memory.

Beyond that I think the site can serve as a record for our son, an electronic diary of his early years that he can look back on. Perhaps for our daughter as well so that later in life it can help her understand her brother’s early struggles and, upon reflection, perhaps hers as well. For there can be little doubt that our son’s condition has had an impact on her, both directly and indirectly, of which she can, at times, be all too aware.

And finally, but no less importantly, it provides a means of expression for things that all too often go unspoken but are too important to go unsaid.

Our son has been exposed to many different alternative treatments with various degrees of success, but many of the outcomes, and his responses, have been nothing short of surprising. I am hoping to document here what we have been doing, why we pursued a particular treatment, and our thoughts on the results. If I can find willing participants I will post information about the service providers and perhaps we can get them to write a post or I can link to their information if it is available on-line.

We do have some information here on some of the treatments we have been using, or at least researching for consideration. Please feel free to let us know and comment on your experiences or other treatments you have tried and found success with.

As we are continuing to realize information sharing is key to finding successful treatment options for ASD. This is true on all fronts regardless of your “ASD philosophy”. With the condition encompassing such a broad range of symptoms it is important to keep an open-mind and to continually explore what is going on in the field of treatment and the community at large. The key, for us, has been to broaden our definition of what constitutes treatment and our son has been reaping the benefits.

This leads to what will likely be the focus of another post, which is the necessity for constant research and staying current. I will just say for now that it is up to us as parents to be as informed as possible. To rely on others to make important treatment decisions without being adequately informed before hand can be, in a word – disastrous. We, as parents, endeavor to be as involved as possible in the decision making process because ultimately, it is that unwavering commitment that has been the gateway to improvement for our child.