It's been a hectic couple of weeks. I've been meaning to post an update for the last week or so but honestly just haven't had the time to do it. Between making homemade soups and yogurt for Jordan, keeping up with the home, catching up on Bible studies and numerous other assignments, my days have been completely full. I never expected this diet to make me feel like I have a full time job. But that's exactly how I feel. I wake up in the morning sometimes having to start yogurt around 7 or 8 o'clock in the morning. Kneading cabbage and salt to create it's own juices so I can let it ferment for a week for him to have sauerkraut takes time and patience. Boiling bones for hours at a time every other day to have stock and chopping vegetables for soup is very tiresome. Especially when it's something you have to do 7 days out of the week. And I still have to keep up with my assistant director duties for the ministry. Doing everything I have been for the last few weeks have been exhausting. Exhausting but very rewarding.
Psalm 119:50 (NKJV) "This is my comfort in my affliction, For Your word has given me life." I have seen improvement in many areas of my life that can only be because of following the path I was given by God. So everything I am doing, no matter how tired I may be, is all worth it.
As far as the diet is going, I am pretty much still in stage one. I added one raw egg yolk to his soup once a day last week for 5 days, but it seemed to make his stimming increase. It has been about a week since I have removed it, but I don't plan to introduce it again until I can purchase more beef bones for soup. The last couple of times I went to the farm they were out and are expected to get more back in this week. Beef provides the most gelatinous stocks. The gelatin is good because it is a hydrophillic protein that helps with digestion. So he's only been getting chicken and fish and just Saturday I introduced lamb. Up until then he always asked for the fish, which is another thing that I didn't expect. He enjoyed the fish way more than I thought he was going to. I used red snapper because it is a less oily fish. Using fish that is too oily can develop an off taste if cooked for too long. Because of the smell that it produced when boiling it, I was expecting when he took his first bites that he would turn up his nose. He didn't though and it is the only stock I have given him that he didn't ask to dump down the drain either. But just this morning he asked for the lamb for breakfast. Looks like he has a new favorite.
I intend to make a casserole from the other two shanks of lamb I purchased. I really want to get out of stage one and give him more than just soup. However, I'm not sure that I have enough to get through the week if I don't make him another batch of soup with it. I just started some pork stock for him to drink and if that lasts him through the week as far as drinking, I may be able to do it. After the pork is done in about 3½ hours, I will make the chicken stock with the whole chicken and probably add the rest of the fish I have to the fish stock to make him fish soup. With him having those, it's more than likely enough to get him through the week with making the casserole. But I will have to go up to Wegman's to buy more lamb because I doubt that will make it through the week. I am in hopes the pork stock will be gelatinous as well. If it is I will try to add the egg back in later in the week so we can really get into stage 2. If not, no big deal. Everything that's worth anything will take some time. I just don't want to remain in this stage too long when I really could have moved on. I don't want to waste any time.
Last week after the egg and the orange he dug his fingers into, Jordan became very hyper. The egg had been removed for quite some time before he encountered the orange, but he was still less calm in between time. But it seems as though the thing that triggers him now, is me. When I am not home and he is just here with his dad or sisters, he is calm. No stimming, verbal or physical. But when I get home he makes loud noises, runs water when he shouldn't, hits himself and my laptop and turns on the intercom system. It's like he's looking for me to give him attention. I just don't understand why when he has a lot of my attention. Every time I walk by him I am giving him a high five or when he's standing next to me, almost my height I might add, I'm giving him a hug and/or a kiss. It's just something about me that triggers him. That is not a good thing because I use what I see in him to judge whether or not I should remove something new that I added to him. If he's going to be like that every time I come home or am around him, my judgement will not be valid. Luckily there are a lot of times that I am not home where other people can tell me just how he is and I can go off their opinions of him. He hasn't shown any problems at school except for the day that he didn't get any yogurt in the morning and when we went to get his blood drawn this past Saturday he did not tear up at all. Only the second time since we have been getting blood work done.
All in all, I believe the diet has been a success so far. Seeing him do things he is capable of for more than a few days is such a great achievement. Bad behaviors are down and his happiness is still the same. It all gives me so much hope for his future.
Psalm 119:71 (MSG) "My troubles turned out all for the best— they forced me to learn from your textbook." Having a child with Autism has been the reason for seeking the Lord the way that I did. Now that I have a growing relationship with Him, learning from Him daily and asking for guidance, life has improved. It's not perfect, nor should I expect it to be. But I am thankful everyday that I'm not where I was. He has truly blessed my family and deserves all the glory!
As far as the diet is going, I am pretty much still in stage one. I added one raw egg yolk to his soup once a day last week for 5 days, but it seemed to make his stimming increase. It has been about a week since I have removed it, but I don't plan to introduce it again until I can purchase more beef bones for soup. The last couple of times I went to the farm they were out and are expected to get more back in this week. Beef provides the most gelatinous stocks. The gelatin is good because it is a hydrophillic protein that helps with digestion. So he's only been getting chicken and fish and just Saturday I introduced lamb. Up until then he always asked for the fish, which is another thing that I didn't expect. He enjoyed the fish way more than I thought he was going to. I used red snapper because it is a less oily fish. Using fish that is too oily can develop an off taste if cooked for too long. Because of the smell that it produced when boiling it, I was expecting when he took his first bites that he would turn up his nose. He didn't though and it is the only stock I have given him that he didn't ask to dump down the drain either. But just this morning he asked for the lamb for breakfast. Looks like he has a new favorite.
Last week after the egg and the orange he dug his fingers into, Jordan became very hyper. The egg had been removed for quite some time before he encountered the orange, but he was still less calm in between time. But it seems as though the thing that triggers him now, is me. When I am not home and he is just here with his dad or sisters, he is calm. No stimming, verbal or physical. But when I get home he makes loud noises, runs water when he shouldn't, hits himself and my laptop and turns on the intercom system. It's like he's looking for me to give him attention. I just don't understand why when he has a lot of my attention. Every time I walk by him I am giving him a high five or when he's standing next to me, almost my height I might add, I'm giving him a hug and/or a kiss. It's just something about me that triggers him. That is not a good thing because I use what I see in him to judge whether or not I should remove something new that I added to him. If he's going to be like that every time I come home or am around him, my judgement will not be valid. Luckily there are a lot of times that I am not home where other people can tell me just how he is and I can go off their opinions of him. He hasn't shown any problems at school except for the day that he didn't get any yogurt in the morning and when we went to get his blood drawn this past Saturday he did not tear up at all. Only the second time since we have been getting blood work done.
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