Picky Eaters

 We all know how picky kids can be, but imagine a child that has sensory issues and fear of food on top of being picky. So yeah, my kid eats very little. We have tried food therapy and it came down to this being more psychological than a sensory issue, which I think is good because we can work to change his mind. We have tried all forms of bribery for him to try new things and he didn’t care about it. Recently, I found a way to sneak around the being picky problem so I thought I would share what is working for us. My son (and most kids 😆) love watching other kids  play games and compete in challenges on YouTube. I thought of saying each day we will have a taste test challenge where he takes a bite of a new food. It has been working! He’s not eating a whole new diet but he will chew up something he’s never tried before and swallow it if he likes it. If he doesn’t like the taste he gets to spit it out. He gives me his “vote” on how it tastes and at the end of each week he gets a small reward. To make it even more fun, I will let him taste a new candy once a week in place of a food so he sees he may really enjoy other things. This has been a huge step in the right direction so maybe it can work for someone else!!

Voyage ATL Magazine

Special thanks to Voyage ATL magazine for the feature!

 http://voyageatl.com/interview/life-work-with-jennifer-cheek-of-dallas/?fbclid=IwAR0acLnjSzZeAJ6WWaJkEp7j9eGyGA1GFG_kLkNo-JRRZUOji8GLMUnW6xA

Back at it!

 Hey everyone! It’s been awhile but I finally have my energy back from Covid and my son just went back to school. Speaking of school, I have some exciting news to share. Griffin has been voicing that he wants to try something different with school for next year and possibly go back to a larger school again (his school is roughly 25 kids). My husband and I met with another private school that isn’t for autism or special needs but they can provide assistance. They had Griffin come in for a day to shadow and see how he liked it and if they felt like they could service him there.  I was nervous because I do love where we are currently and the new school is mainly neuro typical kids. I think, “what if he loses a game and pitches a fit” or many other scenarios. We were excited when we got the call that they would accept him there and they could provide what he needs! This is huge for us because he will be entering 6th grade in the fall and he wants to be around kids that he can imitate and learn from. I came to the decision that we are in no hurry for him to grow up and finish school by 18 like most kids. I want  him to grow up on his time and if he doesn’t do well at the new school then he can always go back to his current school and repeat the grade if necessary. We also left the decision of switching up to him. Once they called us with their decision, we asked Griffin what HE wanted to do. He has confirmed multiple times that he wants to try this so that is what we are going to let him do. TRY! I have a feeling he is going to blow our minds and do something amazing with his life. I’m excited to see what the future holds and would love positive vibes and prayers from everyone for the fall!! Talk to you soon….

Covid

 I tested positive for Covid on New Years Eve. I knew I had been exposed so we quarantined for Christmas in preparation but I never tested positive. A week later, symptoms and a positive test showed up so here we are. I just had to share the image of this little dinosaur cup filled with milk that Griffin made on his own to bring to me. He said it would make me feel better and if I need any medicine just let him know. What an angel. Acts like this make me realize he can and will be capable of taking care of himself someday and I don’t need to worry too much. He has the biggest heart and it’s precious how he worries about me. So blessed!

How it started

 The one thing people ask me consistently is “how did you know?” Or “what symptoms did he have?” The best answer I can give you is that, as a mom, if you think something isn’t right with your child you are most likely right. Not all kids are going to show the same symptoms so it’s hard to compare, but if you find yourself worrying then you need to talk to the doctor. There were no signs during infancy. Griffin met every milestone and his pediatrician even told me at his 4 month appointment that she could tell we would never have to worry about autism or anything like that because of how alert he was and how he interacted with her. Imagine me a year later wondering why he stopped talking and seemed way too busy but I shouldn’t worry because of what his doctor said. Age 2-3 was a year of me telling my husband something is wrong and him saying “he’s fine, he’s just a boy.” We did voice concern at one of our checkups but she told us to take away the pacifier to help with talking and didn’t mention much else. So my main red flags were he’s too busy, he can talk but he won’t communicate, musical shows were about the only thing that would get and hold his attention, he loved to bounce for long periods of time, and he sang  A LOT (which people loved and thought it was adorable). Right after his 3rd birthday, I took him to the doctor with an ear infection and saw someone we hadn’t seen before. I brought up my concerns again and she agreed that he was not interacting with her properly and I need to consult a psychologist. She also said to look up PDD which is pervasive developmental disorder. I believe now they just say that’s autism, they don’t really use it as a diagnosis. So yeah, after 3 visits to a psychologist she said it was definitely autism and “good luck.” We were left on our own to figure things out and maybe for me that was a blessing. If they had told me to enter him in all these therapies then we may have been at a different place than we are now. I started researching how and why this happens to kids and found out so much on gut health and how it affects the brain. I found a developmental pediatrician and we had to wait 6 months to get in but it was well worth it. We started with diet restrictions and supplements and could immediately see some improvement. I never kept him away from neuro typical children, because he loved other kids and they were the best influences on him. I threw him into as many situations  with kids as I could. From the minute he entered kindergarten, we were insistent on him going into regular classrooms throughout the day and interacting with kids that weren’t autistic. He had speech therapy and OT once a week at school through his IEP, but we never paid for any extra therapies or went to a therapy outside of school. Every summer, I sent him to a daycare at a church while I had to work and he was the only special needs child there. We noticed that in the summers his communication grew tremendously and knew it had to be the other children influencing him. By the grace of God, a better diet, and his friends I believe that is how we got to where we are now. He is doing so well and takes care of himself. We went from constant supervision to now he hardly ever needs us which was hard to get used to. It’s like autistic kids stay toddlers for the first 8 years of their life. You never know what they will try to eat or where they will try to go. We are lucky that we have always seen progression over the years because that isn’t always the case. Some kids continue to regress or they hit a plateau and there is still so much that can’t be explained about that. The important thing is to do what you feel is right for your child. Parents know our kids best and I believe I have made the best decisions for my son. I hope this can be helpful for someone else starting the journey, feel free to reach out with questions. 

NeuroBrocc

 Now that we have been using this product for over a month, I feel like I can speak to how it works for us. Backstory, I always noticed when Griffin had a fever his autism seemed to get better. Wasn’t sure why or how, or if it was just my imagination even. This year I started seeing online ads for this product and it sparked my interest because I remember my mom telling me about some young boys on tv with autism who went on a type of broccoli therapy and eventually grew out of their symptoms. When I read about the product, it explained how children with autism seem better with a fever and I thought, “wow I’m not imagining this!” It turns out that broccoli has an ingredient that stimulates a heat response in the body like a fever does without harming you and improves clarity and mood among other things. Griffin’s teachers have seen a difference in his ability to focus on work and I have seen a big improvement on his attitude at home. Typically, Griff is a sweet kid but on this supplement he has been an angel! When we give him answers he doesn’t like he is more understanding and gets over it well. You can sign up for a monthly auto ship and save a few bucks or just try it once and see if it works for you. Either way, it won’t hurt anything to try it! Comes in chewable or pill form! 

Great gift alert!

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