INSIDE OUT

So, we are on the road to now "healing" my kid's guts. What a ROAD!! Wow. I had no idea this year would bring such chaos.

So a bit about this diet.... Well, it sucks. No, it REALLY sucks. I suppose if one did not need this diet, then it wouldn't suck because there would be no negative die-off symptoms and you could run through the stages faster and with less complications. As it turns out, this diet is amazing!! And it sucks.

So, you're probably wondering what on Earth "die-off" is. Well, to put this most COMPLICATED effect simply, according to Wikipedia (whom I am sourcing for simplistic's sake only... and a bit of laziness - I, in no way have actually used Wikipedia in my research - not that there's anything WRONG with that) ;) it states: "The Herxheimer reaction (also known as Jarisch-Herxheimer or Herx) occurs when large quantities of toxins are released into the body as bacteria (typically Spirochetal bacteria) die, due to antibiotic treatment or rapid detoxification."

This reaction is also seen in Candida die off, yet it cannot quite be measured. Therefore, it is often deemed to not fit the mold (no pun intended) by our medical practitioners.

Long story short, S, J, and N ALL experienced die off. Although S's was the worst, N's surprised me.

We are now on Day 10 of this diet. I hope we are through the worst of it.

The Gluten/Casein free Diet S was on for 6 months, I realized, is putting a bandaid on a much deeper issue. The gluten and casein proteins are getting through his intestinal wall, entering his bloodstream and finding it's way to his brain. WHOLE proteins were never meant to do this. Whole proteins are to be broken up into amino acids and get carried away to the appropriate dwelling place. When WHOLE PROTEINS get through an intestinal wall, it's not good news.

So, we've got to heal S's gut. His diet is affecting his brain and I've got to put a stop to it. The only way to do this is by healing his gut so that the intestines can do the work it was designed to do.

Why is his gut messed up in the first place? I don't think I'll ever know the answer to that. :( At this point, I don't even care. I've just got to start over.

So far on this diet, S's vocabulary has increased and for the FIRST TIME (and believe me I've been working on this since he was THREE), he called a little girl "she" and "her". S would ALWAYS call girls "he", "his", "him". It didn't matter what I did, he just wasn't seeming to get the concept. On day 8 of this diet, after the die off effect faded, Stosh - unprompted and as clear as day - used the words "she" and "her" in the same conversation when actually referring to a girl.

Now *I'm* speechless. :)

And so our journey continues.

Here are some links for your information:

This link is specifically for kids with ASD but, I like it better than the main SCD site as it seems more updated (one major flaw with the "Breaking the Vicious Cycle" book , which is where the SCD was made popular).
http://pecanbread.com/

And here is the main SCD site:
http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/