A scar cream that really works.

Try using the scar cream, Mederma.

Reddish scars, whether they are from stretch marks, acne, or burns, will heal quicker than colorless scars.

You apply it to recent scars three to four times a day for two months and four times a day to old scars for up to six months.

I had heard that most of the creams and lotions didn't really work--just made your skin smoother/softer, so I didn' t try any other treatments than this one, which was recomended by our Doctor. But this one actually worked.

My son has had 16 operations. We used to think that scars were a way of life--so he wore them as a badge of courage. But when I went to a dermatologist myself to check for melanoma, I asked her what might help my son, and she suggested Mederma. That was several years ago, and you can't see the scars now without him actually pointing them out.

Its a clear gel, doesn't stain clothing, and is pretty much odorless. Some day I will start putting it all over my body......LOL

The cool thing about it is it is a refined and tested version of an old folk remedy, Allium. Which is the onion. I guess you could put onion juice on the scars to save money--but you would smell like onions!

Delicious, Exotic, Non-alcoholic Party Beverages

Chai is my favorite for fall and winter. You can get a good organic Chai concentrate in a box at my local health food co-op. I serve it half & half with Almond milk. Its usually served hot like coffee. It does have caffeen in it. Its made from tea, and spices and is a little peppery. Mmmmmm!

For summer there is nothing better than fresh-squeezed organic lemons or limes (or both) with turbinado sugar to make lemonaid. Add a sprig of fresh mint or a slice of lime to the top of the glass. Or put a tiny sprig of mint into your ice cube trays before adding the water and freezing. I like to make lemonaide all summer by boiling water, adding the sugar to dissolve it, refrigerating it, then adding the lemon/lime before serving.

For a great easy punch, half-fill a large punch bowl with cold 100% juice of any kind (cranberry blends are good,) add a bottle of seltzer or Sprite for some fizz, and float scoops of a really good sorbet or sherbert on top. Get whatever's the latest fruit juice craze, like pomegranite juice. For more decoration, slice oranges thinly and float them on top.

In the south, sweetened ice tea is a favorite. Make sun tea, 0r make large batches of tea ahead of time and cool it in the fridge, then let people decide on the sweetener themselves, and offer a bowl of fresh lemon slices to put in it.

Green tea is very popular now and very summery and light. You can even put the tea in ice cube trays, and as they freeze, empty them into large zip lock bags. Put the bags in a cooler and either add them to the regular tea or use them in other drinks.

In the winter, make hot tea and add mulling spices to it for a great flavor. Use cinnamon sticks as stirrers. If you have a pot of this on the stove as guests arrive it makes the whole house smell wonderful.

Everyone likes chocolate. At least everyone female I know. Get a really good chocolate and melt it in a double boiler, and add a variety of milks--I prefer Almond milk. Adding a spoonful of coconut milk is excellent. I prever Agave nectar right now as a sweetener (its like honey but not quite as sweet.) But turbinado sugar is good.
For more flavor, add cinnamon, vannilla, nutmeg, allspice, mint or cardamom. Don't forget to have some tiny marshmallows for a garnish.

For any sweet drink, have whipped cream ready for on top. The stuff in cans comes in three flavors now; strawberry, chocolate and vanilla. Unfortunately, these usually have dairy in them, so we have these available for those who can have dairy products.

Also, get some sprinkles. These finishing touches are what makes the drink special for a party.

V8 with some Swedish Bitters, sea salt, a celery stick and an olive is a great drink.

For a party I always buy the little paper umbrellas for the drinks, and I go to Goodwill and get as many real glass drink glasses as I can find. The real glass makes everything taste better than plastic, and even if they don't match--its easier for people to remember which drink is theirs.

If you want to get more complicated, and can afford it, buy or borrow a juicer. Ahead of time, scrub up a lot of fresh locally grown organic fruit and/or vegetables, and stick them in a huge bowl of crushed ice. Have your visitors select the vegetables as you juice them. Be sure to include things like fresh spinach leaves, cucumbers and beets.

Gratitude

Beatitudes
for Friends of Persons With Disabilities


Blessed are you who take time to listen to difficult speech,
For you help me to know that if I persevere I can be understood.

***************

Blessed are you who never bid me to “hurry up”

and take my tasks from me and do them for me,
For often I need time, rather than help.

***************

Blessed are you who stand beside me as I enter new and untried ventures,
For my failures will be outweighed by the times I surprise myself and you.

***************

Blessed are you who understand that it is difficult for me to put my thoughts into words.

***************

Blessed are you who never remind me that today I asked the same question two times.

***************

Blessed are you who respect me and love me just as I am,
And do not wish I would be otherwise.



WEAVE, WEAVE US TOGETHER, TOGETHER IN LOVE.


"God has given each of you some special abilities;

be sure to use them to help each other."
(1Peter 4:7-11)

And God Said...

...No

I asked God to take away my pride.
And God said, "No."
He said it was not for Him to take away, but for me to give up.

I asked God to make my handicapped child whole.
And God said, "No."
He said her spirit was whole, her body was only temporary.

I asked God to grant me patience.
And God said, "No."
He said patience is a by-product of tribulations. It isn't granted, it is earned.

I asked God to give me happiness.
And God said, "No."
He said He gives me blessings, happiness is up to me.

I asked God to spare me pain.
And God said, "No."
He said suffering draws me apart from worldly cares and brings me closer to Him.

I asked God to make my spirit grow.
And God said, "No."
He said I must grow on my own. But He will prune me to make me fruitful.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life.
And God said, "No."
He said He will give me life, that I may enjoy all things.

I asked God to help me love others, as much as he loves me.
And God said, "Ah, finally you have the idea!"

© Claudia Minden Weisz


"When we look back and wonder how we ever made it through,
we realize it's not because we are clever, but because God has been wise."

--Author Unknown

Quotes to Live By

“Tomorrow is the most important thing in life.
Comes into us at midnight very clean.
It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands.
It hopes we've learned something from yesterday.”

-- John Wayne

"When you come to the edge of all the light you know,
and are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown,
faith is knowing one of two things will happen:
there will be something solid to stand on,
or you will be taught how to fly."

-- Barbara J. Winter

"Reflect upon your present blessings,
of which every man has plenty;
not on your past misfortunes,
of which all men have some."

– Charles Dickens

What to do for Sprains, Strains, Backache, Bruises

Boericke & Tafel

Arniflora Arnica Gel

This stuff is the best thing in my medicine cabinet. Next to Tylenol, it is the best thing for a sprained ankle. I once sprained my ankle in the middle of moving our home to a new flat. I was able to finish moving.

This stuff is a clear gel, with no real odor (if you really try, it kinda smells like green tea.) It doesn't stain clothing, and doesn't burn or cause any kind of side effect. I put it on about twice a day by rubbing it into the swollen areas around my ankle. I spent 3 more days packing, and moving and carrying boxes with no trouble.

I have recommended it to a person who had whiplash from a car accident, and it helped within 3 days. I recommended it to someone who had a back injury that was 4 years old, and had recently gotten much worse so that the person couldn't work (lifting 50lbs was part of the job.) That person was able to go back to work within a week.

You can't take it internally or put it on a cut or open wound. But its good for ankle, knee, hip, back and neck strains, sprains and bruises. It seems to help with inflammation, and is somewhat antibacterial, and also promotes healing.

It's non-prescription, and doesn't interfere with other medications you might need.

I was thinking about this when we were watching the Olympics last night. I hope all the athletes have at least tried it or know about it. I have used it for over 20 years, and it has always worked.

Emotional Integrity

Say What You Mean
~
Mean What You Say


A lot of the misunderstandings that happen around people with Autism could be prevented if people could follow this. Both the neuro-typical people and the people with Autism.

The say what you mean part includes:

No sarcasm -- because often even when a person with Autism "gets it" they have a much harder time with decoding sarcasm when anxious or over-stimulated.

No slang -- people with Autism tend to be way behind their peers in learning slang terms, partly from having spent less time with peers in casual settings, and partly from lack of paying attention to things not in their area of interest.

No innuendo -- "wink, wink" people with Autism often miss the body language that modifies a supposedly "absurd" bit of dialogue, to make it meaningful.

No exaggeration -- Autistic people often don't need the exaggeration to get your point, because they take everything at face value, and very literally. They either "get it" or they don't. Exaggeration only works if you explain your comment as being a metaphor or exaggeration up front.

For instance, when a child says; "I hate you!" when you insist on a chore, you don't take it personal (hopefully.) You know it is just an immature way of exaggerating a point that they are trying to make (extreme frustration.) However, saying a similar thing to an Autistic person will tend to backfire, since it is often used in a very heated, emotional exchange, and this is when the Autistic person is at their worst in decoding what is happening in their world socially.

No Double-Meanings -- Often someone will ask a question or bring up a topic to get a completely different point across. For instance; imagine if you went to visit a friend on the spur of the moment, and they made a comment like: "Gee, I hate it when my relatives drop in unexpectedly without calling first." You might call before coming over the next time. An Autistic person would not get the hint, no matter how obvious it was, because they aren't ever looking for hints, unless they have been specifically taught this, and were calm enough to remember to do it in a variety of social settings.

Of course, all these things listed above are the perfect material for comedians, comedy shows, and close friends who already have their personal vocabularies, and social styles memorized. These are the social things that make life interesting. However, in reality, they are much more fun to watch ("I Love Lucy" or "The Simpsons" comes to mind) than to experience in your own family life.

In fact, all of the above things are what constitutes "drama" in relationships. In a boring relationship, it might spice things up, but a steady diet of drama can deteriorate a relationship when one or both of the members is under stress, tired, is insecure about the relationship or anxious.

At one point, we put these things into a list that was posted on the wall in our house, until the Autistic person grew older and wiser and we were able to teach some of these things to him in a calm setting. We still have the "No Sarcasm" rule, in our house, but it gets broken regularly, when we are having fun on a playful, casual, low stress day.


The Mean What You Say part includes:

Never promise what you can't be sure you can deliver. If you are constantly using threats that you can't follow up on, you are eventually going to make whatever you say irrelevant to people.

If you can't be sure, say so. If you don't know the answer, say so.

This removes the verbal/behavioral "static" that people with Autism have a hard time filtering out. For instance, if Dad always says: "If you don't stop horsing around in the car we aren't going to the movie." But then everyone gets upset because the movie was planned for a week as a reward for doing homework, and the family goes to the movie anyway. What Dad says is then "static" -- irrelevant information, that is simply noisy.

Dad could have said that he would stop the car and not move it until everyone was quiet. This might have been more realistic as to what was eventually going to be followed through on.

Choose carefuly what to say so that everything you say has a practical meaning in the real world, with useful information about what is happening or is going to happen.

If you consistently do this, your words will mean more, and matter more to those you speak to. If you do this inconsistently, then people will always be waiting for the next shoe to drop, so to speak. For instance, if you only act when you have first threatened to act for 3 or 4 times, then no one will start listening to you until the 4 th time you say something. If you only get roused enough to interrupt what you are doing when you are yelling at the top of your voice, then no one will start listening to you until you are yelling at the top of your voice.

Consistency.
Be Extremely consistent. If your words reflect your actions accurately, this helps the Autistic person make better choices about what to do and what not to do, when their behavior is within their control.

Live your Values
If you value something, spell it out, write it down, speak it out loud in concrete terms. Be specific. Then live what you have spelled out. This is better than any lecture, or angry diatribe. Discuss values when you are all calm and focused--not when a situation is tense.

Imagine Who You Want to Be, Then Set Your Intention, And Live to What You Want to Be
Don't react. Act.
Be the person you want to be regardless of what is happening around you, to you, or because of you. If you want to be the kind of person who doesn't scream or yell, then don't. Don't let yourself get egged on into being who you are not. Nobody can force you to behave a certain way. If an Autistic person is loosing it, falling to the floor kicking and screaming it is OK to just stand there and wait for it to end. You don't have to yell to show others you are "taking this seriously." If there is nothing you can do about it, then don't make it worse by doing things just to look like you are trying to do something. You don't have to let guilt make you do stuff. Decide that if it is the right thing to do, you will do it, whether you are feeling guilty or not. Decide this ahead of time.

You don't help a person because of who they are, you help a person because of who you are.
Mother Theresa didn't question the dying people she helped to determine if they had led a deserving life first. She had made a decision to help the dying ahead of time, because she felt that no one should die alone--not because of who they were, but because of who she was.

If the person uses this against you, then that is manipulation, and that is a different situation. This is where you set boundaries and are careful who to help and how to help, and for what reasons.

A good resource for dealing with meltdowns is the book:
"Asperger Syndrome and Difficult Moments, Practical Solutions for Tantrums, Rage and Meltdowns" by Brenda Smith Myles, and Jack Southwick

Raisins Against Arthritis

A home remedy for Arthritis

Do you remember The California Raisins?

Singing/dancing raisins, from a commercial around 1987. Anyone remember those? I have a collection of the toy figures. I think they were from Hardees. Those were some happy raisins. Now, I think I have an idea why......

I have just made this recipe for a friend who is visiting us who has arthritis.

I heard about it several times on NPR when it was mentioned on The People's Pharmacy, and decided I just had to try making it because its so simple, and yet so intriguing.

I used organic bulk golden raisins from Outpost Natural Foods.

I just tasted some and if nothing else, these raisins are delicious! (Yes, the alcohol evaporated!)


Raisins Against Arthritis
-----------------------------------

• Empty one box of golden light raisins into a large shallow container.


• Completely cover the raisins with gin.


• Let stand, uncovered, until the gin evaporates.


• Store them in a closed container.


• Eat nine raisins daily.

~Original source:

credited to Lois L. in the parish newsletter of St. Lucas Lutheran Church in Toledo, Ohio

Reprinted in "The People's Pharmacy" by Joe and Teresa Graedon, Ph.D.

People see results in about a month.

People allergic to sulfites (in the raisins) won't be able to use this remedy.
(In my opinion, this is a guess, it increases methylation, which helps detoxify heavy metals and other toxins.)

Its not expensive, not invasive, involves no habit-forming drugs (the alcohol evaporates,) or surgery, requires no prescription, has no side-effects, no drug interactions, so it might be something to try when the more traditional treatments aren't working well enough.

Other reputedly good folk remedies for Arthritis include:
Rose Hips
Apple Cider Vinegar
100% Emu Oil (as a lotion)

And the supplements Glucosamine and Chondroitin.

I have used the glucosamine and chondroitin supplements myself, for ankle, knee and hip pain. The pain always went away just as I was finishing the bottle of capsules, and didn't return for almost a year, during which I didn't need to take the supplements. (I suppose I could have continued taking them all the time, but I wanted to find out how much I really needed, since supplements can be expensive.)

But the thing that ended up helping me with this kind of pain the most was wearing lace-up shoes (with good arch support in them) every day from the moment I got up until the moment I went to bed. Later, I found that sandals with really high arch supports also worked in the summer, such as Birkenstocks. Now I haven't seemed to need the supplements at all anymore.

Cast Iron

Using cast iron pots and skillets for cooking has been recommened for people with low iron.

Here is a good site that talks about how to use cast iron pots for cooking and how to take care of them, and a site explaining the health benefits.

What's Cooking America
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/CastIronPans.htm

Holiday Cook
http://www.holidaycook.com/cast-iron/health-benefits.shtml

Besides helping you to need fewer iron supplements, cast iron pots have additional advantages in that they are extremely economical to buy, are very easy to clean, and can last generations. You can cook over a campfire with them, put them in the oven, and put them on the grill. (Unless you have bought ones with wooden handles.)

I have pots that were my grandmothers, that will probably outlast my grandchildren.

Iron has been found to be low in children with Autism and who have had lead poisoning. When our son was given a sleep study to find out what could help him sleep better, the main lab finding was that he was low in iron. Apparently, low iron can be a part of the cause of restless and twitchy legs at night. Low iron is a main cause of anemia, fatigue and other health problems.

Taking too much iron, on the other hand, is not good either, particularly for men.
Men don't have a regular monthly way of getting rid of it, and it is difficult for the body to remove too much iron without, um, you know (cough), bleeding.

"Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it."

~ Bible, Song of Solomon 8:7



"The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough."

~Tagore

The Chair
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A poem about the Power of Positive Thinking

It sits there at the crest of the beach,
on the rise just before the sand dips towards the water's edge.
A lone beach chair, seemingly abandoned.
It's a jaunty chair with its yellow striped canvas seat and sailboats floating on its blue and yellow back support.

It lists just a bit to the left, almost rakishly, as it nestles in the sand, surveying the sea.
It is a chair made just for sitting, and sitting on the sand at that.
It has no legs to get in the way of stretching out, relaxing,
and letting the sun seep into your bones and warm your soul.

It is so unlike another chair I know. A black chair with wheels.
A chair that does not survey the vastness of the ocean with a jaunty air,
but rather a chair that defines a narrower kingdom.

And yet, I think this other chair is a happier chair than the one that sits and stares out to sea,
for it is a chair with wheels that take the place of legs no longer able to propel their owner forth.

This other chair is not made for sitting and looking at the world.
It is a chair built for exploring, for meeting life face to face and tasting of its spirit.

Perhaps this chair should have a seat of yellow and white stripes,
and a back support adorned with sailboats.
A far better statement of its adventurous and joyous possibilities.

~Suzanne Mintz
From The National Family Caregivers Association
http://www.nfcacares.org/improving_caregiving/believe_in_your_family.cfm

About Me!

Hi! My name is David. I am 14 years old, & I'll tell you a little bit about myself.

My favorite video game is Pokemon (I hate the show). My favorite movie is Wall-E. My favorite TV shows are SpongeBob SquarePants, and The Simpsons! When I grow up, I want to be the world's greatest Anime Artist! In case you're wondering, the picture on the left is my very first made-up character, Sara.

Discovery

"When we seek to discover the best in others....we somehow bring out the best in ourselves."

~William Arthur Ward

Men in Sandals

What is your opinion on men wearing sandals?

I like men in sandals. I love seeing guys in sandals at the beach on vacations, and camping.

I think they look innapropriate for at work (unless you are the boss, or you sell sandals for a living!) for dancing, in nightclubs, or in a sit-down restaurant.

But I think people who wear sandals, men or women, have to take care of their feet, and toenails.
Sandals are good for this, actually. They give your feet a break from being confined in shoes with no sunlight and fresh air.

In my humble opinion, I think you can't wear them to death so they are falling apart, except around the house. Get a pair that is a good fit and not super cheap. Put them on in the early spring when you start wearing shorts so you don't have a tan line at the ankles!

Socks with sandals are ok at home, but in public only if you are definitely not single looking to date anyone new. Unfortunately, sandals with socks have a bad rap. I think they are just too comfortable that way. Kinda like wearing sweats and an old t-shirt.

Maybe someday someone will invent a sandal/sock combination that is both comfortable and stylish. Remember when bowling shoes were in style? Nice leather shoes in bright colors, that would last your lifetime. The VW of shoes.

I just bought a pair of Birkenstock's. I love the way I can walk all day in them at the fair, a festival, the farmer's market and my feet don't hurt. I had a pair that were a bright trendy orange/salmon color that I wore to death and lasted almost 3 years.

This time our local Birkenstock store had closed and I could only find 3 styles to pick from at Stan's Bootery (nice store.) So I have the classic hippie style, that my neice called something like "Jesus sandals." But everyone at the Farmer's Market was wearing them......

I'm sad that a German town like Milwaukee lost a store that originated in Germany. I love that Birkenstock's were invented by a woman. As a German woman, I feel a kind of loyalty.

Favorite Soap of All Time

I am very fair skinned, and have sensitive skin. I am also so thin-skinned (in more ways than one) that when I blush, I look like I have a sunburn.

I love Yardley's of London products. I have been using their Aloe soap for about 25 years.

Everybody says I have great skin, and I have had no skin problems the entire time I have used this soap.

This is the best soap in the Universe. I would take it to a desert island with me as a minimal survival essential.

Sweet Summer Aloe & Cucumber Bar Soap by Yardley of London.

I was a rebel and didn't follow the trend to sit out in the sun with mineral oil on my skin in the 70's. (I just gave up trying to tan--I went from no tan to burning with nothing in-between.) I also like to wear hats with a brim and sunglasses that wrap around my eyes. This makes me feel like a celebrity posing as a housewife.

All-purpose flour mix (GFCF)

All-purpose flour mix

Buy some rice flour, tapioca starch and cornstarch (or potato starch)

Mix them in these proportions:

1/2 cup rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/4 cup cornstarch or potato starch

Blend and store in the refrigerator and use for any recipe that calls for wheat flour.

Here are some tips for baking with no-wheat flours:
------------------------------------------------------------------------

• Warm up all ingredients to room temperature (for instance the eggs.)
• Use a deep-sided bread pan (3-4 inches high)
• Pre-test your yeast to make sure it is still active before using it.
• Mix the salt into the flour, not directly with the yeast (hurts the yeast)
• Be careful about how much liquid you use, too much and you get a gummy center, too little and it will be crumbly.
• Use a thermometer to check doneness.
• Bread is done when it is 200 degrees inside and sounds hollow when you tap the bottom.
• Remove the loaf from the pan when done and cool it on a rack or it will get soggy.

Anger Management

http://www.angriesout.com/

The website is a favorite resource for things to help both children and adults deal with angry feelings.

Lynne Namka has a great free newsletter that you can sign up for. It is inspirational, about self-growth and is spiritual and theraputic.

Eating Gluten-Free Casein-Free on a Budget

For eating gluten-free on a budget, there are nothing like potatoes!

A bag of potatoes can go a long way and there are a million ways to make them! The easiest is to scrub one, poke two holes in the skin and microwave for 4 minutes. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on it, add a tablespoon of water and some sea salt. Any cooked vegetable is a good topping.

Beans are very inexpensive. Black beans are easy to digest. Beans go very well with rice. To save money, buy a pressure cooker and make beans from a bag according to the directions on the bag. This is a great source of protein, and very inexpensive. If you cook them right, they will digest easily.

Easy Bean Recipe:
Mash up a cup or two of the cooked beans up with a 1/8 cup lemon/lime, several cloves of crushed garlic, 1/4 cup of sesame paste and sea salt for a great pate. Drizzle with olive oil and paprika before serving. (This is usually called hummus if you make it with chick peas.)

Now that its summer, try going to a Farmer's Market in your area and get just about anything there. The cost is often lower because you are cutting out the grocer. The seller's often have great suggestions and recipes for cooking their produce. Buying locally is also good for the environment, and you get to meet the people who grew your food!

Get an air popcorn popper. (See my previous posting on air popcorn poppers, Friday, July 25, 2008.)

Popcorn is very cheap and you can buy it in bulk, organic, and have it for snacks. Some celiacs can't eat fibery stuff, so be careful that this is something your system can handle.

Sprout mixes are very inexpensive. Making sprouts is easy and cheap!

One of the most inexpensive and versatile vegetables is red or green cabbage. Cabbage keeps a long time in the refrigerator, and is a great flavor enhancer. Sliced thin and mixed with shredded carrots and your favorite salad dressing it makes a nice summer cole slaw. Add a few leaves of cabbage chopped up into any soup or stew for a much fuller flavor. It seems to make everything more savory and more satisfying. Just don't overcook it or it can turn to mush!

Try getting any fruit, or berries in season and making smoothies with them, just put them in a blender with some ice and some rice milk, and add some honey or real maple syrup for sweetness.

Don't forget that nuts, seeds and nut butters are good sources of protein! Make sure they are very fresh. Nuts can go rancid easily.

We have a bowl of cherries on the table right now, next to a bowl of cashews. I slice a sweet red pepper crosswise (the slices look like a flower) and put on a plate with some black olives. It is the best junk food!

Sauteed mushrooms have a savory taste that makes anything have a meaty flavor.

Inexpensive Vegetable Stew:
--------------------------------------
Take all your current vegetables (include an onion or a leek, and a stalk of celery with tops, and a leaf or two of cabbage for flavor) and some potatoes and saute them a little in some olive oil, or roast them in the oven. Cut everything up into chunks before beginning, sautee the harder vegetables first or roast them longer. Start a 1/2 large pot of boiling water. Add a can of black beans. Add the vegetablesand some fresh garlic. Throw in a handful of carrot tops, a few beet tops, some kale or other greens at the last minute. Add some Sea Salt, pepper. Cook until everything is done about 15 minutes. Serve in a bowl with a little gluten-free mayonnaise on top for a garnish.

Don't forget that most Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and Indian foods are mainly gluten-free. Mexican is gluten-free if you get the corn tortillas instead of the flour. You have to call ahead, or call the manufacturer to be certain that there are no additives that contain gluten, however.

Really cheap shopping list:
-----------------------------------
A bag of black beans.
A bag of popcorn.
A sack of potatoes.
A head of red cabbage.
A clump of carrots with tops on.
A bunch of celery.
A head of garlic.
A container of lemon juice.
Iodized Sea Salt.
A can of mixed nuts.
Some honey or real maple syrup.
Extra Virgin olive oil.
The freshest fruit in season.
Any favorite vegetable.

Diction SOS - Teaching an Autistic Person Language and Reading

Diction SOS

When my son was still learning to talk, with only a single word or two, (about age 4) we discovered he was totally fascinated by the alphabet. He couldn't talk, but he did learn the alphabet, and became obsessed with it. Sometimes, we heard, this can be an indication of "Hyperlexia" which is a form of language disorder, but not necessarily Autism, although apparently Autistic persons can have it.

A friend of mine had a son who had lost all his hearing due to an infection. They mortgaged their home to purchase a cochlear implant for him. The cochlear implant people recommended a rehabilitation program for him that included The Association Method for teaching children with language deficiencies. She taught me this method, and I used some of it in teaching my son language. He not only learned to talk better with this, but he also learned to read at the same time. (To this day, he has perfect diction, I think in part because when he was having trouble saying a word we could put it on a card using the phenomes and umlauts and then he would be able to "get it.") He wasn't always understanding what he read, but he at least had learned "the code" of language this way, by memorizing it. To him it was just a puzzle, or a code, not useful for anything yet, but at least we had sort of a "morse code" to start with in reaching him.

Here is a reference to a curriculum that includes this method:

TLDC: Teaching Language-Deficient Children
http://www.proedinc.com/customer/ProductView.aspix?ID=3921

"Theory and Application of the Association Method for Multisensory Teaching"

The gist of this method was putting the 42 English phonemes onto flash cards (umlauts and all) and having him memorize them. He was delighted to learn this "secret code" and thought it was fun. Then we taught him to read by using cursive, color, patterns, and visual repetition.

An Autistic person often can't see what a word unit is because they persist in seeing each individual letter as unique, and not a part of a whole. So by using cursive, the letters of each word are connected and only have a space between each word. The cursive style did not take any extra effort to teach him. It seemed easy for him to read the cursive part. He loved knowing where a word began and ended, and this made it much easier for him to sound out the word. We used different colors to differentiate sounds at first, and then used a different color for each word when doing sentences.

When doing words on a page, we let him pick the colors of bright markers, and wrote them in patterns on a plain peice of paper, for instance in a star pattern, or a step pattern, or in some set of circles, with about 4 repetitions to each page. Then we would point to each "step on the ladder" and say the word together. This made reading much more fun, and he loved the "patterns." We later did the same thing with short sentences, with about 4 - 5 repetitions in different colors on a page. It looked like story diagramming, but with the same sentence repeated instead of different concepts at different positions on the diagram. Each time we did this pointing and saying the sentence. Each word or sentence took about 15 repetitions, over short periods of a few minutes at a time, and perhaps taking a week to finish for him to learn it. Sometimes we put a coin, or a tiny sweet down on each word as we were pointing to it, which he could keep.

I also put words for common things around the house onto flash cards and taped them to the object they named. There was the word "Window" on all of our windows, and "Door" on all of our doors, for instance. I didn't do this all at once, a few items at a time, so he wouldn't get overwhelmed. Sometimes we would go on a treasure hunt and find all the window cards, then take them for a "prize" from the prize box. Then I would put up a different set of cards, like "mirror" for all the mirrors, and "phone" for all the phones.

Getting Enough Sleep for Someone With Autism

Here is another simple remedy for sleeplessness in persons with Autism:

Melatonin

Melatonin is very safe, and actually has some health benefits. Children tolerate it well with few side effects. It sometimes causes grogginess the next morning, but this can be remedied by cutting the usual dose in half.

The tablets generally come in 3 mg doses, which is more than enough for an adult. You can also purchase 1.5 mg doses, but it is a little harder to find this package. Cutting the pill or using half a capsule works fine.

Extended release Melatonin is available, and works well, but is usually a little more expensive. Give the child the dose 20 - 30 minutes before the desired bedtime. Lately, we have been giving it about an hour before bedtime, to avoid the morning grogginess.

It is non-narcotic, (not habit-forming--non addictive) and is available over the counter without a prescription at most regular pharmacies. This will not be like a regular sedative, it doesn't work the same way. It does not prevent the child from awakening to use the bathroom (if he/she is toilet trained.)

My son is very picky about what he will eat or put into his mouth--(well at least food anyway!) and I was worried that he would refuse to take the Melatonin. But after coaxing the first pill into him and a good night's sleep, he accepted the next night's pill easily and now just puts it in his mouth and chews it. As a teen, he sometimes even reminds me that he needs to take one! He used to have dark circles under his eyes all the time, and with a regular good night's sleep he doesn't have this anymore.

So what is Melatonin?
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Melatonin is a hormone made by a part of the brain called the pineal gland. Melatonin may help our bodies know when it's time to go to sleep and when it's time to wake up. There are two types of melatonin that may be used in the pills: natural and synthetic (man-made). Natural melatonin is made from the pineal gland of animals. This form could be contaminated with a virus and is therefore not recommended. The synthetic form of melatonin does not carry this risk. If you are not sure if your melatonin is natural or synthetic, ask your doctor or pharmacist before taking it.

Research has shown the effectiveness of Melatonin for this use, and also for use in treating jet lag.


Melatonin Deficiency
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"Significant reductions in overall melatonin levels have been seen in Autistic Spectrum Disorders, and disturbed melatonin regulation may underlie sleep disturbances seen in many ASD subjects."

~"Autism, Brain, and Environment" by Richard Lathe 2006