Desperation? Maybe

Yes, I am desperate to make my life with my son work better and be happier.  I have tried everything I can think of to make it work.  I have asked his father for help.  I have a diagnosis that recommends medication for Jakes but have to fight to be able to administer the meds.  I pull my hair out, I cry, I scream, I fight, and I quit.  And then I come back for more.  Can you say Masochistic?  Or is it just being a mom?

I have been asking everyone I know for advise in helping me get through this.  Family, Friends, Drs, Therapists, co-workers, everyone.  I finally talked to my mom about it.  She may not be here but she is still looking out for us from heaven.  I know she is.

I was not the easiest child to raise.  I was a lot like Jacob, smart mouthed, argumentative and just plain aggravating.  Then Mom saw a TV show that changed both of us for the better.  Not the best, I was still a bit difficult but was more manageable.  Mom watched Phil Donahue regularly and this particular episode had Dr. Doris Rapp, who was an allergist.  She worked with kids and their parents and believed that behavior problems could be caused by an allergy.  Dr. Rapp brought several families to the show with her and shared their stories and even showed how the kids allergic reactions could cause unruly behaviors in the kids.

Now, I was growing up in the age of Kool-Aid and pre-sweetened cereals.  LOTS of artificial colors and flavors.  There was ALWAYS Kool Aid in the fridge for us to drink.  And breakfast was cereal. 

After seeing the show, Mom decided that there would be NO more kool aid in the house.  I was not allowed to have pre-sweetened cereals or dark colored sodas.  She sat me down and talked with me about trying it for a while and seeing what happened.

What happened is that I turned into a different child.  A much better behaved child, a much more pleasant child.  So we stuck with the special diet and life was better.

In raising Jacob, I have always tried to avoid the artificial colors and flavors with him as well, just because natural is better.  Recently, he has gotten into liking Pepsi (ewe! Coke is better!) as well as V-8 Splash.  I know that the Soda has carmel color and caffeine in it.  I recently read the label on the V-8.  I had read the label for the sugar content and it was WAY less than the other juice that I had been giving him but I didn't go so far as reading the ingredient list.  There are SO MANY artificial colors and flavors in that juice!  I was shocked!

So today, I talked with Jakes about my food allergy and what Grandmom Kathy did for me. I also suggested that we would try to eliminate those foods from his diet for a week and see what happens.  Then we would add ONE back in and see what happens then.  We are also going to remove milk products from his diet for a week.  In Dr. Rapps book "Is This Your Child?", she said that milk and artificial colors and flavors are some of the biggest allergy offenders.  I am going to finish reading the book to see what else we can do.  While reading the book, it was like I was reading about my child.  There were completely accurate descriptions of him in there!  Scary!

I am looking at this experiment as something that is easy to do, should produce almost immediate results, and is safe to do for a week or two.  If we find out that milk and milk products are a problem for Jakes, I will consult with a nutritionist for advice on getting him what he needs to be healthy without milk.

On December 29th at Jakes Drs' appointment, I also intend to talk with his Dr about getting a referral to A I DuPont Children's Hospital for allergy testing.

In order to keep fighting for what is best for my child, I will keep getting back up after being knocked down.  Its what a mother has to do.