Learning More and Being More Encouraged

The past week has been a whirlwind, but also very encouraging.  I’ve had the pleasure of connecting with other moms who have autistic children, and even made contact with a physician that is willing to evaluate Sofia.  The physician has a practice like Dr. Sherri Tenpenny’s and she wrote the book “What Your Doctor May NOT Tell You About Vaccines”.  She is in our area and after sending her an email briefly explaining some of the things we are struggling with in Sofia she wants us to schedule an appointment.  She said that she would like to start by mapping out Sofia’s neurochemistry which will better indicate what Sofia’s needs are.  We are more comfortable with this route because this physician is not a psychiatrist or psychologist; she is a family practice doctor who has been treating children with autism since 1996.  I also know that she will use non-toxic methods to treat Sofia (if necessary), which is comforting to Malachi and me.  

            I had the chance to talk to my mother about Sofia, and was actually surprised that she recognized many of the behaviors I mentioned in Sofia years ago.  We talked through much of what Sofia has been doing, and it was nice to have my mother’s support and encouragement in this area.  Malachi also spoke with his mother about it, and she was able to remember things too about certain things Sofia has been doing.  Now that this is on the forefront of our minds, Malachi and I began to remember other things that clue us in on what may be wrong with Sofia.  In 2008, soon before 2^nd birthday Sofia had a few vaccines (I can’t remember the specific ones) but shortly after (not exactly sure of the time frame) she had a seizure.  Her pediatrician at the time sent her for an EEG the very next day and it came up inconclusive and we were told that Sofia was fine.  We never gave any thought to it since just the other night.  I was reading about seizures being a side effect of vaccinations and then rummaged through some pictures and found the one we took of Sofia’s hair after she had the EEG done.  We took it because her hair looked all funny from the gel they put in it to connect the electrodes to her scalp.  Sadly, now, we don’t think the picture is all that funny anymore.  

            It is like we are wearing a new set of glasses which is allowing us to see more clearly.  Although we are seeing more clearly, it has caused even more speculation as to what has been causing some of these developmental problems in Sofia.  It is also confirming much of our suspicions which are actually helping us to know better how to communicate with Sofia.  A sweet friend of mine put me in touch with a lady in the UK who is currently trying to get her book published that offers much insight into how to communicate with Sofia effectively.  She writes the book as a helpful guide into understanding the autistic mind and how to “Shepherd the Autistic Heart”.  I have read Ted Tripp’s book on “Shepherding a Child’s Heart”, and we’ve used it as a guide in disciplining our children, however, in the case of Sofia it is absolutely ineffective.  Now we understand why!  So to have another mother who has walked this path before (and is still walking it) sit down, do the research and write a book that helps to understand this new world we are venturing into is SO HELPFUL!  It has minimized much of our frustration and has aided us in communicating with Sofia more effectively.  Her brain obviously works differently and thus the approach we were taking simply wasn’t rendering the results because she could not understand what we were saying or doing.  

            We are taking more time to listen to Sofia and make sure that she understands when we give her a command.  What we are finding is that she did not understand what we were saying to her.  So, now instead of saying “Sofia, don’t run in the house”, we are saying “Sofia, walk”.  It seems keeping the commands short and simple are working best.  This is obviously basic stuff, but we assumed that because Sofia is soon to be 5 years old, that she was fully capable of understanding “don’t run in the house”.  However, in an autistic child, “don’t run in the house” is a long negative command where they may only hear the part “run in the house”, which is why rewording the same instruction to “walk” is better understood.  (Note: this isn’t a problem for our almost 3 year old…which lends more credence to our concerns for Sofia).  

            We are so appreciative of the love, support and encouragement we have gotten over the past week since sharing our struggles.  We are confident that the physician we’re taking her to see will be able to give us more answers and guide us in how to help Sofia.  In all this we pray that we use every opportunity to glorify the Lord and we are so grateful for His grace throughout all of this. Soli Deo Gloria!

Serving God and My Family,

Crystal <>< (SAHM)