Prayers Please

[IamMe]

Today we go for testing to see if my youngest son also has autism. He's only 18 months old, he's always been way below where he should be in meeting mile stones. They've done numerous tests already & found no physical reason. This is the big one.

We already have one son that's been diagnosed on the spectrum, and parenting a child with such special needs is very challenging & often frustrating.

It's an all day appointment at the hospital where he'll be assessed by a neurologist, a speech language pathologist, a physio therapist, an occupational therapist....he's been in private therapy for months, with little improvement.

To top it off, they've cancelled school for the day in our city because of a snow storm, and since all our children are too young to stay home by them selves, I now need to face this alone, so my husband can stay at home with the other children.

I really need some strength today.

[applepansy]

I'm so sorry. My nephew is autistic. Autistic children can do amazing things. But it takes early intervention and persistence. I'm sure the Lord is aware of your struggle and your children. Take advantage of every public program you can find.

Drive careful and be safe.

Best Wishes and Prayers,
applepansy

[Martain]

While others will disagree, I'd like to share the views of both my step-mother and mother regarding this issue.

When I was a child, my mother says I was a very healthy and happy baby. That is until I went in for my MMR shots. After that I was hospitalized for failure to thrive. It took personal revelation to my mother as to what she was to do to help me to bring me safely through it.

In retrospect my mother says with absolute conviction that the shots were responsible in that my immune system wasn't able to handle them as well as others did and that they in turn overloaded and compromised my immune system bringing me to deaths door.

When my little sister was a child, she exhibited no autistic symptoms. Amazingly, after getting her shots at around 18 months she suddenly started exhibiting a whole spectrum of them. It was as if her personality was suddenly altered.

In retrospect both my step-mother and father are absolutely convinced that the immunizations was the culprit behind my sister's autism.

Now many people will disagree and although there is much information to be found regarding studies, many people feel that what is available isn't conclusive. That being said, having done some personal research on the subject, I'd like to share my feelings.

In of it's self, immunizations are helpful. That being said, I do have some issues with how they are currently administered.

First issue is dosage size. To my knowledge, generally there is still no differentiation in dosage size between what is given to a small baby and what is given to a full sized adult. You wouldn't give your child an adult size dosage of Advil or any other medication, why would you give them a full adult size dosage of immunizations some of which are fully live viruses?

Second issue is frequency. A child's immune system takes time to develop. Some immunizations are laden with aluminium and others are fully live viruses. Many feel there is a danger in overloading a child's immune system and I agree. For my children I intend to use a modified immunization schedule, perhaps such as the one found here with some information on it found here.

Third issue and the one I feel is the greatest threat is the use of adjunctives such as Thimerosal. Thimerosal is a mercury based compound which is added to immunizations to increase it's 'clout'.

Mercury is highly toxic and is known to cause neurological damage. It is so toxic that it will cause a very powerful immunal response with the intent of having the body take care of the virus as a side benefit while also decreasing production cost and therefore increasing profit. The fact is, it's unnecessary.

Does anyone here really feel that a child has the capacity to detoxify heavy metals such as mercury to the same degree that an adult does? Thimerosal is the culprit many people are indicating as the cause of childhood autism especially given the difficulty of detoxifying mercury and the length of time mercury will stay in the brain causing damage.

The natural history following exposure to mercury dictates certain findings. A few months after exposure ends, there will be no detectable mercury in the blood, urine or hair. For variable time periods after the end of mercury exposure, the non-CNS organs will gradually rid themselves of mercury, leaving just brain mercury behind. The half-life of mercury in the brain is estimated to be on the order of 20 years — far longer than its half-life in organs outside the central nervous system. For this reason, the only mercury left in a person whose exposure ended several years before testing is likely to be solely in the central nervous system.

For the reference above and information regarding mercury toxicity and some options on how to test and treat it you could visit here.

Basically before I give my children immunizations I'll make sure the dosage is adjusted to their size, that they're not too frequent and are spaced more properly to ensure recovery from the previous ones, and that no adjunctives are used.

All this is primarily beyond the point for you though. At this point it is up to you to determine through searching and prayer whether or not this is an issue for your children and if so what to do about it. One particular gathering place of information regarding such things would be here.

In the end I do feel sorry for you and wish I could help. I do believe that your children to some degree or another do have mercury toxicity and while it may not resolve everything, I do feel that chelating the mercury out will show tremendous benefits and vast improvements in your chlidren's lives.

Ultimately you have at your disposal the Gift of the Holy Ghost and the power of prayer. Don't take my word for it, please ask the Lord.

[IamMe]

Thank you everyone.

He tested positive. We now have an explanation at least for why he is the way he is. With the diagnosis, he'll be able to start intensive therapy in the next couple of months.

While I knew that he likely would test positive, no mother wants to hear it. Experience tells me that we're going to face alot of struggles in the future with him and helping to meet his special needs.

Martian, I've heard that theory before. I personally don't believe all of it, at least not the immunization part. My son has been the way he is since birth, I started noticing symptoms of it at about 4 months. He has yet to receive his 18 months needles that most people claim can trigger ASD.

I DO believe, that environmental issues come into play. There are far more cases of ASD then there were even 20 years ago. Weither it's mercury or not, I just don't know, but there is definitely something that is triggering this.

I wish we had elders around here, both my son & I could really use a blessing.

[Vort]

A few points to consider:

• "Autism" is a catchall term, something that encompasses a wide variety of symptoms and (if I can use the word) disorders. It's kind of like saying that someone is "dyslexic": It pins a name on certain symptoms and/or behaviors, but is not itself a diagnosis.
• Autism and (especially) its little brother, Asperger's Syndrome, is the diagnosis du jour. Everyone's doing it. It's like "ADHD" and "bipolar" (which used to be called "manic depression" until it became too popular and needed a shorter name). Be very careful of such faddishness.
• Personalities are made up of ten thousand individual characteristics, each of which has a "normal" range. But if you're sort of toward the edge of "normal" on a few hundred such characteristics, people might think you're "odd" or "eccentric", or even (heaven help us) "autistic". The moral is: Take such labels with a grain of salt.
• Better Living Through Pharmaceuticals is the motto of our generation, but methinks it's a falsehood. Be careful in trying to manage your supposed "problems", or especially those of your children, through prescription medication.
• In the end, you're in charge. Accept the responsibility. Don't let the doctor (or some random internet know-it-all) bully you into doing something this way or that way. Make your own decisions. If you mess up, don't go searching for someone to blame. Accept your responsibility and chart your course.
• Children diagnosed as "autistic" have as much potential as anyone else. With good parenting and a loving, supportive environment, many of them will have a lessening of their "symptoms", and will ultimately not even be considered "autistic" any more. Don't let a label limit you or your children.

Fwiw.

[IamMe]

Vort, I appreciate your thoughts, and you're right. Autism is the catch all just as ADD was in my childhood. While the diagnosis is just new, my son has experience difficulties since very early on. To me, it means he needs a little extra help. I feel like I'm doing everything I can, it's now time for professionals to step in and pick up where I just haven't yet developed the skills to do so. In Canada at least, now that he has had this diagnosis, it means the government will now pick up the financial aspect for him to receive that professional help, it's not all a negative thing.
With my older son, while we've seen significant gangs because of the treatment he's been able to access, he still falls short amongst his peers. I'm optimistic that because we've caught this much earlier this time, that Al will be able to progress so taht the label can be removed, when the time is right. Although there's been some days that have thoroughly tested my patience and tempted me to try medication with my older son, we have yet to turn to medicine. We plan on doing the same with Al. He'll continue to receive physio, occupational & speech therapy, but now more often (since the government will be picking up the tab rather than us) he'll have more doors opened to him as to where and how often he can get the therapy.

Al has been extremly slow to meet mile stones right from the start. He was nearly 5 months before he was able to hold his head up, 8 months before he could roll over, a year before he crawled. He has yet to respond to his name, walk or stand up. Al is still Al, just as we treasure dwight for the individual that he is, we'll continue to do the same for Al. Autism will just be one small part of it.

[Martain]

Heh, I read the (or some random internet know-it-all) and suddenly felt myself a bit chastised =). I'll clarify that while I'm convinced that heavy metal toxicity causes autism, I'm not convinced that all autism is caused by heavy metal toxicity.

Having been raised with a little sister who is autistic, I can relate and feel for what you're going through and will go through.

I'm also glad to hear you have such supporting evidence to rule out immunizations as the cause of your child's autism.

That being said, I hope you'll eventually get around to doing the simple tests to rule heavy metal toxicity out. If nothing else, it's one more stone turned over and one more work added to your faith as you seek the Lords strength and healing as well.

I'm also grateful that you didn't tear my thread to pieces considering your difference of opinion. I appreciate it =)

[Grannyd]

I don't know where you live but aren't there any priesthood holders around that could give you and your son a blessing? It can be anyone that holds the Melchizedek priesthood. I feel horrible that you are desiring a blessing and feel like you can't get one. Hopefully, you can find someone soon. Best wishes as you face these challenges.

[begood2]

I will add you and your sons to my prayers and ask the Lord to give your family strength and understanding. May God bless!