This is to announce that I have opened a new blog. A spot to store my teachings and ideas. Over here you will be able to search for specific subject matter eg. speech, activities, art, maths, writing......

However this blog do not have sufficient information as yet as I have only just started writing/uploading the ideas. Please continue to visit for new ideas and information. This blog serves as a teaching aide site and is not  a therapy or a counselling site. You are required to seek professional medical advice, therapy and Early Intervention help for complete and official diagnosis.

Enjoy the series :

Daily Antidote

Its been 3 weeks since our budgie babies arrived. Holi, Pasqual and Anastasia are growing into beautiful birds. Holi is going to look like dad and the other two like ma Polly. It will be another 2 weeks before they come hopping out of their little nest. The babies chirp only when they need feeding. Meanwhile the parent birds have gotten into fights and have made up for now.

The site is not allowing me to upload pictures. I will, when it does!

During my early morning walks, the first thing I encounter would be sand theft from near a public park.  The modus operandi was to empty a portion of the fully laden sand from a lorry near the park and deliver the balance to the consumer as full load.  For every such four loads, one load of sand is made, the sale proceeds of which goes to the coffers of the loading staff and truck driver.


The above are almost an everyday early morning spectacle.  They will set any right-thinking man to ponder where our society is headed!

In the olden days, the common belief was:- 
           "If wealth is lost, nothing is lost;
            If health is lost, something is lost: and
            If character is lost, everything is lost."

It was said "All is fair in love and war".  This dictum appears to have engulfed all spheres of activities these days... :-(

Looking for images to decorate this blogpost with, I found this one, that seemed so appropriate, though from a different religion from mine.
That, exactly, is the problem with the current generation. They know the rules, but they want exceptions to each of them too! :-(

S1 (the six-year-old) has been going to an art class for the past few weeks. This is a picture he drew with oil pastels when learning how to draw a face:
A couple of folks have, unprompted, asked if it was me. So, he now claims it is a picture of me, mustache, glasses and all. Even the green hair could be arranged, I suppose.

This one is one of my favorites. S1 says it's a picture of some monsters fighting: His pictures all have monsters in them. I have the sneaking suspicion that he must have started out his portrait aiming to draw a monster, only it turned out to look like me!

Here is a narration, which explains why one should never give up and how transformations can happen.

One day I decided to quit...
 
"Look around", He said. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?"
"Yes", I replied.
"When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them.
I gave them light. I gave them water.
The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor.
Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed.
But I did not quit on the bamboo. In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful.
And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. He said.
"In year three there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.
In year four, again, there was nothing from the bamboo see.
I would not quit." He said.
"Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.
Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant...But  just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.
It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong
and gave it what it needed to survive.
I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle."
He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots"
"I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you."
"Don't compare yourself to others." He said. "The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern. Yet they both make the forest beautiful."
"Your time will come", God said to me. "You will rise high"
"How high should I rise" I asked.
"How high will the bamboo rise" He asked in return.
"As high as it can" I questioned.
"Yes." He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can."
I left the forest and bring back this story.
I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you.
Never give up.

Patty and her friend Marianne loved to play with their dolls. Patty  would make a doll house out of a cardboard box and pretend it was a fancy house with decorations. Marianne liked to play with her babies. She wrapped them in thin brown papertowels.

"See, these are soft and my babies love them," she told me.

Patty ignored her friend. She sat her dolls in the cardboard box. The dolls wore old clothes but Patty didn't care. Marianne tried to dress Patty's dolls but Patty wouldn't have it.

When I observed Patty and Marianne they were seven. Their parents knew one another from work. Patty's mother was thrilled that someone would play with her daughter.

"Patty has autism and few friends. Her teachers don't get it. They think she is not capable."

Patty's mom was impatient. She knew Patty had abilities and talents. She was tired of the teachers telling her what Patty couldn't do.

The new friendship between Patty and Marianne thrilled her.

"They are really friends," the mother told me.

I watched the friends.

They knew how to play together and they did it so well.

Play scholars.

 

 

 

This is a marathon, not to win, but to catch up to where my son should have been. As I look through the picture albums of his days prior to his regression, I think of how would be today. This whole marathon is to get to that point.

As our focus is on steadily getting him back to health, I wrote about Cocktail Treatments in this article: http://www.ageofautism.com/2008/01/cocktail-treatm.html

Where I left off was at my account of IVIG treatments. The benefits of IVIG seemed to saturate, at some point. The treatments still continue but we looked at other areas. We performed a detailed look at his GastroIntestinal System through a pill cam. The pill cam is an amazing device that is swallowed and it transmits pictures of the entire GI pathway. The results didnt look good. The small intestine qualified for the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease.

We started a trial of Pentasa and Singulair. The Pentasa seems to aggravate symptoms of salicylates. However at a lower dose, the drugs do seem to help, he is making some progress.

Another trial right now is Namenda, the alzhiemer's drug. It seems to be helping with memory, recall etc. He seems to recall events from his classes, what he ate for lunch etc. better.

His current list of supplements in the morning is: an AM compound of vitamins and minerals from Pfeiffer Treatment center, 5HTP, Candex on an empty stomach, his antifungal rotation (one of Oregon Grape Root Extract, Kyolic, Biocidin, ...), homeopathic Aconitum Napellus, Calm Child drops and Seriphos.

Midday he takes the cultured juice/kefir rotation, and E3Live.

At the evening, he takes the PM compound from Pfeiffer, Phosphotidylserine, Black Currant oil, fish oil, cod liver oil, DMAE, Vit D3, Vit K2, Liver Life, CoQ10, Taurine and Coromega.

At bedtime he gets an Epsom Salt Bath. His diet is a combination of Raw Food diet and Body Ecology Diet. He does not seem to tolerate any infraction.

How is he doing now?

Now I am able to take him to classes in the community. Art, ceramics, gym. He is able to work alongside typical peers. He is quiet, does not disrupt, and he does his work. Which is great, because it widens his opportunities. He also feels very competent when he does good work. He does not interact with the kids, and does not follow detailed instructions from the teacher, and I have to be with him to keep him on task. But with minimal support he functions quite well.

I dont know where we are on this marathon, but I have a feeling that the next lap is going to take us outside the country! 

So it is holidays for Kids and as parents you will be thinking on where to take you kids.
Here is one spot, I feel you kids shouldn't miss.
Season of Love
St. George’s Anglo Indian School (close to Pachayappa college)
Poonamallee High Road

Dates: from 20th of December 2007 and will be open for the next 7 days
Timing: 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM

What do you get to see?
A 100 meter long cake, where they are planning to break the record.
A 65 foot long Christmas Tree
Apart from that you have 150 and odd stalls to keep your family busy. (toys, food and lots more)
The best part would be that you are spending quality time and money for your family.

BTW, here is are two cents if you want to commute. Don't think about taking your car, just pick up an auto rickshaw. You will save lot of time and energy.
Do enjoy with your family.

My predicament was correct! I nicknamed her "Twister" and she is proving me right time and again.  There is a lot to write and i guess I will just put all that I can recollect into this entry.

I spent an afternoon with a good friend. We were meeting after a long time and after about an hour with Akshara and her activity, she asked, " How do you manage ? She is such a RIOT!!!"  I could not have thought of a better word to describe Akshara.

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A good friend, who is also Akshara's teacher at the play school, has a 2 year old son. The child is well behaved, more times that not, at least I have never seen him throw a tantrum or anything. My friend narrated that on a rare occasion that her son threw a tantrum, she (my friend) was exasperated and complained to her neighbour how difficult he was.

Her neighbour simply said, " You find him difficult? Try keeping Akshara with you for a day, you'll know the difference!!"

Mind you guys, I am not trying to tarnish my daughter's image here!!! I get a kick out of how some of my friends get tired just looking at her move at the pace that she does!

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One evening, a very cold evening - when it was time to retire for the day, Akshara was busy watching Baloo and Mougli sing "bare necessities......" in Jungle Book- I got into bed and snuggled against her. She snuggled up, put her tiny palm on my cheek and said "Amma, now I am Happy".

I asked her "Who taught you that?"....she says..."you amma". Well, I did not...but whoever did............Thanks!