Happy 3rd Birthday to Our 4th Child!

Today (March 29) is our 4th child's birthday. He is 3! He is the reason we jumped into the GAPS diet with both feet before I was quite ready.

Long story short (in case you have not read previous posts), he reacted to a vaccine last May and severely regressed. The neurologist had expected to meet a severely autistic little boy based on my written description of all that happened to my precious child, but because he had been on GAPS for three weeks he was almost his old self again. We at least had language and eye contact back.

When I was putting him down for the night, I realized that he is showing signs of regression. I have been noting them all week: clumsy, spills things more, falls down more, gets hurt more, louder and more agressive than usual, very tactile, always touching something, scattering toys about, stepping on things, rigid and easily upset, language slurred, lots of statements that sound like questions, repeats things over and over, his eyes are off (not tracking the same), eye contact is short in duration, close up he was looking at me out of the sides of his eyes when I asked him to look at me.  This, too, was short in duration, like it is uncomfortable to do it.

I don't know what to make of it.  At the same time, he is playing make believe.  Just this week, he has been playing with a pretend rat that he calls Rattetoui after the movie we watched a few weeks ago.  He hands me invisible cards, and cars, and food and he eats invisible monsters when they invade the house (I think our 9 year old started that one).  He talks constantly, naming everything and asking questions about things or telling us about things.

He seems very smart.  When he tells us these things, we just have to listen carefully to decifer what he is saying.  Sometimes I have to get my other kids to help me figure it out.  He's unbelievably patient about this.  He just keeps repeating his words over and over and over until we get it.  Several weeks ago he could say "finger".  Today it comes out "hinga".  He says, "Ma hinga hoit." for "My finger hurts."  or maybe it was "My finger got hurt."

So his language is growing and blossoming, but it comes and goes.  I think this is die-off.  I think the regression will be temporary and that we should press on with adding more and more of the healing foods that are part of this GAPS protocol.  I think it is because we added Cod Liver Oil and have been having more coconut oil and ghee.  We added yoghurt, too.  Well, anyway, there are some things to think about.

He looked forward to his Birthday Party all last week.  He would say, "I'm 2.  On my birthday, I be 3, right?"  He loved the streamers.  The kids wake up to streamers decorating the living room on their birthdays and he knows this, so when he woke up grumpy and his older sister told him about the streamers, he jumped up and ran out to see.  When I woke up, the two were sitting together looking at books.  Precious!

He hardly cracked a smile throughout his whole party, but I know he loved it.  He just didn't look like he felt well.  His cheeks were red and his face looked sweaty even though it was not hot.  He had everyone else open his presents for him.  That's different after the way he tore into the presents at Christmastime.

He is definitely going through a period of regression, but nothing too awful.  I pray that this is as bad as it gets.  Lord, let's not get any worse with this.  'K?


He loves the Thomas trains and the puzzles that he got for his birthday.  He especially likes the tiger puzzle.  He does that one over and over.  He got puzzles because when he goes to the library he has to do every puzzle they have.  The boy loves puzzles!
 
Thank You, My Father in Heaven, for this precious little boy.  Thank You for the gift that he is, for all that he brings to this family, for the joy he brings.  Thank You for giving him back to us!  He was lost to us for a short while, but he is back.  I do not fear losing him again.  You led us to the GAPS diet in an answer to my prayers for help.  If he steps away again for a bit, I have confidence that he will be back again and again with great gains.  He is a sharp little boy.  He is a joy!  Thank You for the gift of this son.  Amen!