Melatonin and Autism

So tonight I was asked in personal messaging in Facebook about melatonin and autism. The mother who was asking me questions wondered if giving Doodle melatonin had her body stop producing it on its own.

This is the way that I look at it. I discovered melatonin in August of last year. Before that, going all the way back to when Doodle was an itty bitty she barely slept. The child would take a 5 minute nap and would seriously be up for a full 24 hours straight with no sleep.

So to answer that question, I don't think her body produces melatonin own its own. And if she does produce it, I don't think her body produces enough of it to help her get to sleep. Temple Grandin allowed an MRI scan on her brain to help show what a person on the spectrums' brain looked like. And their brain is pretty much wired differently than ours.

I can honestly state that I'm not the only parent that raises a child with autism that uses a sleep aide to help them get to sleep. I learned about melatonin reading a post on Autism with a side of fries (personal blog) on Facebook. That was the time that I learned that, "Hey, I'm not the only one with a child that doesn't sleep!"

A few days ago a friend of mine shared a story from her area over the pond. (My friend lives in the U.K.) It was a story about a young lady, middle school age who had committed suicide because she couldn't handle her autism diagnoses. She was diagnosed as an aspie. It stated in the article that the girl basically functioned off 4 hours of sleep at night, sometimes less. It was a hard article to read.

And the only reason that I'm mentioning the article is the fact that children on the spectrum just don't sleep. I have another friend who is just about beside herself because her middle child was diagnosed with Doodle's form of autism and her daughter is showing signs of being an aspie. If you have lived in the autism world as long as I have, and you pay attention to some of the signs and have friends who have children on all the forms of the spectrum, you can pretty much spot the signs. To me it's like the child is wearing a shirt with the notification stamped on the front and on the back. Or like they have a bill board that hoovers and follows them around where ever they go.

Sleep is a beautiful thing to have and a privilege for some to get. Sometimes our kids just need a little help. And yeah I would like to say that Doodle sleeps through the night while on melatonin but she doesn't. I'm woken in the middle of the night with her wanting to play. I gently remind her that it's still dark outside and dark means night night time. She will lay back down, chatter for a little bit and then fall back asleep until 5:30 in the morning, when she promptly gets up and is up for the rest of the day.

Now, I'm going to try to get the pictures up of our spring break day at the beach. You guys will be able to see them tomorrow. So you guys have a great day.

You want sleep, Momma? That's not gonna happen. I'm wide awake.

Sunburns and Autism

Wednesday was my birthday and the man who is my ex made sure that it was the best birthday I've had in a long time. Sometimes the people with the kindest hearts are the ones who are treated the cruelest. Mainly because we won't stick up for ourselves. It's hard to find the words to speak for who we are and what someone does it not right. But once you change your out look on yourself people take notice and treat you the way that you deserve to be treated.

It took my birthday to find out who I was. I've been so lost in the autism life that I forget who I am. I have the confidence in myself to sprout out autism facts and ways to combat some of the issues that parents face that have helped other parents. What really helped was a couple thousand posts to my personal facebook page. The few that I really truly talk to are the ones that reminded me of that. My friend Terri told me that I was a person that changes lives. I'm so upbeat that I can't help myself. She admires me and yeah that really meant a lot to me.

My friend Christy left me a message that I was a person that was beautiful on the inside and out! I never stop to think about who I am or what I am suppose to be. I know that I have to go out there and share the love of Christ. Because it's the love of Christ that is who I am and yeah he pretty much makes me beautiful inside and out. Some don't see me as I roll my eyes when a meltdown rears it's ugly head. Though they are few and far between I will still roll my eyes at them. They are frustrating for me and for her.

My friend Chip told me that I can handle anything like it was nothing while even standing on my head. Chip I really don't talk to on a personal level. It's nice to know that you matter and mean something to everyone that you come in contact with.

Again it boiled down to just having some me time. That is time that I rarely get. A nice soak in the tub for about an hour and then maybe 30 minutes of television time. Not having to worry about Doodle stomping, yelling and getting into things or tearing anything up.

The next day I took her swimming where she was pretty much like a fish in water. She loves the water. Children on the spectrum are drawn to water. So of course you know that had my guard up. Making sure that she didn't try to drown herself. Doodle's had several years worth of swimming lessons that didn't seem to take. I spent a good portion of time trying to get her to focus and paddle her feet and move her arms.

She played, she enjoyed herself and that's all that matters. She did have me scared when she kept trying to go to the deep end. I stayed close to her so that when she tried to head to the deep end I would be able to pull her back.

And yes, though she and I were slathered in sun screen we still ended up with a bit more sun to our skin then I would have liked for us to have had. Nothing aloe vera gel won't fix.

There was a lot more that happened on my birthday but it was a pretty busy couple of days with searching for a Dairy Queen so I could keep a tradition that I've had for close to 10 years. A chilli cheese dog with onions. That was the last meal that my grandfather and I shared together before he was killed. And of course the ice cream. I love Dairy Queen ice cream. I got some beautiful roses from my ex and of course a cake.

And due to all the fun the past couple of days that Doodle had it was no surprise that she had a meltdown when her father left. It was the first time I had Doodle take a nap. And as you know Doodle does not get to sleep without help. I gave her less then 0.5 ml of melatonin which resulted in a 20 minute nap. And that did not stop the meltdowns when she woke up. So after dinner and around 7:00 pm I gave her her regular dose of melatonin. The next morning she is back to happy chipper self and no meltdowns.

Back to the grind stone. You guys have a great day.

where we enjoyed the pool fun.

Spring Break Autism

Note: I wrote this last night and went to bed before I edited it.

It's Monday and for a Monday it's been pretty good. Yesterday, we celebrated the Resurrection of Christ. I discussed with Doodle about Christ dying on the cross for our sins and asked if he was dead or alive. She responded back with Jesus is live.  She's doing pretty good considering when she first heard about him dying on the cross for awhile there she insisted that he was dead. That was maybe 2 years ago.

Saturday was the day I dreaded. I ran out of her tooth paste. One thing I will not go back to is toothpaste you buy from the store. I've seen first hand how meltdowns are just something that doesn't stop when she's on commercially made toothpaste, because of the sls chemical. And the health food store didn't have my calcium magnesium that's berry flavored. So instead of purple grey tint toothpaste we now have white sort of beige toothpaste and I had to use stevia extract powder for a sweet flavor in it. I never had to add that before because of the berry flavored calcium magnesium that already had the sweetness in it. To me, nothing makes your teeth feel so much better then freshly made toothpaste. And this toothpaste keeps your teeth feeling clean for the entire day. I'm not sure on the taste yet though. I kind of miss my berry flavored as I'm sure Doodle misses it too.

I think Doodle is happy that school is out. She keeps saying that she hates school and I really don't like hearing that. Now I have to figure out other ways to get her to either go to school or be excited about going to school. I'll figure it out. I always do.

And on a side note as my birthday approaches I think that I might need to just lower all the prices on the books that I have on the website and let this week just roll. And with it being a Monday, I've already managed to get my brows done, my nails done, Doodle and her "talons" nails done and painted. So I think this day has been pretty good. I haven't done my own brows in a very long time. I'm just not that good at it but today I figured I needed to make myself good at it. And after my best friend took a look and confirmed that they looked good I was happy. I've messed my brows up before. I tried to trim the eyebrow hair and ended up putting a line in my brow. Yeah, I looked pretty stupid and as it happened to be a week that I was coming home to spend a week or so with family and my best friend. My best friend never let me live that down for the entire summer. Best friends just have to rag you about things. Just laugh it off.

And yesterday was my best friends birthday. What did Doodle and I do? We pranked him on his birthday. Made him a pinata and ribbon-ed his house. Doodle just had so much fun putting ribbon on all the iron posts holding up the front porch. We did it all while he was away for a couple of hours and it was glorious fun!

Too bad my best friend can't get me back as he will be out of town on my birthday. And the only way that he can get me back is on his own on my birthday. Can't do that out of town. So I will have a fantastic birthday!

You guys have a fantastic day. I'm headed out, as I still have lots to do.

It's Good Friday Autism

Yesterday was a great day for celebrating Doodle's uniqueness. I don't blame meltdowns on her autism. Though meltdowns are fewer and far between now. To me everyday is a day to celebrate the blessing of my child but yesterday was a bit more special. It was light it up blue the start of Autism Awareness month. I saw posts of people helping to bring awareness to autism and I saw parents of children on the spectrum who rolled their eyes and complained about the day. Saying things of don't remind me about autism I am well aware. There is nothing wrong with celebrating this uniqueness. Heck, every year we celebrate Freddie for a day. It's pretty fun dressing up as Freddie Mercury. As Doodle and I are big fans. We always will be. That will never change.

Look I'm the type of person that sees the glass half full. Thankful there is water in the glass to quench my thirst. I'm proud of my daughter, she is my blessing. I'm proud of her autism. She's an artist and she's really good at what she does. She's so good she's creating a children's book with her artwork. Have i said that I'm proud of her? She remembers her prayers to God and she remembers to bless the food. I think she's awesome. She's been pushed so hard to get where she is. Though the first 4 years after her diagnoses she didn't respond to speech therapy and fought her occupational therapist. It wasn't until she got to a new school where she got a teacher that was willing to take on the challenge of getting through to her. I love Ms. Heather and Jerrianne. They are miracle workers. When no one else could get through, they did.

And as my yesterday wound down from cupcakes and ice cream. And the realization that yesterday was not the last day of school. The good news is today they don't have to wear uniforms which made Doodle even happier to get ready without a fight. We look forward to today. It is another glorious morning. Though we were a little late. I have another photo opp today and had to get my makeup on. And that's what caused us to be late today. Makeup.

But in all honesty this was a good late to school. We pulled up at the exact same time as her teacher. No teacher wants to admit they get to school late every single day. So those tardies are not held against us. Bonus!

I do like my new pallet that I got yesterday. It's the NAKED eye shadow pallet and I got it at Ross. Maybelline has their own NAKED pallet similar to Urban Decay. It's for a little over $10.00. I didn't pay that much. I got my makeup NAKED pallet at Ross Dress for Less. It was $7.99. I have a child with autism. My life is already expensive and so it's best to make sure that I can afford what I need. I already pay for a certain magazine every month and this month is my birthday month. One early birthday splurge for myself is okay. And there is nothing wrong with looking good making yourself feel good. Feeling good boosts your confidence.

As for that certain magazine it's for my business. I'm the only one that does what I do and learning about graphics design when you can't afford to go back to school. And when I say that I can't afford it I mean with my time. My life is a little consuming. Some of the best people out there who are successful are a success because they are self taught.

So as I get back to work this morning and prepare for my best friends birthday this weekend with lots of pranks and my birthday 3 days later. I'm a happy busy mom!. Have a great day everyone!

The cupcakes from yesterday for light it up blue!

Meet Doodle when she dressed up for Freddie for a day.

Life is short, have some fun.

Autism Awareness Month - Light It Up Blue

Today is April the 2nd and it is a day I celebrate the beautiful life of my precious Doodle. To her it's like a second birthday. Only with no presents but there is cake. I tell her every year it's a special day to celebrate who she is and to embrace her difference.

It's Autism Awareness month and today we light it up blue. On facebook all of the main pages for my company and this blog have the light it up blue image from Autism Speaks. It's not an important day for some people but for me it's a perfect day. It's another day where Doodle can feel special in a world where most people don't understand and don't even try to understand her.

1 in 68 children in the United States has some form of the Autism Spectrum Disorder. The numbers are growing yearly, monthly, weekly and daily.  And there are still parents out there that think their children are an abomination. Parents who hate their children because of autism.

We live in a world with barely any understanding of people with differences. People who turn against others because of the pigment of their skin. To me this is very stupid. And this is where my personal beliefs come in. God does not look at our outward appearance. He looks at our heart. He knows us not by color or disability. He KNOWS US! Who we are. What we are about. What we are thinking. What we are plotting. He knows what what we are doing even if we are "by ourselves and no one else is around". So when you think no one knows. God knows. We are never truly alone. God wouldn't do that to us because he is all knowing.

If there are times that you "think" you don't like your child because of their autism. That's hate on your heart. Embrace autism. There is nothing wrong with embracing what makes you, your friends or your children unique. Different.

I have friends that are different "colors or races". I love them so much they are different then me. They have special skills and talents. They've done things I never would have been able to do. I have friends who are Veterans, are currently in the military, friends who are artist, friends who own their own businesses, friends who are male and female and friends who have been put in the same boat that Doodle and I have found ourselves in. What makes us all the same. We have blood running through our veins, a heart that beats. We have eyes, a nose, a mouth. We are different but we are still the same. The outward appearance that's much like ourselves.

And as I write this I'm listening to a song that says fear is just a lie. So what are you afraid of? Don't let it be autism or the pigment of someone's skin. If I gave an excuse for everything I would have an excuse for not liking someone with a different skin color. Right before my 8th birthday my grandfather was killed by someone "with a different skin pigment" as his. That does not give me an excuse or a reason to hate all or even to hate a man. All lives matter. Even if you weren't loved or felt you were never loved, now is the time to break out of the "mold" so to say and give love. Love with all your mind, body and soul. You'll feel better about yourself and you'll feel better about the people around you. My mother wasn't very loving when I was growing up. Doodle doesn't know that and she doesn't feel that. I hug and kiss on her as much as I can. I tell her I love her at every moment possible. It helps her and it helps me.

Enjoy your day guys. I'm off to the store to buy cupcakes with blue frosting. I'll even have them write Autism on the cupcakes, because my kid is autism awesome!

Finding laughter in chaos, Autism

Sometimes finding the laughter in life can be really hard. Here I am working without a to do list. Working on sales for 31, painting my nails, writing a post for this blog and writing a post for my JSN Creative Services blog, keeping up with tsu, facebook, twitter and a sick child with limited speech. She can talk I know she can it's forming the sentences most of the time that's the problem. And usually it's mimicking what she sees and hears on youtube. Thanks Elmo and the other one I keep blocking on the computer but shows up on the ipad anyways. I don't mind hearing Mr. Noodle over and over again but the other one with the language. Goodness!

My list of things to be done are long. So I take a break outside because it sounds like my dog is going nuts as the yard man shows up to cut the front yard. And that's when I see him. My soaping spoon. This is a wooden spoon I have used for years to make soap. Soap that has helped Doodle be more productive. How can soap make a child more productive? My soap does not have the sls chemical in it, therefor her skin is not irritated at all and she can concentrate on what's going on around her. She doesn't have that feeling of "pins stabbing her" like most children on the spectrum get. Sometimes medications can fix this. I don't do medications with Doodle. I address the sensory issues. Making my own soaps was far cheaper for me verses using medications. The money that I save on creating different soaps for different needs has saved me money through the years as well.

Yes, I'm one of those people that pays $1.72 for 10 gallons of laundry detergent. It's basically cost me $.98 for shampoo bars that I will have an ample supply of. And about the same price for soap to clean our bodies with. I have complete control over the entire process and that includes the scents I put in it. I burn the lye off and the soap is ready to use in 2 days. Barely a curing process to deal with.

But back on subject. The soaping spoon. I allowed Doodle to play with it yesterday and this morning I find it no longer a spoon. A former shell of what it's suppose to be. One of the dogs turned it from a wooden spoon to a fork. It's a sad day for me. I'm so broken up about it I made an announcement on my personal facebook page about it, which reads: It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of a dear dear friend. He's made lots of soap with me through the years. This morning I found him on the ground. One of the dogs turned him from a wooden spoon to a fork. RIP soaping spoon you served me well.

I do find this all hilarious. This is what I get for letting Doodle play with my spoon. The last time it was used was to dye some of our clothing that makes up our spring and summer wardrobe. Hence the reason way it's purple. I did use him a couple of times to melt the soap to make my laundry detergent. But as for make actual soap it's been almost a year. Well, he was getting on up there in age thanks to the lye. I do have replacements. I've been preparing for this day months ago. It's got some eager players ready to do the job and they are sturdier then he is. Bamboo is suppose to be a stronger wood so we will see.

Hope you guys enjoyed the laugh. Have a great day!

RIP Soaping spoon. You've served me well and you will be missed.

  

Getting work done, sickness and Autism

Another sick day. These allergies she gets are driving me made. She has her ipad, I'm playing way-fm on my computer. I just can't get enough of way-fm. It's a station that truly gets me through the good and bad in life. Face it, raising a child on the spectrum can be a challenge.

With Doodle's new favorite word this week being no I'm about ready to put myself in time out. For a child who's home sick she doesn't act like it. She's up running around, full of energy. I want her energy. I would be able to get so much done if I had a small portion of that energy.

Since I've started watching an itty bitty I'm not really able to get much work done. Children on the spectrum and itty bitty's require so much attention. I'm seriously drowning in work. My to do list has pretty much flipped me off and made a break for it. Normally, I'm so optimistic about life but today, a Monday I am just defeated.

I think it's time to find the rainbow and jump start this day. Something has got to give and it's going to be the to do list. The first thing I can knock off the list is going to be this blog post. The next to be knocked off the list is going to be posting about the new 31 products that are rolling out. I'm sure there is some. Either that or I'll post about what's helpful for families.

They say when you own your own business that you work more hours and more days without days off. Yeah, it's pretty much true. Throw in sick kids and you're pretty much ready to rip your hair out. Oh and let's not forget about this new class I'm taking to help me with illustrating children's books. Pup's I've pretty much left alone except for the images that I had to put in because there were not enough images to get the book finished. My illustrator for that book had a stroke and was told he shouldn't do anymore work and that included art. So of course I had to do what I needed to do. But I'm pretty much happier with it and this way I can continue with the series by using the original work he created. And I can continue to give him credit for it and a paycheck. Life can be hard but the kindness of others doesn't have to be.

Time to find some motivation, some laughter and get this week done! Have a great day everyone.