Which picture makes me happy to see now ?

     Even though my daughter might not like drinking almond milk. She would have to drink it one way or another, in a pinching your nose way. The first days were bad because she stood her ground and would not want to drink it at all and ask for white milk. OMG! this girl is smart, but mommy is smarter. The days pass and now she is drinking it faster with less complain, it has been less than a month with casein free milk. Angelina started with gluten free food first then after I did casein free milk. 

     The only thing that I like in all this is that, she loves to eat corn and loves apples or bananas. Her eating habits have changed so much, that it has changed her completely in such little time. Her hyperactivity is down a little and her crying for no reason episodes are gone. She specifies more now to me or her at home therapist (ABA Therapy), even one of her therapist told me that she never believed in alternative medicine, but now yes. I am very glad that Angelina is progressing as the days go by, I see it as baby steps "little by little" with lots of patience and faith. 

      I received Angelina's blood test results, but am really shocked in what I have seen. More and more I know in my heart that I made the right decision is doing this for her. There is still blood work that is pending and not in yet, but I have a doctors appointment on August 20th and I will find out everything. Every day that goes by I get amazed how my daughter is acting and progressing, very confident it will get better as the months pass by. 

Angelina loves donuts.. so I went and bought this !!

Baby cakes Donut Maker Machine

     Angelina always loved Dunkin Donuts delicious donuts, but unfortunately they are not gluten free. I read in the internet that Dunkin Donuts was starting no gluten donuts in Chicago and maybe in the end of the year would be everywhere. I do not have time to wait for them to come out with a gluten free donut, so I decided to buy in Wegman's this donut machine. It makes them in 3 minutes only !!! The first day I bought it, I was trying to make donuts all by myself (from scratch) but it came out horrible. I searched Google and read that there were parents who made the donuts from the gluten free cake mix. Horray !! I had the Betty Crocker gluten free chocolate cake mix, so I followed all the instructions and when i was finished poured it in the donut machine. one.. two... three.. minutes and it was ready !!

Angelina says to me "Hmm Delicious mommy"! Happy child and happy mom !! Plus my older son JP and my little one Philippe love them too. The best buy I ever did.

Good job ! 

Gluten free pasta with blended spinach sauce .. "Delicious" !!!

Ingredients:

• Almond milk
• Fresh spinach
• Tofuti cream cheese dairy free
• Fresh basil
• Go Veggie Parmesan Cheese Dairy Free
• Garlic powder
• Himalayan Pink Sea Salt 
• Gluten free pasta 
• Chopped onions

Preparation:

• In a pan add a little olive oil and fry the onions with a little garlic powder
• When the onions are heated for a minute or two, add the spinach and heat it for 2 minutes or until soft
• Add the Himalayan Pink Sea Salt and fresh basil less than 2 minutes and then turn off the stove
• In the blender, add Tofuti cream cheese dairy free 2 tablespoons with what is on your pan
• After you add both of these things in the blender, make sure to blend it until everything is mixed well
• Add almond milk in the blender, but no that much (I would say half the blender)
• You want your sauce dark green and not light green
• When you blended your ingredients, put it aside and boil your pasta
• After the pasta is ready, add the sauce with your pasta (gluten free) 
• Add Go Veggie Parmesan Cheese Dairy Free in top of the pasta to add flavor

Whatever sauce is left, you can save it in a mason jar (glass jar) for the following day. Angelina loves it so much !! (me too)....

Our first visit to see the doctor and so very nervous I was ...

     The first visit I took my daughter was the most nerve wrecking day for me, I had a migraine and had so much tension all over my body. It was a 1 hour plus drive for me with Angelina to see the doctor, which was passing Philadelphia. Angelina was not great and had several bad episodes when we went to see the doctor. He was asking me so many questions from the beginning of my pregnancy all the way to the present on how Angelina was. At the same time, I had Angelina scream and cry which made me have a bigger migraine. The doctor told me that it was okay for him to see how she is so he can better evaluate Angelina. 

     The doctor was happy that I already started on giving Angelina no gluten (GF) foods, but told me that I had to start her on casein free food too. In order for Angelina to improve in this type of treatment, she had to eat and drink no gluten and no casein. He put her on supplements that had no dairy and no gluten, he gave me a big red book that had everything on bio medical treatments and information on  Methylcobalamin B12 injections that I would have to inject Angelina every 3rd day (which he called Hopewell pharmacy and had them ship it to me). 

     I left that day with a lot to read and left with a bigger migraine that I came in with. I was happy in a way because the doctor told me his story on how he is a parent as well with twins with autism, how his twins improved throughout the years. He gave me a print out of a newspaper article of his life and how he thanks his wife for following every single treatment with their twins. Angelina's doctor told me that everyone in my household have to adjust to this change in food because one little mistake can alter her treatments. He mentioned how important it was to have support from everyone and especially my husband in this. 

     I had to also little by little remove Angelina's medicine from the neurologist because I was starting on bio medical medicine, which is removing all toxins from Angelina in general. He send Angelina for blood work, in which I decided to take her to St. Luke's Hospital Anderson Campus to get her blood work done there. There was so many blood test that he ordered that the lady from St. Luke's Hospital was shocked to see what her doctor ordered. OMG! The lady asked me which type of doctor is this, I told the lady that this is alternative medicine. I honestly did not care what people think of what I am doing for Angelina, I know that I have her best interest in all this and would never do nothing that would put in risk her health. 

     

     I started Angelina with her treatment two days after, I wanted to be sure to read everything that the doctor gave me. That day Angelina was completely on no gluten and no casein foods, plus she was taking her supplements that the doctor gave her. The doctor gave Angelina a schedule per week what supplements I had to start her on week per week, plus give Angelina the methyl b12 injections every third day (small injection). My older son JP helped me and was very thankful to him. I read in the website of Dr. Neubrander of this cream that I think I would try so I can inject Angelina at night so she would not see it. 

      I started giving Angelina almond milk with no gluten oatmeal for breakfast and a hard boil egg. For dinner, lunch and snacks Angelina would eat her GF pasta with spinach sauce that I make, plus gluten free pizza with GF cupcakes if she wants (apples, pretzel, veggie chips, gluten free peanut butter cookies any day). Angelina doesn't really like drinking almond milk, but I sit down with her until she drinks everything or else I would take away her iPad (which she loves). 

       I was happy the day I discovered tofu ice cream sandwiches for Angelina! WOW! I thought she would not eat them because just reading "Tofu", you would think she would hate them but she loves them. Plus, I discovered gluten free cream cheese that I prepare with her pasta with spinach sauce. Thanks to Rhea that she told me all these new discoveries. 

Enjoying this !!! 

Starting first with no gluten before seeing her DAN! doctor

     Three weeks before Angelina saw the DAN! doctor, I decided to start her on Gluten Free foods. I went to Wegman's website and looked up all the gluten free foods for Angelina. My mom and I threw away all the foods that contained gluten and left the ones that were okay for her to eat. Everyone in the house knew that if they would eat something that contained gluten, that they should eat it outside before entering the house with it. Reading my friends blogs and Facebook post, gave me ideas on what I should buy. I really thought it was going to be difficult buying gluten free (GF) food, but I was wrong. I spend a lot of time going to Wegman's and learning to read all the labels of what to buy and not to buy for the house. 

     

     The only reason why I started Angelina with no gluten (GF) food first, was because I wanted her to transition little by little and not just take everything away all at once. Instead of giving Angelina regular milk, I bought Lactaid milk (I know Lactaid milk has an enzyme that contains lactose). Lactaid milk was just a temporary milk that she would drink before I started her on Almond milk or Coconut milk. I kept all the internet websites on my iPhone on what ingredients contain gluten and what not to buy. WOW! my iPhone was full of these saved internet sites that I would read if in case I saw something I was not sure of. 

     These were some of the no gluten foods that I bought for my daughter Angelina:

• Ancient Harvest Quinoa Pasta (different shapes and sizes)
• Ice cream cones that have no gluten
• Wegmans organic vanilla ice cream (this I knew I had to find a substitute that has no dairy)
• Betty Crocker Gluten free (no gluten) cake mix *chocolate*
• Brown cow vanilla yogurt (which was temporary until I find no dairy yogurt)
• Amy's Pizza rice crust with no gluten and no dairy (frozen)
• Annie's Homegrown cookie bunny 
• Eco-Planet Organics Hot Cereal instant, apple and cinnamon no gluten (GF)
• Wegmans fresh spinach (which of course has no gluten and she loves in her pasta)
• Glutino Pretzel twist, no gluten (any type of pretzel that has no gluten)
• Brown sugar 
• Dietz and Watson hot dogs no gluten (any type of hot dog that says no gluten GF)
• Rice 
• Eggs

     My food list goes on within the days that I learned new things from different people and of course Google....

Bio medical medicine is the way I go !

     My daughter had good days and bad days, but I just felt that there was something else I can do to make them more better than worse. There was one day that Angelina got out of control with hitting and had big meltdowns, that made me evaluate everything that I did so far for my daughter. The medicines that her neurologist from "Children's Hospital of Philadelphia" were not working for her and were making her more aggressive towards everyone and cry for no reason. That week I just sat down in my bedroom and researched for a whole week other types of ways that I would be able to go about with my daughter.

     I went to a website in the internet that was called My Autism Team and spoke to several parents who had children with autism. I received great feedback from them and several parents mentioned to me about bio medical medicine, how it was helping their kids. I knew this was an option I should explore, but I had to further investigate it and talk to other parents to come up with my conclusion whether it was something I should try out with my daughter. I was not born knowing everything, but the only thing that i knew is that I wanted my daughter to get better somehow and I wasn't going to give up on her.

     That is how I researched Dr. Neubrander and how he came up with the Methylcobalamin B12 injections (MB12 injections). I saw his internet website and saw every video that he had, which were the before and after videos of every child with autism. I was surprised of what I saw and of course I knew that not every child reacts the same with the Methyl B12 injections, but I did want to pursue this direction with my daughter. I went again to the internet website "My Autism Team" and spoke to this parent that had gone to a Defeat Autism Now (DAN!) doctor in Newtown Square in Pennsylvania, which she was really happy with him because her child improved a lot. This parent mentioned that she liked this doctor because he was a parent with twins with autism. I knew this doctor was the one I should go with Angelina because he and I shared the same situation "we are parents of an autism child". 
  
      I made Angelina's first appointment with this doctor and was very anxious to see what he would tell me when he meets my daughter, his initial evaluation of Angelina. I told my family about this and had their support on this. I even spoke to my husband over the phone, but he just was not feeling the same as I was about seeing this doctor. I think he was afraid that I would have high hopes of this new treatment with our daughter and then it would turn bad in the end. I knew that this was something that is not approved with medical insurances and of course would have to pay cash to see him, but I just did not care. I absolutely do not see money as an obstacle when it comes to having my daughter be seen by a doctor that might better the way she is now. I had this maternal feeling that I should go all the way with this and hope for the best. 

     I knew that I had to change Angelina's eating habits and that I had to turn her eating to Gluten Free and Casein Free foods. This is a change that I knew would be difficult to begin with because Angelina was used to eating her donuts, cup cakes and drinking her milk. I had to turn to my friend Google and research how I can turn this into something that she would love and not something she would hate. I have to say that I love Facebook because I have my former neighbor who is vegan and just by reading her blogs and read her posts, I was able to come up with a way to turn Angelina's eating habits positive. 

To believe or not to believe, that is the question !

To believe or not to believe

    If you asked me who I put my trust on, I would say in the medical system. I believed in every medical doctor and neurologist that saw my daughter. I am grateful that I reached this far with my daughter, once she was diagnosed with autism I checked every doctor and place that she went and I made sure they had great references.
   
    During that time that my daughter was being evaluated and seen by doctors, I had to convince my husband that it was the best decision to make in going about treatments for Angelina. I had his support, but he was still in that denial stage. I know it was difficult to accept that our daughter had autism, but I was not going to waste time in thinking "why me or why her?". There was things that I did by alone and just did not consult him at all, I felt that I didn't have the need to ask for his approval and as the time goes by I would say something. 

     My daughter improved in many ways during the years, but the only problem with medicines is that once your body is used to the drug, there is a point that it just does not do anything anymore. It is strange how our body works or reacts to medicine over time.