ilovedogs

Trader Joe's sells just the seeds in the produce section and we love adding them to salads! Much less messy!

Hi guys! I noticed there have been some discussion on homeschooling for a short period of time and the concerns about it, etc. We have been homeschoolers from the very beginning and have bounced around curriculums periodically, too. Right now we're doing a great online program for our basics that costs $20 a month. They have curriculums available through elementary school(and possibly higher). They have math, social studies, Language arts and grammar, writing, and science. Most of it is self-directed and you can print worksheets, etc. They have review quizzes and tests available after each section if you'd like your child to do all of that and there's a great bunch of ladies on the message boards. It's called www.time4learning.com and is put out by Compass learning Institute which is used in many schools across the country. This website has been a blessing to us. We use other worksheets, history readings, hands on science experiments, and art. But when we're having a busy day or an emotional day I can just assign a few things from the time4learning website and not have to worry if he didn't do EVERYTHING. You can keep track of what assignments they completed and you can make them redo things if they are having trouble learning. I was thinking that this would be a great program for those of you who need to take a month or so off from school but you don't want your children to stop learning altogether. So, I hope this has been helpful for someone. Bonnie

Thanks Vickie. To answer your questions: My son just turned 11 and hasn't been ill with anything since last May and that was just a little cold that lasted 2 days. Before that he hadn't been sick since January. So, we don't get sick often around here. I do keep a journal. I write down the time he wakes up, his emotions for the day, tic frequency, and if he had anything out of the ordinary going on including food or supplements. I write down stressors like noting if he had a tennis tournament going on or more schoolwork, etc. Bonnie

Good to know. Maybe I'll try to be more observant and try the Ibuprofen. It's so weird how he just had a minor anxiety episode and I was able to talk him out of it in about 1 minute. He hadn't had an issue for 2 days. Again, it's just so darn predictable so it's driving me crazy! Bonnie

(((Cheri))), I'm so sorry your dh is ill! Praying they find some answers quickly and that he will be on the mend. God has a plan so just hang in there and leave it in His hands. Bonnie

Hi Jdmom, welcome to the boards. My son started tics the day after he turned 9, which was a little over 2 years ago. And, yes, I'm still in denial, LOL! His tics are mostly facial tics like eye blinking, squeezing both eyes shut or winking. He's had a jaw tic, and a hair tossing tic when his hair was longer. He has lots of compulsive-like tics that he can actually stop doing if he puts his mind to it like smelling his fingers, picking his nose, etc. It's like they're little habits he starts and once I ask him to stop, he can. Anyway, our big problem is anxiety which increases the tics when his anxiety goes up. He also tics more when he's stressed(both good and bad stress). I know of people whose children stopped ticcing right after puberty. If you read some of the stories here on the boards you will see a lot of different stories. If you have any questions please feel free to ask us. Many of us are in the same boat as you and I'm sure it will comfort you to know you are not alone. Hang in there! Bonnie

I give him ibuprofen for headaches and body aches occasionally and I never see a change in his anxiety or tic level. Why would you give ibuprofen anyway? I also have tried the Benadryl to see if that helped but the only thing it did was make him sleepy and help his runny nose at the time. He has very minor seasonal allergies. Bonnie

Thank you all for the input. I guess I have been ruling out PANDAS b/c he didn't have a sudden onset. He was hardly ever sick and the strep came on after his first noticeable set of tics developed. He always had on/off anxiety that I had chalked up to childhood phases from about the age of 2-8. Then about 5 months after the strep infection he developed the high anxiety. It started as anxiety while we were traveling and then morphed into the intrusive thoughts. We got his neurotransmitters tested through Neuroscience and started him on Kavinace and within a few days he was back to his old self. Also, I've asked our ped., and both our naturopathic doctors and they weren't convinced he fit the bill for PANDAs. I will spend some more time researching this and consider this an avenue. But, convincing my dh to spend the money on testing and a doctor who is probably NOT covered by insurance is going to be hard. Can some of you explain a typical day for a PANDAs kid to me? I mean, other than the 15 mins of anxiety he experiences every few days or so, he's totally normal. No hyperactivity, no emotional issues, no anger or defiance issues. So, I guess I always thought that PANDAS kids were in worse shape than we were and I figured that the 'episodes' were pretty obvious. I mean, we go days without any anxiety and then have a day where it crops up and then I won't see it again for a few more days. But, the tics are always there! B

Vickie, his anxiety is all over the board. One minute he's crying about a bad dream. The next it's about thinking that I'm going to die in my sleep. Then the next fear is over a commercial he saw for a scary TV show. Then he's crying about something from a Spongebob episode that was scary. And, yes, most times I can reason him through it or I can tell him to use his breathing techniques and most times(not all) it does seem to work. Some days, though, I just get tired of it. Oh, he doesn't have TS according to the docs. He has a tic disorder and GAD(generalized anxiety disorder). They still haven't labeled him with OCD yet, and I haven't asked why. We're seeing his therapist next week and I'll be asking these questions soon.

Faith, it's interesting what you said about discipline. We ruled with an iron fist in ds' formative years. I have no reason to punish him for anything these days b/c his transgressions are so few and far between and he feels so awful if he does something that I feel like he's punishing himself enough. I actually feel that we were too hard on him b/c I didn't know he would end up anxious, etc. Some days I feel guilty for being so hard on him in the beginning. There was no whining, no crying, no complaining. We nipped those bad behaviors in the bud by the time he was 3 or 4. Not sure if we did the right thing but it's too late now. As for the anxiety, I understand where you're coming from with the whole mom/dad thing. I know he needs more structure and I've been thinking about making a chore chart for him to do and check off during the day. Maybe just small accomplishments to focus on so that when he gets anxious I can ask him about his chores and redirect him to do those things. Also, when I speak to ds about his anxiety I tell him that we all have fearful thoughts and that they are just thoughts and that we can control our reaction to them. We don't have to sit and cry about them, we can tell ourselves that it's just a thought, it's not true, and that you can push past the thought and think of something positive. He listens(through tears) and then says that, "He can't b/c the thought just won't leave him alone." It's like he just doesn't have the capacity to filter his thoughts. So, I made an appointment with the old therapist we used last year and we'll be going back next week for a 'tune up'. B

OK, so you used ACV to make a beef stock? I've never made my own stock (well, except for chicken occasionally). I love to make soups and stews and chili. I just wish ds would eat them! He hates eating food all mixed together like in soups, casseroles, etc. The only soup he'll eat is homemade chicken noodle. Ds is a good eater, though. He just eats things separately on his plate. Not sure what I'm going to feed him tonight as I'm making a chicken coconut milk soup for dinner for dh and I. I have leftover tortellini and plenty of meats in the fridge. CP: can you email me the recipe for your stock? I'd love to try my hand at it, thanks! Bonnie

I know many of you on these boards have kids that have many different issues. I'm usually over on the tics/tourettes side of the board but I need advice for handling anxiety. My son has anxiety that's very unpredictable right now. We'll have 3 days of no issues and then crying about anxious thoughts one morning and then an issue at bedtime and then we'll have 2 days of nothing. It's driving me crazy. What's also puzzling is that ds never goes to my dh with his problems. Actually, my dh has yet to see these tears of which I speak and he works from home!!! So, my dh is thinking that ds is manipulating me with his emotions. Not saying that he doesn't have anxiety but that he may be playing it up to get attention. Again, all just theory. I would never say that he doesn't have anxiety b/c I know he does and I've seen the intrusive thoughts get pretty bad at times. I guess what I'm looking for is suggestions for handling it around the house. We homeschool (have homeschooled from the very beginning) and we've seen every type of anxiety you can think of. I know my ds is just an anxious, nervous kid. He plays competitive tennis and plays in tournaments and we stay active by hiking, bike riding, walking, and visiting with friends. He has a very easy life in general so I just wish I had some better tactics to handling his anxiety. We've been through counseling for about a year and our naturopath has him on some supplements that take the edge off but don't seem to be helping as much now as they were before. I've contemplated meds but I'm really leary of them right now. We've also thought of the PANDAs route but I saw no change in his tics/anxiety when he did 10 days of an antibiotic and he's only had strep once in his life. He had the tics and anxiety well before his bout with strep, too. Anyway, I'm not ruling that out right now but I need day to day advice on how to handle anxiety. Thanks Bonnie

Faith, things are still a bit on the wild side over here. Random crying about his anxious thoughts. He'll have 2 days of nothing and then a day where he spends most of the AM in tears. It's really been quite unpredictable and I've been keeping track of his foods and I'm not coming up with any new trigger or a pattern that would identify where this is coming from. I spoke to our naturopath about possibly trying Prozac but he was adamantly against it b/c there's no guarantee meds will work, they won't work 100% anyway, and they only mask the problem while in turn creating more problems with the neurotransmitters down the road. We have some GABA that we've tried but I've not seen it helping. Again, the doc is wondering if we're dealing with hormonal issues here, too. I have a friend whose dd was really emotional for her pre-teen years and I knew it was hormonal, but I never thought that boys could be emotional like girls. Of course, ds' emotions are based on his anxiety so somehow they are all tied together. Trying to fit the pieces into the puzzle is really driving me crazy!!! Bonnie

(((Faith))), I know you're struggling to fit all the pieces together. Sounds like you feel stuck between a rock and a hard place. What is your son's weight, if you don't mind my asking. My son is relatively skinny for his age. He has friends who weigh close to 90-100 lbs and he's weighing in around 78. But, I don't see a problem with his eating, just that his anxiety sometimes makes his stomach upset and I have a hard time getting him to eat anything if he's nauseous. I've thrown the PANDAs thing past both naturopaths we use and they aren't seeing it for my son. Of course, we have emotional issues with him but they're mostly relating to his anxiety(he doesn't seem to have anger issues or outbursts). Just today I was visiting with the naturopath and we talked about testosterone spiking in pre-pubescent boys. He said the spike in test. will cause norepinephrine to spike, too, which will increase anxiety and emotional lability in boys. So, he says that boys are more unpredictable in their hormonal spikes than girls are since girls fall into a more cyclical hormonal pattern due to their feminine nature. He had actually suggested that we try Saw Palmetto for ds for when he seems hormonal. He said that current research on saw palmetto is focused on male problems later in life like prostate problems and male pattern baldness but if you dig deeper into history you'll see the other uses that saw palmetto had in the past. So, I'll be picking up a tincture of saw palmetto soon to see if it helps??!!! Who knows, it's worth a shot, right? Anyway, just wanted to throw that out there so you can discuss hormonal changes with your doctor at some point. I totally know where you're coming from, Faith!!!

I buy a few different liquid cal/mag supplements. One is from Lifetime vitamins and is a cal/mag citrate supplement. The only thing you need to watch with these is the other 'stuff' they put in there. Sorbitol, dextrose, etc. So, if you are doing any elimination diets, you'd want to read the labels carefully. We used to do the Natural Calm but found he liked the liquids better. I think there were more flavor choices, LOL! B

Faith, I'm sorry you're seeing an increase again. Sounds like you're onto something with the corn. To the OP: I have been where you are, just 2 years ago. We ruled out PANDAs, then I start thinking about it again, then I rule it out again. Sigh, it's been a tough 2 years. You've gotten great information from Carolyn and the others and I just want to add 1 thing. When you start trying supplements, try 1 at a time. Let his body get used to it, observe the results, and keep it in your journal. So, starting with B6, magnesium, or mag taurate are all good places to start. My son's biggest problem is anxiety and stress. So, the tics increase for him in stressful(both good and bad) situations. So, he'll tic more near the end of the day as he gets tired, or when he's getting in trouble for something, or when he has a tennis tournament that day, etc. You may want to keep these things noted in your journal, as well. Good luck! Just know that you're not alone. This place has given me hope and I've made some great friends along the way. I've even been lucky enough to meet with Carolyn and CSP in real life! Bonnie

Cheri, no...but he did try 5HTP and that had disastrous results for us. I'll check with our naturopath and see what he thinks about SamE. Thanks! I also forgot to add that he gets a very sad feeling that comes over him and he says there's no really anxiety causing thought....just general anxiousness that disturbs him. I have 2 friends who have their kids on Prozac for anxiety and Im so tempted to look into this route but I am just not quite ready to give up, KWIM?

Just wanted to update everyone. So, I haven't given ANY amino acids or anxiety supplements. Actually, the only thing he's been given since Sunday is vitamin supplements and immune support like echinacea, etc. We're still seeing a once a day anxiety issue and he seems to be a bit edgy lately. Just lets his anxious brain take over his thinking sometimes. But, on the other hand, the tics are really slowing down. So, was it the full moon issue? Is it the fact that I stopped the supplements? AARRGGHH! I'm still frustrated and I'm interested to see if any of you have opinions here. What I don't get is that the supplements I was giving him were meant for the anxiety since that was our biggest problem. Sometimes I'd up the B6, magnesium, or glycine if the tics got out of hand but mostly the supplements were for anxiety. His naturopath gave me a liquid GABA supplement but I don't see it helping right now, either. There's nothing new in his diet and we've pretty much decided that foods and additives are not triggers for him as I've tested this over the past 2 years repeatedly. The question is: what else can I do for the anxiety? I've pretty much stopped giving the Kavinace from neuroscience, the GABA doesn't seem to be helping, etc. So, I'm looking for suggestions. Bonnie

Jens, my husband calls his B vitamin complex his happy pills! He says they calm him and allow him to think clearly especially when he's having a bad day at work.

Really? Maybe I should get ds' strep titers tested, too. He has episodes of bedwetting but he usually just says that he wakes up too late to catch it or doesn't catch the body signaling him that he needs to get out of bed. Some nights he does, some nights he doesn't. And, most times it's not even enough to warrant changing the sheets b/c it's a small amount and then he wakes up. I just keep thinking that we're not really dealing with PANDAs with him, though. Hmmm, something to think about anyway.

Hi Sue, I have been starting to give him a GABA supplement that his naturo. made for him but when his stomach is all in knots and has butterflies I can't give him anything. That's what makes it hard. I had given it to him 'as needed' over the past couple of days but didn't see it helping. I started back on a small dose of glycine and 50 mg of B6 last night. After his tennis match today I'll be giving him the GABA b/c his stomach should be settled by then!

I participate in another board where folks are really pushing the vaccine for everyone else there. Some of the folks are sitting on the fence but I was wondering what many of you are doing for your children? Since we all have children with neurological/immunological issues, etc. Honestly, my naturopath doesn't think the vaccine will be effective anyway and he's not against all vaccines, just flu shots in general. So, I guess I'm still sitting on the fence. Part of me buys into the media hype especially when I've heard some stories around town where kids are ending up on ventilators but the other part of me is willing to take my chances without a vaccine b/c it may not be effective and may be harmful to my son. Thoughts? B

Faith, I spoke too soon on the tics. He started ticcing tonight when he was playing in a tennis tournament. The tournaments really bring on the tics b/c they are stress and excitement all rolled up into one! And, to top it off he's getting other anxiety issues relating to nervousness before he plays....let's just say I brought a barf bag with us when we were on our way to the tournament tonight, LOL. Of course, once he started playing he was totally fine! B

Hi Mar, I use an air purifier in ds' room and it really helps with his morning allergies. It's from Rabbit Air and I paid around $300 for it. I really think it's worth the price b/c I don't have to give him allergy meds anymore! I just wish he'd grow up just a little bit more so I could get rid of his stuffed animals and that would really cut down on the dust in his room. B

Cheri, he's been on the kavinace for 18 months now and it REALLY helped when the intrusive thoughts were out of control. But, I never saw it help with the tics. He has also been on glycing for about a year. He's just my little bundle of nervous energy, LOL! He has a tennis tournament starting today and he nearly threw up his lunch b/c he's so nervous....ah, welcome to my world! CP: We did talk about your dd and I remember your stories! I do have hope that ds will outgrow some of his anxiety and I just pray that we give him the right coping skills along the way. Honestly, my biggest fear is that it will get so bad that I'll have to resort to meds and that's SO not what I want to do!