A New Journey

As of about a month ago, we realized Claire is still not developing normally.  She is almost 3 and still doesn't talk, she flaps her hands CONSTANTLY, and talks gibberish constantly.  After doing a lot of research and filling out questionnaires, much to our dismay we have accepted that Claire has a form of autism.  My first reaction was nothing short of tears.  I cried for two days on and off and had a strange feeling towards claire, not hate or anger, but sadness and sorrow.  All I've ever wanted was to have a daughter with whom I could raise to one day be a wonderful woman, wife, and mother.  But this diagnosis shattered all of my dreams of that, because, lets face it, autism isn't a promising diagnosis of ever having a normal life.

I prayed and prayed and prayed some more the next few weeks and have been given peace by God about this whole thing.  After talking to a few friends whom I know wouldn't judge me or my child about this, I learned of a few options to try to see if I could reverse what damage has been done to Claire from the 4 vaccinations she received as a tiny baby.  We have decided after much research, that we are going to put Claire on a Gluten-Free Casein Free diet.  So many children with autism have shown dramatic improvement from doing JUST this same diet.  I have hope that God will heal my sweet Claire Bear and that one day she will again tell me that she loves me.  I have decided to devote this blog to Claire's journey back to the world and will be posting her progress.  So, here is a video of Claire now, on November 29th, 2012, 2 years 9 months old:

We also are looking into seeing a naturopath and getting Claire tested for food allergies.  She has had almost a CONSTANT yeast rash on her bum, which suggests she has a yeast overgrowth in her gut, which also can contribute to the autistic behavior she has shown the last year.  I'm putting all of my faith in God to get us through this and to give me the wisdom to find out the best things I can do for Claire to get her well.  Claire is having a hard time going off of gluten and dairy.  She loves her bread, milk, cheese, yogurt melts, and rice puffs.  But I'm goingto work my butt of finding and making alternatives for her to make this transition as smooth as possible.  I know this is going to be a grueling journey, but it's going to be worth it in the end. I just know it!!

As of today, we've been GF/CF for little over two days. Some of Claire's autistic tendencies include flapping her hands constantly when she gets overexcited, having complete meltdowns anytime Ethan cries, and only speaking words from cartoons that she has watched.  Plus she loves to watch things spin.  Hoping and praying this diet change will help her to overcome some of these more severe things she does.

A friend on facebook posted a video to the song You Are I am by MercyMe.  This song has given me SOOOO much hope and went straight to my heart.  I know that God can do anything!!!  All I have to do is trust in Him!!