More Proof

In case anyone wasn’t sure how happy I have been with the results of trying the Feingold diet, I have more proof.

Yesterday was the “Fall Feast” at my son’s school. The teacher had a cute activity for the kids to do. They each had a cooking that they would decorate as a turkey. Of course this involved candy corn, frosting, and a gel decorative frosting. Of course, this involved artificial colors and who knows what else.

I allowed my son to have it because, well let’s face it, I am a push over. By that afternoon and into this morning he was extremely grumpy and whiny. Now that over 24 hours have past, he is doing great again.

Before we started this diet, I would have never thought my son would be sensitive to artificial colors and flavors. Now I am absolutely convinced that we both are. The Feingold diet is not new. I wish I had known about it much earlier.

For those of us in the States, tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I keep telling everyone that this diet really isn’t that difficult to do. As proof of that, we are having almost everything we had last year with very few adjustments.

The hardest thing for me has been becoming more aware of what we are eating. As long as you are paying attention, there are so many options and choices out there.

I challenge everyone to think about what their child eats in one day. Are there easy alternatives you could provide? I promise the answer is yes and I encourage everyone to give it a try.

So Far, So Good

We made it through the weekend without too much trouble. The only time we really went astray was at dinner. I must say, we have only been doing the Feingold diet for a week and I can already see a difference. It is hard to know for sure if it is the diet or so many other possible factors, but we have not had a major melt down in several days.

I am sure it will be some time before I can tell a difference with his dyslexia symptoms. I am not too concerned about that at this point. We do many things to help with his dyslexia, but my true goal for the Feingold diet is to improve these rage type outbursts. Even if we are not perfect on the diet, it seems to be making a difference.

Grades and Going

So we got our first report card of the year. All A's and B's. Whoo Hooo!! With hard work and a great teacher who understands and recognizes dyslexia symptoms, success is very possible!!

So now we are getting ready to face the first trip while being on the feingold diet. My family of 5 adults and 3 kids 7 years old and under all under one roof. We are only going to be gone Friday through Sunday. I have enough food for 3 weeks. LOL I have several kinds of approved snacks, 2 types of cereal, 2 types of sandwich meat. We are not going to go hungry. I also have a wonderful family who is very supportive of this new road we are taking. They have all called (while in the grocery store) to make sure that anything they bring is either acceptable, or not a temptation for my son.

We are going to do all we can to stay straight this weekend, but I am also not going to freak out about things. This trip is to celebrate my dad's birthday, so we will make the best choices we can, but will also go with the flow when our choices are limited.

If anyone is also a feingold family, I welcome any advise, tips, encouragement you have to offer in the comments.

Here's to a great weekend . . .

Oh boy. What have I gotten myself into?

For a few years now, I have been watching my son for signs of AD/HD. At the beginning of first grade I asked his teacher if she was seeing signs of it and she said no. He behaves very well at school, rarely getting in any trouble at all. But at home is a whole different story! He has to be moving. He would walk around as he practiced his spelling words. He would wiggle so much while reading, he would literally end up hanging off of the couch upside down. When he was diagnosed with dyslexia, the psychiatrist indicated that she did not observe and impulsive behaviors. I asked his teacher this year and she first said she didn't see any signs of it.

So I have been going through the million question game. Is he trying so hard to make his teacher happy that he is using all of his energy to behave at school and just totally lets loose at home? Am I not providing enough discipline? Am I reading too much into his behavior (after all he is a boy)? Am I not giving him enough attention?

After consulting several people I had almost decided do a short trial (maybe a week) of ADHD medication, but this just was not sitting well with my mommy instincts. I don't hold any judgment about this type of medicine. I am a firm believing in using whatever you need. However, for some reason I just didn't feel like this is what was right for my son.

So I TiVo the talk shows that I like and watch them when I can. As I was getting caught up, I kept seeing Jenny McCarthy promoting her new book. She kept talking about putting her son on a special diet. My mommy instinct bells were going crazy! So I did some research and found great things being said about the Feingold Diet. Basically it is removing artificial flavors and colors, aspirin like chemicals, and salicylates.

So I ordered it and the information came in the mail yesterday! I am excited and nervous all at the same time. My son and I will be doing this together. I don't find the diet limiting in many ways, but I am not looking forward to loosing my caffeine!

Stay tuned and I will let you know how it goes for us.