Immediately, our son was taken off gluten and dairy. I remember crying in Dar’s office and wondering how we were supposed to get a macaroni and cheese, chicken nugget kid to eat something other than those foods. Dar looked me in the eye and assured me his cravings were biochemical and said to try this for a few weeks. He was given nutritional supplements along with an eating plan that was kid and school friendly.

After that initial appointment, our son and I went to the grocery store. I decided to make this an adventure of what he can have instead of what he can’t eat. I allowed him to pick out any produce he wanted. Naturally, he was resistant at first, but we made it a fun thing to do. We became a gluten free home, making protein the focus of every meal and snack and rice and rice noodles instead of pasta for a side dish. He ate fruits and veggies, rice crackers with nut butter, organic chicken sausage, and organic hot dogs. I learned to make homemade “chicken nuggets” and “fish sticks” using almond meal or flax meal instead of flour.  He already was a big water drinker so there was no need to eliminate soda or juice since I never bought those. We made gluten free pizza, protein shakes with coconut milk and homemade fries for the junk food fix. Naturally, these were balanced meals.

We began to notice changes within two weeks. He was more focused and present, and his chronic tic was gone. He was less anxious and more flexible, and parents of playmates noticed a difference. In fact, when they asked what I did differently, I replied “We’re eating God’s foods.” I know they thought I was nuts. I did not care one bit. This plan was working and for the first time we were empowered. We did not have to depend entirely on an outside agency for help with our child.  We saw tangible results, and we knew this worked. He attended a social skills camp and blossomed!

 In addition to gluten free, I also focused on low glycemic meals offering a healthier balance. For example, I noticed most gluten free products contain potato starch and/or rice flour as their main ingredient. The total carbohydrate per serving is just as high or higher as products containing white or wheat flour; only they charge a lot more for gluten free. I found gluten free flour consisting of garbanzo and fava beans, mixed it with almond flour, and we enjoy baking fun, healthy snacks that are also low glycemic. We made high protein pancakes and a wonderful chocolate cake for his birthday! Throughout the year we planted a vegetable garden, and our son selected a lot of the plantings. We planted fruit trees last fall. We frequented the farmers market where he could try whatever he wanted, and some he liked!  Recently, before leaving for a vacation we searched for local organic groceries. We purchased bananas, oranges and a jar of peanut butter. The hotel restaurant was willing to make extra hard boiled eggs and we had our snacks for the day. Once again, he was saturated with what he can have instead of what he can’t.

 The best of all were second grade conferences. I went down the list, item by item, asking his teacher if she noticed any of the same concerns his first grade teacher noticed. The look of puzzlement said it all for us. It was at that very moment the relief washed away our concerns.