Anxiety

Woke up in yet another awesome mood today!  Although yesterday was quite an eye opener with my son having a major anxiety attack at school.  I guess I just didn't know what anxiety really looked like until that happened.  All the more reason to continue on my quest to regulate and balance his body so it can work better.  This is his third day back on Zija and I was able to again see a little more calm in his demeanor, twinkle in his eyes and a desire to have fun.  I will never take him off of Zija again. 

The challenge will be what happens when he is old enough to make the decision to take Zija or not on his own.  This is a big reason why I keep him on the Superman Diet (this is a loose version of the Feingold diet), regardless that he is becoming more regulated with medication and Zija. 

I am VERY MUCH about habit formation and there are numerous studies that show that having a child (the earlier the better) make diet decisions, will help them make better choices later.  Especially children with decision making conflicts like ADHD, ODD, etc.  The studies show it helps them stay away from self damaging choices, as unfortunately these little human beings have a 70% higher chance of falling into addiction, bad relationships or committing suicide than a person that does not suffer a disorder.  Those are pretty staggering statistics, right!

This no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives and sweeteners and no corn syrup or caramel color diet is a totally doable thing and truly a small shift in your regular shopping.  Due to money issues, I shopped at Food 4 Less for a long time.  When I found out that this diet could (and DID!) help my son, I switched to Fresh and Easy.  Does Food for Less have products I can buy, YES.  Fresh&Easy just has many more!  And, with many more kryptonite free choices at F&E, it really reduces the temptation to buy food products that are not safe.  If you are shopping with your affected child, it also helps them not be tempted and it gives then the opportunity to look for other, safer options.  And, it really isn't that much more expensive in the end.

The last thing I can say about this is talk to your child.  Explain everything you are doing for him/her.  Just like most everything in life, your child needs buy in.  Especially when it comes to standing up for their cause.  Think about it this way... imagine you -today, adult you- are restricted from eating grapes.  You LOVE grapes, and you don't understand why you cannot eat them, you were simply just told to stay away from them.  Well, your significant other loves grapes too and he knows how much you love grapes so he offers you one.  You reply no thanks, but he continues to temp, sway them in front of your face and tell you how great they taste.  You would give in!  Now, imagine your same self as a 8 or 9 year old child and your best friend is doing the same thing at the lunch tables at school.  Only he is not taunting you with grapes, he's swinging a twinkie under your nose so you can smell it and now you remember what it tastes like.  All the other kids at the table are laughing and encouraging you to take it.  Would you say no if you didn't understand why you shouldn't have it?