Hey everyone! Okay, so do I get to redeem myself in anyway for not ever posting on here? Hmm....I guess I can try. Here is a better explanation about my last post.
**It was brought to my attention that I need to change my wording a bit when posting about essential oils, most specifically, doTERRA's essential oils. So, if you notice I talk in more general terms, that is why. I still love doTERRA and use them and love them!!! I just want to stay legal and an in compliance with the company and the FDA! :)
**Okay, this one might be a long one. As I stated before, we had our oldest daughter diagnosed with ODD and ADHD. I had mixed emotions about it but was happy to have an answer that made sense at why she would act the way she does. From getting the diagnosis, we had a few options of what we can do. ODD is Oppositional Defiance Disorder - a.k.a. - just because I (who is in charge) ask her to do something, she will tell me no. Sometimes she doesn't even hear what it is I am requesting before she tells me no. Talk about frustrating! All you probably know what ADHD is. It is really frustrating for me because she is the oldest and so then my other kids think that is how to act, when really, it isn't. So I went to the doctor and talked about our options. Basically, medicine or no medicine. For her behavior and boundary and self-esteem issues, she is currently seeing a psychologist once a week to help her learn how to act appropriately with people and how to love herself and whatnot. He also helps to teach her how to focus on something. He is great!! Anyways, back to the issue of meds. The doctor told me that basically, if you have ADHD, the medicine will calm you down. But if you don't have ADHD in your brain, the medicine will actually hype you up. I kind of wanted to see what she would be like on the meds, just to make sure, from a medical standpoint, we are treating the right thing. So we got some and gave it a go! Well, she definitely was different and she definitely has ADHD. But we hated the way it completely changed her. Yeah, it calmed her down and boy was she able to focus! (She did one thing ALL DAY LONG! One day, she'd play with her littlest pet shop - although all she would do is move the pet's food around from the toy basket to the bowl etc. The next day, she colored, ALL DAY LONG!) But we couldn't get her to go outside and play. She just wanted to sit there, by herself (if nobody was going to play with her, she would do this one thing by herself), inside the house, even though typically she'd be the one begging everyone to go outside. She seemed to have a glazed look in her eyes and we just didn't like that her personality was altered. We didn't want that. Then after the meds wore off, she was running around everywhere, eating everything (the meds suppress the appetite), and talking very randomly about so many things (the meds wore off about 8pm and so she would be up until about midnight.) So through a friend, we found out about this diet that was made for kids with ADHD and even autism. We looked into and found it to be our best bet. No meds for us! Abby hated taking them anyways. Basically, this diet eliminates everything artificial. No artificial colors, dyes, sweeteners, preservatives, nothing! We are currently trying to do our best eating according to what our book says we can and cannot eat. But I must say, we totally notice a difference. Sometimes after eating something she shouldn't, she'll get really mean, or emotional or hyper. As she gets older, we'll teach her that she'll make her own choices about what she wants to eat and that it will be up to her to control her behavior. Between us and the psychologist, she will have the tools and knowledge, it will just be up to her to do it herself at a certain point.
I definitely think we are making the right choice here and even though it is a lot of work for me, the thought that my friend said still resonates in my mind when someone asked her if it was so out of the way to do this diet. She responded by saying, "Well isn't it out of the way when your child throws the random fit in a public place because they can't control themselves?" That made me think. Sure, it is more work for me to make our own granola bars and popcicles and sad that we can't eat most candy and treats like others do. But, what I do love is knowing that we are all healthier because of this choice and I can watch Abby gain control over her body like she has never been able to before. I've even noticed a difference in my own moods and in my other children's behaviors.
I urge you all to take a look at what you are putting into your bodies. If you take care of your body, your body will give you a long, healthy, energetic life where you can run and play with kids, grandkids, and hopefully even great-grandkids! So, this blog will continue to share information about essential oils, but I also want to share the things I am learning about being healthy on this journey we are making to making our home, a better place! I would love to have you join me!
