Part Two: Ancient Healing for Modern Disease
Autism & Apraxia
Genetics Loads The Gun, Environment Pulls The Trigger
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is an increasingly common neurological disability. Autism can effect nearly every facet of a person’s life and each individual’s presentation and experience is different. Recent estimates are that up to 3 percent of the current pediatric population has autism. And despite rising to become one of the most prevalent chronic conditions in a span of less than 40 years, the cause is still officially considered as unknown. According to the mainstream medical community (and your health insurance company), the effective treatments for autism are ABA therapies and pharmaceuticals to suppress psychological symptoms.
Autism, like PCOS from Part One of this series, is a lifelong journey with both genetic factors and environmental triggers. Managing and treating autism with a holistic framework is something that can be both effective and illuminating. Unfortunately, you need to dig deeply and tenaciously to find most of this information. That is why I decided to share this brief look into how we manage my son’s autism, the culmination of over 5 years of research and trial-and-error.
Getting Informed (Book Recommendations)
Autism Beyond Despair by Dr. Tinus Smits
The Epigenetics Revolution: How Modern Biology Is Rewriting Our Understanding of Genetics, Disease, and Inheritance by Nessa Carey
Underestimated: An Autism Miracle by JB and Jamison Handley
Warrior Mom: A Mother’s Journey in Healing Her Son with Autism by Tracy M. Slepcevic
Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism by Dr. Barry M. Prizant and Tom Fields-Meyer
The Real Anthony Fauci by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Dissolving Illusions by Suzanne Humphries and Roman Bystrianyk
Unwillingness vs. Inability
Apraxia (noun): A neuromotor disorder characterized by difficulty with skilled movements, even when a person has the ability and desire to do them.
I first heard the word apraxia in February 2021, during Carson’s last and final session of Early Intervention. As his therapist watched him verbally stim over a puzzle she nonchalantly said, “I’m pretty sure he is apraxic.” Why it took over two years of professional intervention and services to hear this word, I’m not sure, but I began looking into it.
Apraxia is the result of brain damage, with varying types and degrees of severity (i.e. ocular apraxia, limb apraxia, apraxia of speech, etc.). Basically, neurons aren’t making proper connections and the brain is unable to deliver movement instructions to part(s) of the body. Someone like my son, Carson, for example, has pretty “mild” autism and severe apraxia of speech. He is very much aware but cannot say what he wants to say correctly or consistently.
Know the Difference
Nonspeaking : the inability to cohesively speak a language
Nonverbal : the inability to communicate in verbal form
In the autistic community, the term “nonspeaking” is generally preferred over the term “nonverbal”, as it more accurately reflects the abilities of most autistic people. For example, my son is very verbal and constantly uses his voice, yet he cannot speak English. Carson is nonspeaking, not nonverbal.
A 2015 study concluded that up to two-thirds of autistic children have apraxia. These findings challenge the current therapeutic paradigm that autistic people are intellectually deficient and behaviorally challenged, as apraxia makes it very difficult to gauge a person’s receptive & expressive language skills. As it turns out, lack of intelligible speech may not be a lack of intelligence or a behavior issue. Apraxia is WAY under accommodated, particularly by a majority of ABA practitioners (more on that later).
So here is a word of advice: when you are dealing with an autistic person, always assume competence. Even if they are seemingly not looking at or responding to you. They likely have neuromotor difficulties that render them unable to respond or react in a way that makes sense to you.
Movie Recommendation
Spellers is a new film that was inspired by the book Underestimated: An Autism Miracle. The book was written by JB and Jamison Handley, a father and son who share their incredible journey from complete nonverbal autism to profound type communication and healed relationships. I’ve never read or seen a more touching story and recommend it for anyone whose life is touched by autism.
The Importance of Astrological Herbalism
So much of our lives and relationships are experienced through language. It’s something that is easy to take for granted if your life has never been touched by a nonspeaking disability. When someone isn’t able to express or receive language in a typical way, their experience and relationships look different. Nervous system damage or imbalance can also make it difficult to identify, communicate, and self-regulate what’s going on in the body and mind.
Astrological herbalism is the bridge of practice between people, plants, and celestial bodies. This ancient system has roots in both Eastern and Western medicine, though it is somewhat rare to find a true practicioner today. I am finding this skill to be especially useful for management of autism because the cosmology of a person transcends language.
Astrological herbalism is like adding another layer into your practice of herbalism. One that can help us understand not only the energetics and predispositions of a person and their conditions more deeply, but also being sure that we are selecting the most effective herbal remedies based on energetics and planetary factors, not just spoken interview and physical examination. I am not going to publicly share my son’s natal chart but if anyone is interested in learning more about this service, please see Part One for an example or feel free to contact me directly.
Things We Do For Our Son
Functional Ayurvedic/Integrative Medicine
In 2019, I was sick of not getting the answers or help that we needed for my son. We did some research and scraped together enough money to visit Dr. Minal Vazirani, a triple board certified Functional Ayurvedic doctor at Integrative Health & Wellness Associates in Warren, NJ. Meeting her was the first time that I’d ever felt good leaving a doctor’s office. She began educating me on many of the things that I am writing about today, helped us get the necessary testing to figure out what was going on with Carson, and provided us with a plethora of resources and supplies for treatment. This was a lifechanging experience and TOTAL game changer for us. I guess that’s why insurance won’t cover stuff like this, eh?
Homeopathic Isotherapy
Homeopathy is an approach to Vitalist medicine that utilizes microdoses of specific disease-causing agents to stimulate an immune response. The pious dismissal of homeopathy by shills of modern medicine is, at the very least, amusing… for this is essentially the same idea as vaccinations, except utilizing the body’s channels of elimination.
Carson has been seeing an amazing homeopath for a few months now. She has decades of experience and specializes in a practice called CEASE that piqued my interest. We have only been using this approach for a short time but there has been a quite noticeable improvement in the presentation of Carson’s ASD. His ability to “dial in” is increasing, his anxiety is lessening, and his physical stimming has almost disappeared altogether.
Floortime Therapies for Speech & OT
Another pivotal part of our journey has been finding local therapists that we can trust. If you are more holistic minded, like us, this means that you will probably be helping to support a small private practice.
When we moved to Milford and pulled Carson from public school, we began asking around for Floortime speech therapist recommendations. I was not interested in pursuing ABA any longer, as there was little to no improvement in my son and it seemed to make him miserable. Floortime is an alternative to ABA that is more focused on building skills and connection, as opposed to altering behavior.
That is when we heard about Circles of Communication, a local practice that provides a variety of different holistic-minded services like Floortime speech therapy, yoga, and homeschool consults. Amy and Arden are two of the most perceptive and astute therapists I have ever met. Amy also recommended Epona Therapy Services to us, a holistic occupational therapy practice specializing in aquatic, hippotherapy, and sensory health. Gina Taylor is also an amazingly dedicated and compassionate professional. Both of these practices encourage nature-based, family involved learning, which is very important to us. We are very fortunate to have made these connections.
Carson is currently on a hiatus from these services to pursue his CEASE and PrTMS journeys, but we do plenty of work in these areas at home for now and look forward to pursuing a return towards the end of this year. There is a hefty financial burden that comes with choosing to manage autism the unconventional way, which unfortunately we have to take into account.
Unschooling
I once mentioned to Carson’s EI therapist that we hoped to homeschool when he reached school age. She told my mom & I, “There is NO way that you can homeschool a child like this”. And I’m sorry to say that, for a minute, I believed her.
We are very focused on helping Carson build skills that he will one day need to lead a happy and fulfilling life. Realistic daily life cannot be replicated in a school environment. Period. Home education for autistic children also means individualized lessons, more room for development of special interests, more flexibility with schedule and less sensory hurdles for them to overcome. Our days are generally full of trips, adventures, and exploration. I also don’t have to worry about sending my nonspeaking child off to be someone else’s responsibility for 7+ hours a day.
Unschooling means that Carson is actively engaged in our day and with a modified unschooling approach, he is thriving. He waters and tends our garden every morning, helps with the laundry and putting away dishes, takes care of and cleans up after himself, among the cultivation of other practical life skills. Both of my boys also receive more traditional homeschool lessons on a daily basis. We are an “inclusive” style classroom, if you will. Carson does participate, but he just gathers and processes information differently.
Encourage Healthy Eating
The importance of diet and the gut/brain connection cannot possibly be overstated! About 70% of our mucosal membranes are in the digestive tract. If there is damage to the intestinal lining, then you are not only facing permeability issues (leaky gut) but you are also going to have issues with nutrient absorption. There is research showing that 9 out of 10 autistic people have leaky gut issues.
Healthy eating for us at this point looks like:
Eating as much fresh, unprocessed, home cooked food as possible. Even better if we’ve foraged, grown, purchased locally, or baked it from scratch.
We eat three balanced meals at approximately the same time every day, with a couple of snacks in between and at least one herbal fruit smoothie per day.
Limiting takeout to a couple times a month, if at all.
Building habits for mindful eating, like not allowing toys or screens at the table.
Methylated vitamins
Carson & I are also MTHFR. These genetic mutations compromise the body’s methylation process, which is carried out by enzymes. Some studies have shown that certain MTHFR mutations compromise enzyme function up to 65%. This affects not only what the body absorbs, but also its ability to detoxify. Build up of toxins in the body is a big problem and is responsible for inflammation that can lead to a host of diseases & disorders.
For people with MTHFR mutations, your average vitamins & supplements don’t really cut it. We can ingest them, but that doesn’t mean that the nutrients are being absorbed. Methylated vitamins have already undergone a methylation process, enabling the nutrients to be more readily absorbed into the body.
Personalized repetitive Transcranial Magentic Stimulation (PrTMS)
PrTMS is a non-invasive, customizable therapy that uses pulses of magnetic frequency to improve brain function. These frequencies stimulate neural connections in up to 6 parts of the brain that may not be firing properly. This technology can be useful for, as Dr. Kevin Murphy describes, “anyone with a brain” but is currently only FDA approved for treatment of depression, OCD, and migraines. The correction of brainwave disruption for autistic people means diminished symptoms, improved focus & sleep, better mood, and sometimes even- speech.
Electroencephalography (EEG) is first used to measure the patient’s brainwaves and heart rate. This data, along with extensive subjective questioning and demographic information, is used to determine the necessary frequencies. During treatment, the patient is seated comfortably in a chair and frequencies are then pulsed onto the head. Each session is a painless (pleasurable, even) 20 to 30 minute process and roughly 90% of PrTMS patients are responsive to the treatment. During the course of treatment, EEGs and questionnaires are carried out on a weekly basis to measure progress and tweek the necessary frequencies to provide the best possible outcome. Treatment is performed 5 days a week, for up to 12 weeks.
Carson actually began his 10 week course of treatment this morning (Monday, June 26 2023) at NeuroHealth Center in Hackettstown, NJ. The facility is owned and operated by Frank & Mary Plut, whose autistic son Frankie underwent a lifechanging transformation thanks to this technology. This is by far the most modern approach that we have taken to treat Carson and it would not have been possible without the support of my unbelievably amazing parents, as PrTMS literally costs a small fortune and is not covered by insurance. It is my most profound hope that one day PrTMS will become more accessible and affordable for families of autistic children.
We are all very excited for Carson and optimistic that he, like Frankie, will have a lifechanging experience.
Grounding Mat
Grounding is when we literally ground our bodies electrically to the planet. There are so many health benefits to doing this and, almost miraculously, inflammation and disease cannot really flourish in the body when we are grounded. Last year I became familiar with the work of Clint Ober, who has written several books, papers, and films on the topic, as well as founding Earth FX Inc., the R&D company behind official Earthing products.
We already spend alot of time barefoot outside, but we also purchased a grounding mat for Carson’s bed in hopes that it would help him relax and get a more comfortable and restorative sleep. There was a pronounced transitional irritation when we first put it on his bed, but I don’t think he has had a single meltdown since. He is a much more grounded person- pun intended!
Movie Recommendation
The Earthing Movie: The Remarkable Science of Grounding is a documentary that discusses the benefits of grounding, as well as an overview of Clint Ober’s work. It has been viewed almost 6 million times since it was released 3 years ago.
Subtitles On
Whenever we have something playing on the television or iPad, having the subtitles on is important for helping Carson learn to read and later, write. He is a huge fan of music videos, word puzzles, picture books, and has an AAC app, but the constant reinforcement also helps.
Things We Don’t Do For Our Son
ABA
*This is my personal opinion and not a bash against parents who choose ABA for their children*
Carson was in ABA therapy for 3 years- 2 years in NJ Early Intervention followed by 1 year in public Pre-k. During that time, I realized that ABA is simply not going to help cultivate the type of person I am trying to raise. ABA attempts to hold autistic children to the same linear developmental curves as their neurotypical peers, basically trying to cram a neurodivergent child into a neurotypical box. That’s just not the approach for us. I want to help my son build skills, not force compliance with eliminating self-regulating behaviors.
Carson is slower to acquire new skills than his neurotypical peers. He is wired differently, his developmental curve is different, and how he reaches a milestone may look different. He may even skip certain milestones altogether. We do not penalize this, we try to help him where he’s at.
We don’t treat Carson’s autism like it is a behavioral problem that needs to be solved. We treat his autism like it is a chronic condition that requires accommodation and treatment. Does that mean that we don’t address and reign in problem behavior? Absolutely not! But we can identify and respect the difference between poor attitude/behavior and the limits of his disability.
Inject Him
Denialism (noun): a person's choice to deny the existence, truth, or validity of something, despite proof or strong evidence that it is real, true, or valid, as a way to avoid a psychologically uncomfortable truth.
It is absurd how controversial it is to believe that injecting neurotoxins into a fetus or newborn baby could possibly cause neurological damage. Anyone with that severe a lack of common sense and critical thinking skills to deny that simple fact should NOT be allowed to practice medicine or create public policy. That is insane. Sorry… not sorry.
After what we went through I finally began to read inserts myself, conduct actual research, network, and educate myself on legislation like the NVICA and my state’s exemptions. Though I wish I’d done so sooner and trusted my intuition enough to advocate for my child, what’s done is done. I’m not saying that vaccines unequivocally cause all cases of autism. That would be foolish… almost as foolish as saying that vaccines unequivocally cannot and haven’t caused any cases of autism.
As an example, Carson has an autistic friend who has never been vaccinated at all. In this child’s case, there are other genetic and environmental factors at play. But what are the genetic factors and environmental triggers? Who should be looking into this? Who does look into it? The answer is, it’s usually not the doctors (sadly). It’s usually the moms. But how could this really be happening? Denialism, legal indemnity, and greed. But that’s a story for another time…
Show Recommendation
The Highwire: new episode every Thursday
Detox: A Cautionary Tale
When my son was almost 2, I heard about a detox called Zeolite from one of my crunchy mom groups. We tried it with Carson and ourselves, and though it definitely worked, we had broken the cardinal rule of never detoxing someone who is deficient in something. An occasional detox isn’t a bad idea if you are healthy, eating a well balanced diet, in a good headspace and your body is working right. If that’s not the case- please fix those things first. If you don’t… proceed with caution. You can take my word for it.
Keep Him in a Bubble
At 5½ years old, Carson is a vibrant and confident child full of joy and affection. He has many interests and gifts that we celebrate and encourage. He is a student at our local homeschool co-op, is always enthusiastic about helping others, and is well-known in our community as the more tame and socially cognizant of the Peredjogin boys. :) His hobbies include baking, hiking, and reggae music- among many other things! We do not know what his future holds or what life will look like for him as an adult, but we fully stand behind and support him.
Getting Involved (Organization Recommendations)
Childrens Health Defense
The Informed Consent Action Network
National Vaccine Information Center
NJ Public Health Innovation Political Action Committee (NJPHIPAC)
Holistic Moms Network
Stay tuned in Fall 2023 for Ancient Healing for Modern Disease, Part Three: Depression