Jump to content

Martian Martian

Members
  • Content Count

    16
  • Joined

  • Last visited

About Martian Martian

  • Rank
    Salisbury Hill

Contact Methods

  • Website URL
    http://

Profile Information

  • Location
    Glasgow
  1. Hi Carrie, Until today, I had no idea what a CSP was. We had a meeting today at the nursery to plan ahead for the Wee Man's future, and I'm just going through the CSP template document just now. We're in Renfrewshire, and for the professionals involved it seemed to be a novel experience, which I think tells its own tale! Certainly in that nursery (which caters for SEN) the Wee Man is the first to get one. Good luck for the future! MM.
  2. Hi Gail, It must be really awful for you, and I'm sorry I don't have any experience in this matter that I could share. But it sounds as if your girl's behaviour is posing a real danger to herself and the rest of the family. I really think you should get back to the GP asap, explain about the medication issue and your difficulties with a broken leg, and DON'T LEAVE THE SURGERY until he/she has offered to get some help for you, because you SHOULD NOT have to cope with this on your own. It sounds to me like you are doing a superhuman job in very trying circumstances. Get some help - things will get better! Best wishes... MM.
  3. No paranoia there mate, the bloke sounded a bit too 'unofficial' to me. I think your spidey-sense was 100% correct.
  4. Yahoo! Now you need to remember to water the plants a bit more.
  5. Hi Karen, I'm afraid I'm another skeptic about the whole 'mercury/heavy metal toxicity causes autism' argument. In my view, Cutler selling a book about his protocol is just as dubious as quacks selling snakeoil - he's peddling a product to desperate people. Also, the rather tasteless publicity stunt (read about it here) where they claim they can cure Professor Stephen Hawking just leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Notice on the website they are adamant that Hawking's condition is caused by mercury poisoning. There is no ambiguity in their language (echoes of Generation Rescue). Not 'might be' or 'could be a possible factor'; they are adamant. And then have a look at this website. Doesn't say anywhere that Hawking's condition is caused by mercury. Good luck - proceed with caution!
  6. Hey Liz, I agree with curra on this - try the melatonin for a bit and see if it helps regulate his sleep patterns. Wee Tom was going down at about 8pm for a mini-sleep. He would get back up at midnight or 1am for 2 or 3 hours, eventually going back to sleep for another four hours. Added to this we had a new baby, and a big brother that preferred to sleep in our bed. A total killer! One day we had an appointment with the paediatrician - and we must have looked like we'd been sleeping in a tent for a week because without us broaching the subject he said, 'And how is his sleep?' We offloaded our woes and he gave us a prescription for melatonin. We tried it for about ten days and realised that Tom's sleep, if anything, was WORSE!! So we stopped, and - miracle of miracles - he immediately slept through the night (well, until 6am). That was about four months ago, and he's still very good - touch wood. But do try the melatonin, you've got nothing to lose.
  7. I think the forum is great - the only thing is; see when I log on, 'remember me at this computer' seems to be defaulted at on rather than off. Is there a way to change this? I always forget to uncheck before I log in.
  8. That's great TN. Just a pity they didn't include you in the first place. Good luck with the sweep - I got Czech Republic in ours. On their day a fine team, but they won't win it. Tis a pity because the prize is a widescreen telly!
  9. Given the number of articles questioning the link between the MMR vaccine and autism, I got to thinking about other possible environmental triggers. Diet, pollution, additives etc. And then I wondered if anyone had ever studied the effects of the contraceptive pill in relation to autism? I googled it, and the only thing I came up with was this... LINK: Medical News Today report Low values of unbound testosterone? How low? Enough to make a difference in a developing feotus? I know that the feotal testosterone theory is being researched by ARC in Cambridge (Simon Baron-Cohen and chums). LINK: research papers. In essence, they are studying the effects on children of increased levels of testosterone in amniotic fluid, with some interesting findings. Now, science makes me come out in a rash, but I started wondering about other bits of 'social evidence' out there; for example, the much lower than expected incidence of reported autism in China. As I understand, it's very difficult to get any sort of ASD diagnosis in China for reasons I assume are political or cultural. So, drawing any conclusions using 'evidence' from China is bad science - but hey - I'm not a scientist, so I don't care. This is an extract of a UN report. LINK: Birth control in China So, the contraceptive pill has clearly not been a major part of China's birth control programme; after all, state control can only be guaranteed if you are fitting IUDs or sterilizing your citizens. So, if there was a link between the pill and autism, you would expect western cultures to show an increase in rates of autism since the late sixties / early seventies, and you would also expect a lower incidence in a country like China. Do any of you know of any 'proper' science out there related to this subject?
  10. I know this is a subject to trigger involuntary shivers even in the most battle-hardened veteran, but the world we occupy is a continuum of little breakthroughs, setbacks, occasional triumphs, disasters, depression and elation - so when something major happens, I feel like stripping naked and running up and down Sauchiehall Street precinct yelling at the top of my voice. Since that type of behaviour is frowned upon as being non-conformist, and Sauchiehall Street is not yet ready to absorb the magnificence of my naked form, I'm going to yell at the top of my voice on the internet instead. Fully-clothed. Hope you don't mind! We started toilet training Tom a few months ago. He's three-and-a-half and non-verbal. Our initial attempts were pretty useless - his bladder seemed to have the capacity of a large bouncy castle, and he wasn't keen on co-operating. It was difficult to predict when he would go, and consequently the living room carpet soaked up a fair number of accidents. Yummy. Eventually, the good lady's patience ran out, and she decided to be cruel to be kind. A couple of difficult sessions followed, where he was repeatedly returned to the toilet until a result was obtained. After that trauma, he decided that resistance was futile. All we had to do was ask if he needed a pee, and he would follow us. A pull-up was still required for Number 2s. Once the business was done, we would take him to the toilet, empty the nappy, flush and say 'bye bye' as it made it's final journey to poo heaven. Last week, it all clicked into place! Maybe Tom has realised that this is another way to exhibit his strong independent streak - I don't know, but as if by magic, he has taken it upon himself to go to the toilet alone without any parental prompting. Both numbers. One and two! Night-time has been fantastic! If he needs to go, he'll come through to our room and one of us will take him to the bathroom. In three weeks of sleeping without nappies, he's only had one accident. If six months ago someone had suggested Tom would be toilet-trained by now I would have laughed and crossed my eyes. But now, my wee man is a superstar on the toilet!!
  11. Tom is going through a spell at a pre-school assessment development unit, and when we first mentioned that he was really bright particularly when using the PC, the woman replied 'well, we don't use computers or television here. Although she didn't offer any explanation, implicit was the belief that these things are of no use in encouraging communication. Utter mince!! When Tom is on the computer, it gives us many more opportunities to communicate; plus he is beginning to rote-learn some of the letters - he can google 'boohbah' (very occasionally uttering the sounds that go with them). I've heard of people that communicate through the use of a keyboard - perhaps my wee man will be the same?
  12. I agree that we shouldn't worry about it, but I completely disagree that we stop trying. Shouldn't we always be trying to change the attitudes of people we come into contact with? If we all do it, it will make a difference - eventually!
  13. Tom flicks his fingers in front of his eyes, and spins like a top. It helps keep him on an even keel. If 'society' has a problem with this innocuous behaviour - nae luck! Tom doesn't do much hand flapping, not that I would discourage it anyway. The only foible that is causing a bit of discussion in the Martian household is his habit of shedding clothes at the drop of a hat. Mainly, he enjoys wrapping himself in blankets and duvets, giggling like a banshee in the process. My feeling is that as long as it's in the house and not in the frozen food aisle in Asda there is no harm.
  14. Thanks Slap, We're all foreigners up here! Oh, and when global warming raises the sea-level by 10 metres, you folk down in East Anglia will be first on the bus up to Jockland. And you'll be most welcome, too!
  15. Tom is non-verbal. But he does a pretty good job of communicating using brute force, man-handling the parents to fetch and carry for him. We tried PECS, but it just didn't seem to engage him at all. We're in the middle of doing the Hanen 'More than words' programme, but so far not much response from the wee man, but we'll keep at it. His paediatrician said something pretty obvious (but had never crossed my mind ); 'He has to want to communicate.' So, I suppose our job is to give him as many reasons to communicate with us as we can think of...
×
×
  • Create New...