2 Years Off of Drugs

I suck at blogging.  I wish I was way more consistent.  I think about it a lot, so I do blog a lot…just in my head.  A lot of things happen in there that {thankfully} never make their way out.  Anyway.  I am asked pretty often about how we have chosen to treat Tristan and Toby in there more specific medical needs.  So I’m going to break down the things we love the most, when and why we use them.  Maybe I’ll make it a blog series…maybe.  

When I was 9 weeks pregnant with Tristan I went in for an ultrasound Dr. Carter said that the baby was the most active baby she has ever seen at that gestation, now 11 years later, I am not surprised.  Tristan is also a very sensitive soul.  At a young age when we would watch movies and the music would get intense he would shrink back into the couch or put a blanket on his head.  He is very in tune with his body and his surroundings.  When he was 5 he experienced betrayal and trauma in a way that still 6 years later is very much with him.  About 3 months after the trauma his Kindergarten teacher said she thought he should be evaluated for ADHD as he exhibited classic ADHD symptoms.  We had him evaluated and left the clinic with Ritalin and Prozac.  Those two drugs did their jobs and they did them well.  However Tristan experienced a side effect known as emotional flattening.  He was calm and focused but he had no emotions.  He would stiffen up when you hugged him and laugh when people got hurt.  We knew it was time for a change. We began researching how oils could help, we eased him off of the Ritalin and prozac and it was NOT pretty, the oils helped but in the in-between time while we were easing off the drugs and trying to figure out the right combo of oils, it was ugly.  Super ugly.  6 weeks after he was fully weaned from the drugs and fully on the oils, we saw a difference and we relied solely on these for nearly 2 years.  I want to note that due to the trauma Tristan experienced he was also in counseling weekly for years. By the time we made it through all of our specialists Tristan has a diagnosis of ADHD, PTSD, MDD and Anxiety disorders.  While he has a propensity to be wild, I fully believe all of these things stem from the trauma he experienced when he was 5.  In November of 2014 Tristan ruptured his spleen riding his bike.  This trauma caused his sensitive little brain to revert back to the original trauma.  He started not sleeping through the night, refusing to shower without supervision, crying all of the time, hiding under his bed and for a short stretch of time he told us he didn’t want to live anymore.  Friends, that was the worst.  I have never felt more helpless.  We were ready to scrap all holistic treatments and go back to the dr., I fully believe that allopathic medicine has a place in life and we were there.  We made one last ditch effort and met Dr. Julie Glass through some internet research and she spent 2 hours with us at our first meeting and asked us to try  a whole new regimen and we agreed.  We would give it 3 weeks and if things got worse in that time we were going to fill our prescription for prozac.  My brave Tristan begged us not to put him back on those medicines, he didn’t want them.  We explained our plan and 3 weeks later he was much better.  Still suffering night terrors and extreme bouts of what I can only explain as guilt, but he was better.  We are 16 months post his splenic tear he is a new kid.  He goes to bed on his own, he has learned to deal with issues as they pop up and best of all he is HAPPY.  Wild and impulsive but he is so happy and I will take it.  Don’t get me wrong, some days I consider strapping his to his bed but when I think back to a year ago of 6 years ago I am reminded of how far he as come and how insanely brave he is.  So so brave. About a month in to our time with Dr. Glass we decided to switch to Dr. Sydmarie Boyle at Calcagno Pediatrics.  She is a wonderful pediatric naturopath who built off of what Dr. Glass had begun.   If you’d stuck with me this long, let me tell you about what Tristan takes {Please note that this is not a suggestion for what other kids should take, you should talk to your dr or mine, Dr. Sydmarie Boyle at Calcagno Pediatrics, 503-491-0714}.

Every morning he takes:

L-Theanine {by Pure Encapsulations} : An amino acid that is a building building block for proteins. It is used to treat anxiety. (Tristan takes 200mg/ day in the morning)

ADR Formula {by Pure Encapsulations}: ADR is a combination of pantothenic acid, Asian ginseng, eleuthero, licorice root, whole adrenal and adrenal cortex.  This is an adaptogenic herb combination that supports a healthy adrenal system as well as maintain a healthy immune system (Tristan takes 1 of these pills in the morning)

Cortisol Manager {by Integrative Therapeutics}: Contains ashwagandha root and leaf extract, L-theanine, magnolia bark extract, and phosphatidylserine.  This one is a big deal for us, if he misses a couple of doses of this it is a game changer.  I am never without at least 2 back up bottles.  This helps to promote relaxation, alleviate fatigue and support and balance cortisol levels (Tristan takes 1 of these pills in the morning)

Active B Complex {Integrative therapeutics}: This contains Thaimin, riboflavin, niacin, B6, L-methyltetrahydrofolate, vitamin B12, biotin, pantothenic acid, choline bitartrate and inositol.  It uses the active forms of vitamins B2, B6, and B12. It also contains Quatrefolic, the stabilized glucosamine salt of (6S)-5-methyltetrahydrofolate, a reduced and active form of folic acid. 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF) is directly usable by the human body as a methyl donor and as such, supports healthy homocysteine blood levels (Tristan takes 2 of these in the morning).

Bacopa Extract {by Planetary Herbals}: contains calcium and bacopa aerial parts.  Bacopa supports clear thinking and reduces the effects of stress on the brain.  For Tristan this is a critical herb for calming his brain when it is racing.  (Tristan takes 225mg in the morning)

5-HTP {by Pure Encapsulations}: 5 HTP increases serotonin levels in the brain and is primarily used to treat depression.  (Tristan takes 100mg of this per day in the morning.)

P5P 50 {By Pure Encapsulations}: It is easily absorbed through the body and is the active metabolite of pyridoxine and is the predominant form of plasma B6. P5P is required for proper absorption of B12 and magnesium, and for the production of gastric HCl. It is an important coenzyme in the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, and the elongation of essential fatty acids. It is required for the production of antibodies and red blood cells. P5P facilitates the release of glycogen (used in energy production) from the liver and muscles. In addition, P5P helps maintain the balance of sodium and potassium, which regulates body fluids and promotes the healthy functioning of the nervous and musculoskeletal systems (Tristan takes 50mg, 1pill in the morning).

In the evening:

Tristan takes the following

ADR Formula {by Pure Encapsulations}: Tristan takes 1 capsule at bed time.

Cortisol Manager {by Integrative Therapeutics}: Tristan takes 2 capsules at bed time.

Bacopa Extract {by Planetary Herbals}: Tristan takes 2 capsules at bed time.

Melatonin {By Stress-Relax}:  Tristan takes 6 mg 15 minutes prior to bedtime.

*As a side note for Tristan, melatonin made him exhausted but he couldn’t shut his busy brain down.  The Bacopa crosses the blood brain barrier and calms his racing brain.  They complement each other very well.  

In addition to all of these things Tristan can take Pharmagabas.

Pharmagaba {By Design by health}: is naturally occurring amino acid in our brain. It is one of the major inhibitory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system and has been found in several peripheral tissues. Amino acid neurotransmitters are critical for the function of the central nervous system (CNS); they have fast actions, producing responses within few milliseconds playing an important role in brain functions and neurological diseases.

GABA levels can drop when a person is subjected to stressful conditions. Therefore, supplementation with a safe, clinically proven form of GABA, such as PharmaGABA, may be beneficial in reestablishing ideal GABA levels.  We actually call these natural Xanax.  Tristan usually uses them at night when he is really having a hard time going to bed.

When the night time trauma creeps back in Tristan practices yoga, prays and focuses his mind on scripture that is important to him.

It may look like a lot and it is, but Tristan takes it like a champ and it in my opinion has literally saved his life and our sanity.  It took some time to find the right combo of things and his Naturopath was instrumental in that.  As of now we are exactly 2 years without any pharmaceutical drugs to treat ADHD, PTSD, MDD & Anxiety.  I'm pretty proud of that.  Hear me clearly, I'm not judging anyone for using prescribed meds, different strokes for different folks.  Love your kids, follow your heart and seek wise counsel...it's all good.  

Death to the "Stretched Neck Selfie"

It’s Summer and for Oregon, it’s hot.  Like H.O.T. hot.  

This past weekend my husband took the kids and I up to the Wallowa Mountains in Eastern Oregon .  It was truly like nothing I Have ever seen before.  It was stunning.  I took a million and fourteen photos and videos.  As we were looking through the photos I realized how often I stood behind my husband or held the camera waaaaaay up high so I could stretch my neck out and in turn, thin out my face.  But more often than anything, I hid from the camera and from my kids’ memories.  As we cruised around Wallowa Lake on a pontoon boat I looked over and saw my 4 year old daughter sitting in a seat with a towel over her lap (just like I was to cover up my stomach since I was wearing my swimsuit) and I realized she was mimicking me.  She was mimicking my discomfort about my body. 

As I scroll through FB I see the “stretched neck selfie” everywhere, on teenagers and adults, on the skinny minny’s and those of us with a few extra pounds and while riding on that boat it struck me that this is much more than a photo craze, it is indicative of our culture.  A culture that says your weight and appearance is what defines you.  Ladies, hear me out: THAT IS A LIE.  A BOLD FACED LIE.  You are beautiful no matter what you body looks like.  I have spent years and years believing that who I am, who I truly am is reflected by my size.  It’s just not true.  

I am overweight, I am not always comfortable in my skin or my clothes.  But I am kind, loving, will help anyone in need, I am a rad wife & mom (*insert horn tooting here), I go to school online and get straight A’s, I love Jesus and while I am a sinner I seek after him hourly.  I am not a pair of jeans, I am not a number on a scale.  I am a deeply loved child of Christ.  I am the caregiver and kisser of many boo-boos.  I am a best friend to my husband.  I am many things, but I am not defined by the size of this body that created 4 children and birthed 3.  And neither are you.

I admire all those mama’s who worked hard to get their pre-baby bodies back.  I admire you!  But for you mama’s still look away when you walk by the mirror, I say to you, STOP.  Stop putting yourself down and comparing yourself to those you think are prettier than you.  Just stop.  You are beautiful.  You are kind and you are loved.  I challenge you to find your value in something other than your physical body.  Because you are a treasure.

So ladies, this summer, rock your swimsuit, get in front of that camera and don't be ashamed of who you are or what you look like right now.  Our physical appearance is fleeting.  Let your inside, your heart, the part that really matters shine brightly.

Also, I say: death to the “stretched neck selfie”.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from our trip!

What Lurks Beneath and a Ritalin Update

My kids love breakfast (not really).  Typically they'd just like to just eat a Zbar and call it good.  Anything fast is good with them.

The more we learned from Selena Moffitt (our holistic nutritionist), the more we are realizing the importance of every single thing we put in our bodies, especially with Tristan's ADHD.  As a side note, if you are looking for someone who can help change your health, you should really check out Selena.  She comes to our house and works directly with us, checks up on us regularly and obviously cares about each of her clients.  She really puts her heart and soul into each person!

My kids are absolutely crazy about this Oatmeal, yes we do the same thing every morning, it just works for us.  They each get 1/2-3/4 cup of oatmeal on top, however, they have no idea what lurks beneath (insert maniacal laugh).

Coconut oil: great for brain health and weight gain (all of the kids are under the 20% for weight, which doesn't really bother me, but I think adding it in is good)

Vit D: amazing for brain health

Fish Oil: Great for kids with ADHD and over all brain/body health

Probiotics: for gut health

I also add ground flax seeds and chia seeds, but today we are out.

I love the health goodness that I can sneak in.

**An Update on our life without Ritalin**

We changed Tristan's Young Living Essential Oil Protocol.  I liked the other one but saw evidence that this new protocol would better fit us and it does.  Tristan has been off of ritalin for over a month now.  Here are a few amazing things we have noticed:

*He hugs us again (without being asked).  Until we took him off of the ritalin we had no idea how much of his emotions were being suppressed.  He hasn't hugged us on his own without being really stiff and uncomfortable in YEARS.  Now he hugs us with out asking.

*His aggression towards Piper is gone.  He plays with her now.

*He is empathetic.  For years if someone got hurt he would just kind of stare at them.

A few things we are working to change:

* He still struggles a lot with being able to focus on school work.  This is a brain training thing.  We have to continue to help him train his brain to focus.  School work is only done in short spurts for now, thankfully we are almost done.

* He is still quite impulsive, but aren't we all to some degree. :-)  This is also a training thing.  We are working on helping him look beyond the moment to see how decisions affect us beyond this moment.

So without further adieu, here is his daily protocol

**We are dairy and gluten free, this has also helped tremendously.**

After breakfast we:

Valor: applied on spine and wrists

Cedarwood, Vetiver and lavender: 1 drop under the big toe (where it bends), we apply them one at a time (giving 1 minute in between each oil)

NingXia Red: 1oz  *Note: Tristan LOVES this because it is like all natural red bull and for him the affects of things that give energy (caffein, ritalin) slow him down.  Plus it is FULL of amazing berries, vitamins and minerals!

The Lavender and valor are in black unmarked bottles because I bought special roller bottles so I could roll the oil on and not drop it on.  I had to black out the bottle because they are clear and the oils shouldn't be exposed to light (which is why all YL bottles are dark)

As for Piper, we give her oils to help with overall health and create happiness, she is a great little girl, and like all 3 year olds she is prone to fits and explosions.  We have noticed a bit of a decrease in her aggressiveness and fit throwing since giving her these oils.  Mainly she just likes that she gets oils like Tristan.

Humility: 1 drop over her heart

Cardamom & Coriander: 1 drop of each in her morning dark chocolate almond milk

I survived a week without ritalin!

Now some of you may be shaking your head that my kid was even on ritalin.  But before you judge, we went through a lot before we decided to put him on ritalin.  We tried really hard (on our own) to change his diet, to teach him breathing exercises, we blamed ourselves, we got frustrated, we cried and finally we went to our dr for help.  He agreed that T has adhd.  While some of you may feel like ADHD is a disorder made up by the medical industry, I respectfully disagree.  My son has ADHD.  I'm not going to lay out all the things that lead me to believe this, because it only makes me feel like I am pointing out things I don't like about his behavior.  But I will tell you that I full believe he has this brain disorder.

Now that I have that out of the way, about a month ago we started looking for a better way.  Everytime Tristan started to get wound up I found myself asking him "if he took his meds."  I realized that I was defining him by his disorder and letting the ritalin parent for me.  I am better than this.  John is better than this.  We are the parents and we wanted to do better for him.  So after a lot of prayer, we stopped giving him the ritalin.  He took 5 mg every 4 hours (it was super short lasting, like a spot treater.  Not the kind that has to get and stay in your blood stream to work.).

I'm going to be honest, I was drunk by noon the first day we took him off of it.  Not really, but it was not pretty.  I found myself dumbfounded by some of the decisions he was making; hitting his sister, running into walls, banging his head on the couch, jumping in his baby brother's crib, screaming at any disturbance etc.  It was a taxing day.  The second day he was off of the ritalin, he was home with my folks while I was working at an event with my boss.  I found myself crying in the bathroom after talking with my dad who informed me that Tristan was not controllable and couldn't even get a whole thought out.  I was sure I had just made a horrible mistake.

We are now on day 6 of NO ritalin.  We are working on breathing exercises, we have a code word (evil knivel, lol) if he needs reminding to slow down and breathe and mama and dad are remembering every time he makes a random, seemingly thoughtless decision that we need not get mad, we just need to remind him that is not the appropriate decision to make.  He is not a vengeful child, not one to do things to make you mad, so when he makes poor decisions we are just reminding him of the better options.  Actually, in the last 6 days I have found that he is a much more resourceful, creative kid than we have allowed him to be.  He's pretty darn great.

Working with our nutritionist, Selena Moffitt (www.SelenaMaestas.com) helps a lot, she has worked very closely with us to remove dairy and soon gluten from our diets to help with T's ADHD, though I feel it will be a good thing for all of us.  

We have also begun an ADHD protocol with Young Living Essential Oils. I mixed up the below oils and we rub it on his wrists in the morning, afternoon and night.  A bonus is that is smells amazing and covers up that "boy" smell! ha!  I have found that this protocol with Young Living is an amazing and very natural addition to the other changes we are making.  It has really made a difference.  If you want more info please email me at dirtjumpingfamily@gmail.com.


We have a ways to go before he feels in total control.  But he is 8 and we are the parents.  He deserves us to work as hard as we can on his behalf.  So we will try.  Really hard.  In the meantime I am learning the definition of grace.  I will keep you posted but as of day 6, we are all alive and I think we are seeing the brighter side of life with essential oils and without ritalin. (www.youngliving.org/amykayhardesty)

Power Packed Protein Shake for Picky Eaters

As we have begun this journey of changing our food habits and our way of thinking about food, I have been reminded that I need a level of patience that I do not currently possess.  I love food.  I love yummy food, my kids love the food I have always fed them. This change thing, will happen, but I'm going to need to give and receive a lot of grace.

As I mentioned before, Piper has a milk addiction.  Bless it all, she loves her milk.  She will ask to have her milk over food most days.  And if I'm being honest I'd tell you that most days I just don't want to fight.  My husband gently reminded me this week that I am her parent.  I fix her food.  She can and will learn to eat with the rest of us.  So tonight, after a lengthy meeting with Tristan's nutritionist, Selena, I decided that I would give them a smoothie for a snack.  a yummy berry smoothy with fish oil, vite d, probiotics, spinach, coconut oil, avocado, flax seed chia seed and peanut butter & plant based chocolate protein powder.  I didn't tell them about the ingredients in the small font.  Folks, my kids gobbled them up.  For.  Real.  If you have picky eaters that need to get some good, healthy stuff in them, try this.  Just don't let them see you make it.


Recipe

-  1-2T of ground flax seed (I ground half a bag of it and filled 3 small mason jars.  Freeze the bag and jars of flax seed as it will get rancid really quickly), I just ground mine up in my Ninja.
-  1-2tsp of chia seeds (no grinding needed)
-  1/2 tsp of fish oil
-  1/2 a dropper of vitamin d
-  2 tsp powdered pro-biotic
-  8-10 spinach leaves
-  2T peanut butter
-  1/4 of an avocado
-  1 scoop of protein powder (we are working towards being dairy and gluten free, so we used a plant based chocolate protein powder)
-  1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
-  1/2 a banana
-  1 large tablespoon of melted coconut oil
- 1-2 cups of almond milk
Blend & enjoy the fact that your kids are unknowingly eating food they wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole otherwise.  God bless smoothies.

Organic Flax seeds

Blend these babies really well

Make sure you freeze the left over and jarred flax seeds to prevent them from becoming rancid.

 Chia seeds do not need to be refrigerated or ground up.  Just dump and go.

  

Don't let your kids see you slip these in there or the gig is up

Just a small handful goes a long way

 

Be generous with this.   Bless it all, peanut butter has got to be the perfect food.

 

Just a quarter of an avocado adds a great amount of healthy fat

 

My kids thought this stuff was pure hersheys chocolate.  

 

 

Make sure you melt the coconut oil to prevent chunks.

In addition to the coconut oil, the banana will add to the creamy texture and health of the smoothy

 Fill to the top of your fill line with almond milk (if it's too thick you can always add more)

I love how excited she is.  Sweet kids don't even know how much goodness is in that shake.  

Jokes on you suckas! 

Old Habits Die Hard

Old habits die hard. Isn't that a thing?  Bless it all, it is hard to change the way you've done things for a long time.  I've struggled with my weight and with few exceptions have always been fearful to tell people when I am trying to lose weight, mainly because I've yet to be and remain successful.

Well I'm ready to talk about it.  Lucky you.  Last week I cleaned out my panty, not just organized it but hucked everything that I could possibly use to assault my health.  Darn you powdered sugar.  My pantry was naked, but slowly I am filling it with healthy snacks made by my chubby fingers.

I'll be posting some of my recipes soon.  The kids hate me, they keep asking where their granola bars went and I keep reminding them there are ones I made in the snack box.  I like the new granola snacks, they miss the food I've always let them have.

I've made granola, black bean patties, chicken on a stick, crepes made with spelt flour, folks, I even made oat milk.  Piper is a milk-a-holic and probably needs to be in a group somewhere.  She also struggles with eczema.  Her dr said that milk can play a role is exacerbating eczema.  So we have discontinued dairy at this house.  Let me tell you...World War III.  Seriously.   I made oat milk, added some vanilla and maple syrup to it, but she hates it.  I even tried to hide in it a regular milk container. She is no fool.  ha ha ha.  I just keep reminding myself that in time they will get used to it and maybe even like these new foods.

Last night, Tristan ate 2 bean patties and when I was giving the littles a bath, he helped himself to a 1/2 a cup of almonds.  I almost got frustrated because I was going to use those in my salad, but I was reminded of what a good choice that was and it was not accompanied by any kind of complaining about their being no fritos in the snack bin.  Good boy Tristan, you're keeping mommy sane.

So,
let's go on this crazy journey together, enjoy some new food, laugh at my crazy life and encourage each other along the way.  Here we go!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

In order to say THANK YOU to my folks who seriously invested themselves in prettying up our yard, I decided to make a homemade strawberry rhubarb pie.  I have rhubarb in my garden , but this is only it's second year, and from what I understand it needs to mature for 3 years.  I agreed because it wasn't getting red.  After a quick trip to Al's Garden Center, I found out that I have green rhubarb that is mature enough to use.  I guess if I had kept those little white stick things that come with the plants I would have known this information.

Anywho, I cut some rhubarb, picked some strawberries and whipped up this pie and this crust (if you use this recipe, make sure you double it, this is only enough for the bottom crust) this morning.  Delish!

 All of my rhubarb leaves are this big!  It's insane!

1 of 2 rhubarb plants

My strawberry bed!  Once I finally killed all the slugs that attacked it this year, it really grew!!!

Finished product!