It has been a busy week. The boys had visits to the osteopath and orthodontist and I've been doing catch-up.
Both appointments went very well. The boys are a lot more willing to be still and let the doctor do her job. Carmen Hering (our osteopath) told me that there are a lot of changes going on. J is experiencing some healing in his hip/thigh - an injury from 3 years ago. D is going through healing/growth everywhere - lots going on beneath the surface. This confirmed the feeling I had been getting: that even though D has not shown as many outward changes as J, the diet is doing lots. Reminds me of the bamboo tree. . . Mamta Shah (dentist/orthodontist) was also pleased. She tried to put in an extra bump to help D's appliance stay down properly - I'm not sure if it took. J is still wearing only the upper appliance. She wants to have some progress made with the upper jaw before starting the lower.
The last few days the boys have been eating mostly soup - or the equivalent separately. I'm glad they have decided that cooked vegetables are good eaten cold. For our appointments I packed meat and veggies for them to snack on in the car. We still need to plan of feeding them something every couple of hours.
I did buy some organic dill pickles for them to try - they seemed to enjoy them. I may need to look into making my own pickles. (Noooo, not another thing to learn!!) They've also been having sauerkraut with supper. They make faces, but eat. We are now officially on Intro, Stage 4. The only food I skipped altogether was fermented fish. Between the 'yuck' factor, concerns about mercury and having the time to make it, the effort just didn't seem worth it. Maybe later on we'll try it (or find some organic somewhere). Robert enjoys sardines so he would probably eat it even if no one else did.
Showing posts with label dental. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dental. Show all posts
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
Week 5
Due to a death in the family my day was filled with extra challenges and tasks. I was still able to get some GAPS stuff accomplished.
Separated out the ghee. To make my life easier I put the last 1/4 cup or so into a separate container, knowing some of the bottom layer was there. I marked it for Robert's use - so he doesn't feel guilty being generous with it for eggs or vegetables. Robert also blended the fat and marrow from the bones I used for the broth. It's great how much help he gives me (especially since that job grosses me out a bit and I'm not sure I could manage it) and I'll be able to add some to their soups and maybe pancakes.
Upped their probiotic today. D - 1 3/4 capsule; J - 1 1/4 capsule, (approximately, I am just not stressing about being exact). They get 1/2 first thing in the morning and 1/2 before bed.
D had a loose BM today. Not sure if it was the extra probiotic, or if he snuck extra carrots. Will keep an eye on him tomorrow. J has stayed regular. Both boys have been showing more energy this week. There has been a lot less laying on the couch during the day. (Sometimes I almost miss that!) J's weight is holding steady - maybe up just a little. We're also getting a bit more speech, especially from J. He has been commenting on what he sees. 'Look' has become a much more common word around our house.
The dental appliances have stayed in the last couple of days. We noticed that D is more bothered if food is caught in it - no surprise there. We're trying to remember to check it right away after meals, but he is often in a hurry to go play.
The boys are eating: beef, chicken, pork, lamb, avocado, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, onions, peppers, butternut squash, zucchini, peas, green beans, brussel sprouts, yellow squash, tomato, eggs (raw yolks , soft-boiled, or scrambled), almond butter, garlic, rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, parsley, bay leaf (small amounts of the herbs in soups or casseroles).
Sometimes I think I ought to try some new vegetables: Kale, beets, eggplant, and bok choy come to mind - but I've never cooked them, so have been avoiding them. I guess I'll need to look up some recipes and gather my nerve.
Separated out the ghee. To make my life easier I put the last 1/4 cup or so into a separate container, knowing some of the bottom layer was there. I marked it for Robert's use - so he doesn't feel guilty being generous with it for eggs or vegetables. Robert also blended the fat and marrow from the bones I used for the broth. It's great how much help he gives me (especially since that job grosses me out a bit and I'm not sure I could manage it) and I'll be able to add some to their soups and maybe pancakes.
Upped their probiotic today. D - 1 3/4 capsule; J - 1 1/4 capsule, (approximately, I am just not stressing about being exact). They get 1/2 first thing in the morning and 1/2 before bed.
D had a loose BM today. Not sure if it was the extra probiotic, or if he snuck extra carrots. Will keep an eye on him tomorrow. J has stayed regular. Both boys have been showing more energy this week. There has been a lot less laying on the couch during the day. (Sometimes I almost miss that!) J's weight is holding steady - maybe up just a little. We're also getting a bit more speech, especially from J. He has been commenting on what he sees. 'Look' has become a much more common word around our house.
The dental appliances have stayed in the last couple of days. We noticed that D is more bothered if food is caught in it - no surprise there. We're trying to remember to check it right away after meals, but he is often in a hurry to go play.
The boys are eating: beef, chicken, pork, lamb, avocado, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, onions, peppers, butternut squash, zucchini, peas, green beans, brussel sprouts, yellow squash, tomato, eggs (raw yolks , soft-boiled, or scrambled), almond butter, garlic, rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano, parsley, bay leaf (small amounts of the herbs in soups or casseroles).
Sometimes I think I ought to try some new vegetables: Kale, beets, eggplant, and bok choy come to mind - but I've never cooked them, so have been avoiding them. I guess I'll need to look up some recipes and gather my nerve.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Day 32, Intro Stage 3
Today looks like it's going to be a prep day. Lots of vegetables to chop, sauerkraut to prep and bones to start simmering for broth. Also a day to look ahead and do some meal planning.
Tomorrow I'm hoping to give the boys scrambled eggs for the first time. I'm sure they'll appreciate something new for breakfast. (Pancakes are never breakfast - I just can't flip pancakes first thing in the morning. They end up tiny pieces or burned!)
D has backslid with his appliance. He took the lower one out twice yesterday - and then the upper one was out first thing this morning. Did he know I'd been relaxing thinking the issue was settled???
The girls gave me a day out a couple of days ago. They handled all the cooking, plus some program. It really helped my attitude. Also, it is reassuring to know they can handle things as I may need to leave town for a few days in a couple months - and I want the boys to keep making progress.
Tomorrow I'm hoping to give the boys scrambled eggs for the first time. I'm sure they'll appreciate something new for breakfast. (Pancakes are never breakfast - I just can't flip pancakes first thing in the morning. They end up tiny pieces or burned!)
D has backslid with his appliance. He took the lower one out twice yesterday - and then the upper one was out first thing this morning. Did he know I'd been relaxing thinking the issue was settled???
The girls gave me a day out a couple of days ago. They handled all the cooking, plus some program. It really helped my attitude. Also, it is reassuring to know they can handle things as I may need to leave town for a few days in a couple months - and I want the boys to keep making progress.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Week 4
Yesterday marked 4 weeks since starting Intro.
This week we added avocado, almond nut butter and lots of spices. We upped their probiotic: J-3/4 capsule per day; D - 1 1/4 capsule per day.
The girls are holding steady with the amount of program they are doing with the boys. I am encouraging them to add another session. My time for school/program varies with how much I have prepped in advance, but things are slowly coming together.
They seem to have accepted their appliances fairly well. D took his out yesterday - there was meat caught in it after supper.
Their energy has been up and they seem to be sleeping pretty good. I haven't seen any more signs of a rash on J and he has had regular BM's all week. Yeah!! Both boys still occasionally have undigested food in their stool - I have come to the conclusion it is at least partly due to poor chewing because of their misaligned bites and weak tongues. We'll be keeping an eye on that as our time with the lightwire appliances continues.
This week we added avocado, almond nut butter and lots of spices. We upped their probiotic: J-3/4 capsule per day; D - 1 1/4 capsule per day.
The girls are holding steady with the amount of program they are doing with the boys. I am encouraging them to add another session. My time for school/program varies with how much I have prepped in advance, but things are slowly coming together.
They seem to have accepted their appliances fairly well. D took his out yesterday - there was meat caught in it after supper.
Their energy has been up and they seem to be sleeping pretty good. I haven't seen any more signs of a rash on J and he has had regular BM's all week. Yeah!! Both boys still occasionally have undigested food in their stool - I have come to the conclusion it is at least partly due to poor chewing because of their misaligned bites and weak tongues. We'll be keeping an eye on that as our time with the lightwire appliances continues.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Adding Flavor
What to say about the last couple of days?
Increased their probiotic by 1/4 capsule per day.
Added sage, thyme and oregano (tonight) to their meals. Robert is thrilled to have extra flavor, it makes it easier to eat what they are eating. Found out the avocado I just bought wasn't ripe (can't believe I didn't check!) so no more avocado for a couple of days.
D is now leaving his lower appliance in during the day, but we still occasionally find him without it first thing in the morning. We don't know if he's removing it before he falls asleep, in his sleep, or if he wakes up in the night to take it out. He tosses it down on the floor, luckily its usually next to the wall where it can't get stepped on.
Realized that it has been over 2 weeks since the boys asked for any foods they can't have. I don't know if they are resigned to the situation or if they are feeling better without those foods. I still plan on keeping previously favorite foods and forbidden sweets out of the house. (The girls have some things the boys don't like that well in the extra fridge in the shop. Robert and I borrow from their stash sometimes.)
Increased their probiotic by 1/4 capsule per day.
Added sage, thyme and oregano (tonight) to their meals. Robert is thrilled to have extra flavor, it makes it easier to eat what they are eating. Found out the avocado I just bought wasn't ripe (can't believe I didn't check!) so no more avocado for a couple of days.
D is now leaving his lower appliance in during the day, but we still occasionally find him without it first thing in the morning. We don't know if he's removing it before he falls asleep, in his sleep, or if he wakes up in the night to take it out. He tosses it down on the floor, luckily its usually next to the wall where it can't get stepped on.
Realized that it has been over 2 weeks since the boys asked for any foods they can't have. I don't know if they are resigned to the situation or if they are feeling better without those foods. I still plan on keeping previously favorite foods and forbidden sweets out of the house. (The girls have some things the boys don't like that well in the extra fridge in the shop. Robert and I borrow from their stash sometimes.)
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Day 17
I haven't posted in a couple of days. A combination of being busy and not feeling quite up to par. Hopefully I've turned the corner and will be back to my usual self.
Forgot to make the ghee, so I'll be doing that today. I also have some bone broth in the slow cooker to put into jars. I feel like we've been stuck of Stage 2 of Intro forever. I think it was a good idea not to add new things right before or after getting the boys fitted with appliances, though.
The boys had their appointment with the osteopath 2 days ago. She was very pleased with how they are doing. J is going through a lot of changes. Since the visit he has had fewer tummy aches. I think the visit also helped D with his appliances. He still takes the lower one out occasionally, but seems to be leaving it in longer. I talked with the orthodontist and she said he is removing it because it is in the way of his tongue. Apparently his tongue has not been resting up at the roof of his mouth like it should and the lower appliance is in his way. She also said his tongue might actually be getting tired/sore and he wants a break from having to lift it up. Having his tongue stronger and staying in the right place will help his speech.
Forgot to make the ghee, so I'll be doing that today. I also have some bone broth in the slow cooker to put into jars. I feel like we've been stuck of Stage 2 of Intro forever. I think it was a good idea not to add new things right before or after getting the boys fitted with appliances, though.
The boys had their appointment with the osteopath 2 days ago. She was very pleased with how they are doing. J is going through a lot of changes. Since the visit he has had fewer tummy aches. I think the visit also helped D with his appliances. He still takes the lower one out occasionally, but seems to be leaving it in longer. I talked with the orthodontist and she said he is removing it because it is in the way of his tongue. Apparently his tongue has not been resting up at the roof of his mouth like it should and the lower appliance is in his way. She also said his tongue might actually be getting tired/sore and he wants a break from having to lift it up. Having his tongue stronger and staying in the right place will help his speech.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Week 2
It's been 14 days since we started intro. Overall things are going pretty smoothly. I increased their probiotic this morning. J had a little tummy ache (possibly related) and we didn't notice any differences from D.
Tomorrow they'll get their first dairy in 6 weeks, ghee. Ghee is clarified butter which contains no milk proteins.
D is doing better with his lower appliance, but is still drooling a lot. We have a call in to the dentist to see about having her put a couple more little bumps on the teeth to help hold the wire still. We think the fact that his tongue can wiggle the wire is one reason why it bothers him.
Tomorrow they'll get their first dairy in 6 weeks, ghee. Ghee is clarified butter which contains no milk proteins.
D is doing better with his lower appliance, but is still drooling a lot. We have a call in to the dentist to see about having her put a couple more little bumps on the teeth to help hold the wire still. We think the fact that his tongue can wiggle the wire is one reason why it bothers him.
Friday, July 24, 2009
The beginnings of straight teeth
We're back from the dentist. Both boys cooperated well with getting the lightwires put in, though J was only able to get the upper jaw done. The lower appliance will wait a month, hopefully his molars will erupt a little more and make things easier.
Since we got home, it has been a bit of a challenge. The lightwire appliance is removable, for cleaning, etc. and D has been removing his. Hopefully he hasn't managed to bend it so it doesn't do its job.
All adults in the house are a bit stressed trying to keep an eye on him - the last time he took out an appliance he tossed it in the garbage! I guess we know his opinion on metal in his mouth. The last couple of hours he's been leaving it alone, so hopefully the worst is over. If I can manage it, I'll take some pictures of their ALF appliances to post.
Since we got home, it has been a bit of a challenge. The lightwire appliance is removable, for cleaning, etc. and D has been removing his. Hopefully he hasn't managed to bend it so it doesn't do its job.
All adults in the house are a bit stressed trying to keep an eye on him - the last time he took out an appliance he tossed it in the garbage! I guess we know his opinion on metal in his mouth. The last couple of hours he's been leaving it alone, so hopefully the worst is over. If I can manage it, I'll take some pictures of their ALF appliances to post.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Another Day Another Soup
Day 10
No new foods today - just same old same old. I put a roast in the crock pot for dinner, and hopefully lots of leftovers for tomorrow.
We've held steady with diet and probiotics the last couple of days because tomorrow is likely to be interesting. The boys are getting their teeth fitted with ALF (Advanced Lightwire Functional) appliances. It's been pretty obvious for awhile that the boys were going to need to get their teeth straightened, but I really dreaded traditional braces - and I didn't think D could handle getting the impressions made. Lightwire was recommended by our osteopath, and since D has made great progress in self-control and tolerance of situations he doesn't like we went forward. Both boys had CT scans done so the orthodontist could see just how the bones of their skulls fit together and design the appliance appropriately. If you do a search on Advanced Lightwire Appliance you can get lots of information about the philosophy behind them and their advantages to traditional braces. We're hopeful that getting their jaws better aligned will help both their speech and their digestion.
No new foods today - just same old same old. I put a roast in the crock pot for dinner, and hopefully lots of leftovers for tomorrow.
We've held steady with diet and probiotics the last couple of days because tomorrow is likely to be interesting. The boys are getting their teeth fitted with ALF (Advanced Lightwire Functional) appliances. It's been pretty obvious for awhile that the boys were going to need to get their teeth straightened, but I really dreaded traditional braces - and I didn't think D could handle getting the impressions made. Lightwire was recommended by our osteopath, and since D has made great progress in self-control and tolerance of situations he doesn't like we went forward. Both boys had CT scans done so the orthodontist could see just how the bones of their skulls fit together and design the appliance appropriately. If you do a search on Advanced Lightwire Appliance you can get lots of information about the philosophy behind them and their advantages to traditional braces. We're hopeful that getting their jaws better aligned will help both their speech and their digestion.
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