To be perfectly clear although I was interested in trying the diet I did so under the theory that a lot of special needs kids seem to have undiagnosed or underdiagnosed food sensitivities that make them feel unwell, achy, or congested, so if we were to remove the offending foods the absence of headaches and stomachaches would make them more attentive, less crabby, and more cooperative.
Of course I was wrong.
What happened was what the medical journals in the earlier post said would happen most of the time. I just don’t think I was prepared for how drastic or fast the change would be.
My first clue that this would work started within 48 hours of the new diet when he got up and asked me what he needed to do. Normally sequencing getting dressed, brushing teeth and putting away the hangers is too much. We break it down into steps like “take off pajamas” “put on shirt” “put on socks” “put on pants” “put hangers in closet” and “brush teeth”. Each step would take between two and ten reminders to complete.
That morning he found me in the shower and asked what he needed to do before he could play on the iPad so I said he needed to get dressed and brush his teeth.
And he did. All of it. No steps and no reminders.
I came downstairs confused to see a dressed child calmly playing video games on an iPad.
That had never happened before…ever.
Five days into the experiment was our first school day. We had missed two days of school due to a deep freeze, so this was our first day with the full winter morning routine.
The week before this was our morning routine
“OK honey we are leaving in ten minutes, please finish eating”
“OK this is your five minute warning”
I bring in winter outerwear and put it on the chair
“OK honey time to get dressed”
“No no honey, jacket first”
“Pulling harder on the zipper is not helpful, I know its stuck, let me help you”
“Right, there you go, hat on”
“OK now gloves”
“no really you need gloves”
“GLOVES!”
“Boots kiddo, its snowy out there you need boots”
“No you may not wear crocs…you need boots”
“BOOTS”
“BACKPACK”
“OK, let’s go”
This was my life. Every morning had been that way for the last few years. Oh sure, sometimes they were worse, and in the spring and fall the lack of outerwear requiring a specific sequence made leaving easier, but this was winter normal.
Until it wasn’t.
Four days into the diet, I brought his outerwear into the kitchen and then went back to the front hall to get my own coat hat and gloves. When I returned to the kitchen I saw a sight that left me frozen.
He was completely dressed. Hat, gloves, boots, balaclava. Completely dressed.
No warnings, no reminders, no “you can’t put your gloves on until your coat is on”. He just stood there in a coat, hat and gloves and asked if we were going now.
Sure, I thought. As soon as I can stop shaking long enough to walk we will go.
The next day was even stranger.
Normally we would walk to school, but when there is literally three feet of snow on the ground, AND the sidewalks are not cleared, AND the wind chill is worse than 10 below…I drive.
It’s been the sort of winter where I drive a lot.
Again the normal procedure is that even before we get to the drop off point I am reminding him to unbuckle, then to put on his gloves, then I wait as he wrestles the backpack to something that will allow it to be removed from the car…sometimes the car seat goes with it into the snowbank as he howls in frustration and I have to get out of the car to rescue the seat. Then he may or may not get the backpack on before he gets into school. This may or may not be before first period as frustrated parents swerve around my stationary minivan to drop off their own kids.
As I pulled up to the dropoff point only five days into the diet I realized I had forgotten to give the reminders. I put the car in park and then heard a strange sound come from the back seat.
He was opening the door.
His backpack was on.
His gloves were on.
He said “bye mom” and popped out to get in line with the rest of the class.
And I sat there, frozen, staring, unable to drive the car.
How can this be happening?
In one week?!?
How can it be this fast?
Why doesn’t everyone know about this?
