by Dr. Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman and Dr. Robert Ullman
Leave No Stone Unturned
I’ve had the good fortune to treat a large number of kids with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), behavioral, and learning problems with homeopathic medicine. My husband and I stopped counting at three thousand. We enjoy these children’s animated, lively dispositions and marvel at how brimming with life they are. Never a dull moment! How often we have commented on the steadfast determination of their parents to search out the best care for their kids, whether conventional or alternative. Now we are now seeing more and more children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD), especially Asperger Syndrome (AS) and high-functioning autism (HFA). Quite a few of them have been previously misdiagnosed, or dually diagnosed, with ADHD- up to sixty-five percent according to some studies. These parents are looking out of the box for new answers and effective treatments. If we thought parents of kids with ADHD were motivated, those of ASD take dedication and determination to a new level of magnitude. I never fail to be amazed by the willingness of these parents to stop whatever they’re doing and make caring for their ASD kids their number one priority, be it preparing gluten and casein-free meals, carting them around from one therapy to another.
It is for you parents that I am writing this article, as well as our upcoming book with the same title. I am very impressed with how successful homeopathy can be in treating children with AS and HFA. In turning over those stones for your kids, some of you may never have even heard of homeopathy. Or used it exclusively for burns, insect bites, colds, and ear aches. If even one child’s life can be turned around with homeopathy as a result of this article, I will be as thrilled as that child’s parents. Little did I expect that Amy Lansky, Ph.D. would read my Mothering article on ADHD nine years ago then go on to share with many others the homeopathic cure of her autistic son in Impossible Cure: The Promise of Homeopathy (R.L. Ranch Press: Portola Valley, CA. 2003). You just never know!
Trevor is Just Different!
We homeopaths spend hours at a time hearing about our patients’ lives. Their health problems, emotional ups and downs, and symptoms of all kinds. Whatever they have to share with us is a part of their homeopathic picture. Homeopaths love those characteristics that are unusual and quirky. The odder, the better. In fact, homeopathic literature refers to the most informative symptoms as “strange, rare, and peculiar.”Symptoms that are unique to the individual and that , often, make no logical sense. Like the child I saw the other day who vomits but never feels nauseated. It is by putting together the puzzle of these odd features which are unique to each individual, child or adult, that we can choose one homeopathic medicine from a pool of over two thousand and counting.
The first words I hear from many AS parents are, “He’s just different. Not like the other kids in class. Not even like the other kids in our family.” I hear these same phrases again and again. When you meet someone with AS, you may not know what to make of him (I say “him” because boys number girls at least four to one.) They tend to keep to themselves in social settings, by exclusion if not by choice. Parallel play is common. When they do interact, it is by exuberantly spouting off their encyclopedic fund of information about trains or cube roots or sharks or whatever is their current passion, without ever being asked. When the sudden outpouring of verbiage is unwelcome, they may not even notice and may go right on chattering. Motions are typically stiff, awkward, and clumsy; affect rigid; responses literal; and eye contact minimal.
Youngsters with AS are socially, and often academically, challenged but may be brilliant, even savants. Language tends to be repetitive and autistic-like mannerisms such as flapping are commonplace. Sensitivity to stimuli may be universally heightened, activities frequently ritualized, and interests so narrowly focused as to become obsessions, masquerading as obsessive-compulsive disorder. Kids with AS can exhibit meltdowns reminiscent of oppositional-defiant disorder, sometimes in full view of a scornful audience certain that the disciplining parent is bent on child abuse. As you can see, AS is a mixed bag. The line between gifted and learning-disabled can be bewilderingly fine.
Put all of these, or even some of these, features together and you have a kid that, plain and simple, just doesn’t fit in. In the best of educational environments, he’ll hang out on the sideline. ignored or invisible, left to his own devices. At the least, these children are misunderstood. At the most, they are harrassed just for being different. In Mountlake Terrace, Washington, just ten minutes from our office, a young man with AS made the front page of the Seattle Times for having gone missing. It turns out that he killed himself because he could not bear the idea of being friendless for the rest of his life. A parent of one of our AS patients attended the funeral. The victim’s mom used the service as a means to share with the greater community who her son really was and to celebrate his abruptly curtailed life.
Asperger Syndrome on the Rise and No Magic Bullet
“On the surface, it appears that AS has become an epidemic. An increase in referrals to physicians appears to be a phenomenon seen in virtually all countries ( Schopler, Eric. Asperger Syndrome or High-Functioning Autism, p 395.) In fact, two studies showed a 180 percent increase between the years 1989 and 1993.2 As clinicians, teachers and parents have become well informed about the hallmark features of AS, the number of diagnoses has simultaneously increased. According to a Swedish population study conducted in 1993, the minimum prevalence for AS is 36 per 10,000 children (age 7-16). When the study included suspected and possible AS cases, the prevalence doubled. (Gillberg, C. & Coleman, M., The Biology of Autistic Syndromes, 2nd Edition .London: Mac Keith Press, 1992) P.44 Other epidemiologists place the incidence of ASDs in the same ballpark, from around 1 in 250 to 1 in 500.” (Reichenberg-Ullman, Judyth et al, A Drug-Free Approach to Asperger Syndrome)
Two-thirds of children diagnosed with AS take medications at some point. (Ami Klin, Fred Volkmar, and Sara Sparrow, eds., Asperger Syndrome (New York: Guilford Press, 2000), p. 214. We are not just talking about stimulants, such as Ritalin, Adderall, and Concerta, used in ADHD, but also anti-depressant, anti-convulsant, and anti-psychotic drugs. Strong medicines, a majority of which have not been proven safe or effective for these children by the FDA. There is little any drug can do to turn to make an AS kid socially acceptable. The best psychiatric medications can do is treat a ‘specific target symptom’ such as aggression. But what if that aggression is a justified response to relentless taunting and bullying? Such treatment, in the view of a homeopath, does not address the root of the problem.
We know that there is no cure for AS. Furthermore, it is important to realize that there are no psychotropic medications that specifically address the core symptoms of AS. Although medications may address isolated symptoms and control unwanted behaviors such as attention problems, aggression, ritualistic or stereotyped behaviors, depression and anxiety, drugs will never cure the core symptoms of AS.
Exceptional Medicine for Exceptional Kids
This is where homeopathy comes in. Homeopaths seek not to box kids into diagnostic categories, but rather to understand each child in depth. Homeopathy treats patients, not diagnoses. Quibbling over labels does not cure a child. I saw a child yesterday with classic features of AS. A prominent pediatric neurologist ruled out the diagnosis, explaining that he was lacking one out of a list of six diagnostic criteria. Just what did he have? The neurologist did not know. The purpose of a two-hour, in-depth interview with both parent(s) and child is primarily to listen and observe. To attempt to perceive what is most unique about that child and how he or she is different from every other child, even those with the same psychiatric diagnosis. To understand how that child feels, perceives the world, and behaves in response to it. And to find the homeopathic medicine that matches the child.
As a parent of an Aspie (as kids with AS are affectionately called), you need not worry about side effects from homeopathic medicines. They are safe, natural, nontoxic, and treat all of your child’s symptoms, not just the ASD features. Homeopathy can be used along with whatever you’re already doing: gluten and carbohydrate-free (GF/CF) or simple carbohydrate (SCD) diets, pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements, or behavioral, sensory integration, social skills, or other therapies. If the homeopathic treatment is successful, you may find that some of the interventions are no longer necessary.
Once the match is made between the patient and the correct homeopathic medicine, the rest is history, as Amy Lansky describes. When given just the right nudge in the right direction, the vital force, as homeopathy calls the healing principal, will do the rest. After that, the medicine is only repeated when there is a relapse in symptoms, typically only a few times a year. How much improvement, you might ask, is possible with your child? It depends on the child, but changes I frequently see are an increased ability to make friends, fewer self-stimulating and inappropriate behaviors, improvement in academic skills, even to the point of moving to a mainstream classroom, more self-confidence, and an overall feeling of happiness. These results may seem surprising if you are new to homeopathy or have only experienced its effectiveness in burns, colds, flus, or bladder infection.
The Monster Thing
Tito was a very unusual child. He had proved a challenge to even the foremost mental health professionals and diagnosticians. A prominent child psychologist, after testing Tito, reported that he exhibited the profile of a potential serial killer. Next came the label of bipolar disorder, and, finally, Asperger syndrome. I never got to meet Tito in person because his family lived three-thousand miles away, but I did speak to him and his parents by phone for two years beginning seven years ago. This is still one of my favorite cases. A highly sensitive seven-year old, Tito’s mom exlaborated: “You could break his heart in two seconds. He nearly collapses if you imply that he did anything wrong.” Traumatized by incessant bullying at only three years of age, Tito had lost his two front teeth when another kid kicked him in the mouth.
What was a child so sensitive that he could scarcely bear to be criticized to do in a climate of relentless harassment? Tito developed a fascinating defense to bullying and ostracism. He embraced everything monster. Just as some Aspies focus exclusively on fans or locomotives, Tito obsessed on blood and horror. To the extreme. Gore was all he could talk about. Fascinated with the prospect of drinking blood, Tito pricked his arms to taste his blood . He recounted horror stories endlessly- to those who listened and those who did not. Engrossed in his latest harrowing tale, Tito would scarcely notice his mom exiting from the car to pump gas. When she returned, the gruesome story had continued, oblivious to her absence.
Tito came by his storytelling talent righteously. His father was a screen writer. As if the words alone were not convincing enough, Tito loved to act out the Hitchcock-like plots. Gently grabbing his mother’s throat in the middle of the supermarket aisle, he mimicked the role of Count Dracula. In a characteristic AS mode, Tito perseverated on blood. Only talk of cutting necks and drinking blood. Alone and friendless, there was nothing else to occupy Tito’s attention. Except for germs, which was his other disproportionate concern. In fact, “germs” was almost as common a word in his vocabulary as “blood.” Tito had found a way to get back at his aggressors. Other parents complained that their kids couldn’t sleep thanks to Tito’s tales of horror. Unfortunately, however, there was a down side. Even he himself was frightened by grotesque and vivid images. Tito had one more fear: dogs.
Tito’s academic skills were mixed. Articulate beyond his age, like many children with AS, he was precocious with language. However, delayed reading, dyslexia, poor handwriting, along with social awkwardness and his obsessive tendencies had landed him in a school for learning-disabled children.
Just Enough of the Right Medicine
If you think, for a moment, about what stands out most about Tito, and makes him different from other kids, even those with AS, the answer is obvious: his fixation on blood. The wonder of homeopathy is how one particular substance from nature can match all of Tito’s symptoms so well. I prescribed China (Peruvian bark). Curiously enough, given the theme of sucking blood, it is the foremost homeopathic medicine for weakness from blood loss. It is also well-suited to children who feel persecuted, feel excited about hearing horrible things, fear dogs, and are mild and gentle souls. A single dose was given.
Tito’s improvement was nothing but dramatic. Within days after taking the China, “monster thing disappeared completely.” Reading came more easily than ever before. In fact, his teacher assigned one book and Tito polished off ten. No more talk of blood and gore. His handwriting became legible. For a while, Tito dreamt of four-armed monsters, alligators, and axes. It appeared that any remaining aggressions were acted out subconsciously.
Seven months after beginning homeopathic treatment, Tito was moved to a mainstream classroom with gifted children and was considered one of the best students in that class. Expressive language had improved considerably and he now had several friends. I treated this fascinating youngster for two years. His storytelling talents had found an appropriate creative outlet in lively short stories. Tito developed a love of basketball. When I last spoke with him, two years after initially prescribing the China, the career of his dreams was to become either “a great basketball player or an actor. Or, if those two don’t work out, a writer.” At this point in time, Tito’s family moved out of the country and did not continue care.
Perhaps Homeopathy is the Stone For Your Child?
Now you know what is possible for an AS child who is treated with homeopathy. There are many stones out there to uncover in the realms of both natural medicine and mainstream medicine. Your journey to help your child unfold to his or her fullest potential may be direct or make many involve bends in the road and detours. I have seen what is possible for many children with AS and ASD and I urge you to leave no stone unturned until you find the healing you are seeking.
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