Angels in Action
Carter learns to regulate his behavioral response by eliminating allergens and receiving RDI therapy : By Nealie Prewitt of Missouri
Once Carter was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome ; It didn ' t take long for us to learn what life with an " Angel " meant . Sleep deprivation , behaviors , therapies , colds that always got worse , and social obstacles were some of the biggest challenges for us and Carter . There wasn ' t a day that went by that I did not think , " there has to be something , some therapy , some approach , anything that I could do to make his life- our lives not so enduring . Sleep seemed to be the worst . I noticed that Carter always seemed congested and it would keep or wake him up at night so I started with an E . N . T . The E . N . T noticed Carter had huge tonsils and extremely huge adenoids . The E . N . T was confident that Carter was suffering from sleep apnea . At two years of age , Carter had surgery to remove his tonsils and adenoids . Sleep drastically improved but Carter still seemed to have cycles of very little sleep .
We then decided to take Carter in for allergy testing and imagine my surprise when Carter ’ s test results came back positive for allergies to wheat , gluten , dairy , beef , pork , cherry , and tree nuts . So that sealed the deal , we were going gluten and dairy free and everyone had to support the changes because Carter was allergic to it . It was amazing to see the differences in Carter after these foods that he was allergic to were removed from his diet . In a matter of days , Carter was less aggressive , more focused , reasonable , negotiate-able , his eczema went away , and his digestive system improved . Removing these allergens from Carter ' s body allowed us to see just how miserable he felt and what he was doing to cope with constant digestive discomfort , burning itching skin , and headaches .
Over his three short years , the very things Carter used to cope , quickly became habits and behaviors - the head banging , pinching , hitting , throwing , and yelling instantly improved but did not go away , and Carter had also learned to use these behaviors when he was frustrated , unsure , or when he just didn ' t want to do something . Carter yearned for peers but struggled to interact without becoming aggressive . Even though Carter ' s diet had now become natural to us and made a huge impact on our daily lives ; something still seemed to be missing . Life was still very overwhelming for all of us at times . If Carter eats dairy or gluten or a combination of the two or any other allergen , Carter is visibly a mess ! He will react to any impulse and sensation without thought or concern for anyone including himself . Still there is that missing piece that leaves Carter aimlessly floundering thru each day .
Knowing that Carter deserved and needed more , we began to investigate our options . In a meeting with our advocate , we learned of a school that provided RDI therapy . Carter has now been attending Dynamic Pathways for 12 months and I can not tell you how much the RDI approach has changed our lives- especially Carter ' s life ! This approach seems to be that missing piece that Carter needed .
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