thanks all for your posts of support !
this experience has obviously caused me to take a hard look at my
little man. i've never had an accurate gauge for his incredibly
activity level b/c all my others were much more mellow and calm and -
i'm sure i've lamented here many a time - also all slept through the
night from birth and ate fantastic amounts and varieties of food !
now that i'm researching and exploring all of this, i'm realizing his
incredible energy level sounds a bit like hyperactivity. the fact that
he still doesn't sleep through the night i just don't know what to
make of. i think we got 3 hrs of sleep all night the last 2 nights,
i'm exhausted and it's been this way for most of his whole year of
life so far. you would think during the day he'd sleep a lot, but he
does not. in fact, i have to go to great measures to get him to take a
good nap. i sling him and walk over a mile to get my oldest boys from
school and that's the only nap he takes. he's fussy, he's demanding,
he's needy. but if i bend myself to his needs, he's still 'happy-
demanding', if that makes sense. he isn't crying and fussing
constantly - just chanting and singing and waving his arms and
bouncing up and down and pushing things and climbing and squirming ...
he never sits still ! he frequently has allergy shiners and/or
sandpapery skin. he has such a small appetite ! and i just now
realized his super-frequent and almost asparagus-smelling urine may
not be 'just him'. these could all be signs of further food
intolerance/allergy. so at this point, what have i got to lose by
trying to eliminate more allergens ? i started going gluten-free for
both of us yesterday. i'm going to try it for 2 wks and see if i see
any big improvements.
i already do soy butter and olive oil and flax seeds and cod liver oil
in everything i can for him as well as mixing avocados in with every
veggie. jennifer tow was kind enough to consult w/ me over the phone
yesterday and pointed me toward coconut milk as a fantastic source of
good fat. that stuff is like heavy face cream, wow ! i've begun making
him fruit smoothies out of it and ditched the jarred baby foods in
favor of continuing to make him healthier versions myself.
all of his weights have been naked, on the same scale and i must have
forgotten to say - he has not grown in height, either. he's been 27"
and 16 lbs since 9 mos.
it's such a crazy-making issue b/c i'm already only running on 3
cylinders from lack of sleep and worry that i honestly can't discern
for myself if he seems 'normal' and small or if it's a symptom of an
underlying problem. i feel like i'm on a rollercoaster. one day i look
at him and say, 'he's fine ! better than fine, he's so smart and
active and looks beautiful !' and the next day i say, 'the dark rings
are back around his eyes, he's not sleeping, he can't sit still, he's
still wearing newborn clothes at a yr, it's just not right,
something's wrong and i've been trying to ignore it, i'm causing him
harm !' i've never had a high needs baby before so i have no clue if
it's 'just him' or another symptom. i'm hoping eliminating gluten
helps answer that for me and if it doesn't, at least it saves him from
a biopsy ! thanks all for your support and time, i will update any
big developments.
~jacqui gruttadauria, bsw
(near detroit, michigan where FTT boy is nursing-at-keyboard and
staring up at me in perfect contentment as though he'd never cause
anyone the slightest moment's concern over his angelic self ...)
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It's about Love.
www.myspace.com/mummaTOwldthings
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