Given all the food restrictions that he has, you may ask – do we ever eat out? Do we ever go anywhere? Yes, yes, yes. It has been a little while to figure out but we go out to restaurants and we go out to friends' places. Yes, we still keep to the diet. We have gone to some really fancy restaurants where I have carried his spinach with us letting them know that he is on a restricted diet.
If he does feel like eating, we have asked at the fanciest of places(they oblige much more easily than the general restaurants) that he would like just plain sautéed chicken in garlic/olive oil and plain salad – they give it without the dressing or any frills and without the ingredients he cannot eat. I think in this regard we are blessed to live where we do because there is a huge population of veggies, vegans, kids with special diets, etc. and restaurants tend to cater more easily to the different palates.
When traveling long distance, I cook enough spinach to last us for the duration of the trip - it means a lot more planning and effort but well worth it. Also, if it is a hotel room and not an apartment kind of hotel, I will always ask for a refrigerator and microwave if it isn't already provided in the room and so far the hotel staff has always obliged no matter where.
At friends' homes, normally he would have eaten his spinach at home or he would eat it there and he doesn't even bother coming in to check what food is available. The only thing he will ask for is water, maybe juice if the other kids are having it and if they are eating popsicle or icecream.
Regarding icecream, we realized that it didn't work very well – it was adding carbs to his regular intake and he would suffer the next day. So we now have a deal. I will take him to the ice-cream store only on a Friday evening or a Sat.. He then can but a mini scoop and he will eat no more than half of it; since we have a fantastic mom-and-pop ice-cream store down the road which used to be our regular summer evening walk, it seemed unfair to say – only R can have it. He is a very content child and will settle for the minimum given. For instance, if he goes to a movie, he will be allowed two pieces of popcorn – he will have that, be content and not ask for any more. We are truly lucky – like I said he teaches us everday. Talk of impulsiveness and immaturity – he is way more mature and grown up in this regard than his parents for sure.
You may wonder - how does he manage in school with treats and parties and birthdays? He is very used to it. Last year, there was one parent in his class who was so sweet - not only did she give him a small animal and pencil when she was packing her daughter's treats for Halloween, she remembered it for Valentine's day and gave him something instead of a candy. V will just say that he isn't allowed to eat such and such food and not take it. If it is something that he has felt bad about, I will compensate by getting him some new coloring material/a small toy/take him someplace he likes so he feels like he did get something special.
Carrying a snack when we go out – its something we would have done anyway. The only thing is that I always make sure I have enough and more because he cannot go for more than two hours without food in his body. We did that today when we went to the Festival of Tall Ships and he was merrily eating his nuts while chatting with the "pirates".
We are also lucky that in this journey his sister didn't suffer nor did she go through any withdrawals/feelings of being neglected, etc.. I did ensure that I was spending ample 1:1 time with her and still do so. Several times I feel like I actually spend way more time with her than him in terms of 1:1. She has also been very supportive in terms of understanding his needs and issues in spite of the fact that she never has faced any of these. She willingly reads to him and helps him with his homework, plays with him, patiently explains things to him – knock on wood again – we got lucky. We continue giving her a regular diet and she is very discreet if she realises that she has a treat that he will be tempted and cannot eat.
So, here is V's daily food intake:
- cereal for breakfast – we have to look and really look for the just the right kind; cereal has milk and ovaltine
- a glass of milk for breakfast with ovaltine (earlier he had medicine in the morning; now he doesn't)
- snack comprises either nuts/banana/yoghurt
- lunch is mainly some form of chicken – sometimes it may be pepperoni
- the afternoon snack comprises milk with ovaltine, banana and nuts.
- The evening meal is spinach with yoghurt
- An hour or so before bedtime is milk with ovaltine and his medicine
There are some variations. He discovered a love for tomato soup while eating it with us at a show in Las Vegas in December 2007(so we do travel and do lots of things, all keeping his diet in mind). So once in a while he will eat tomato soup; he eats raw onion every once in a while along with his salad; he eats cheese with soup; he will also eat the veggie burger once in a while - it contains lots of vegetables. He likes plain sauteed cauliflower - in garlic, ginger and olive oil. Everytime I make something new that I know he is allowed to try, I will ask. If he likes the look of it he will; if not he won't. I don't force the issue. He loves corn but because corn is so high in carbs I restrict when and how much he can eat. He likes very few fruit but once in a while he will eat one or more of the following: apples, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe.
I am still paranoid about leaving him with anybody - I will not. My mother is probably the only person I leave him with because she has seen him through all his good and bad days and knows exactly what to do. She will also follow my instructions to the T when it comes to his food and schedule. We were lucky to have a babysitter the past fifteen months who was that way too; she took extremely good care of him. I still don't feel comfortable dropping him off for a birthday party or anywhere. It is something that will come with time and it is a mindset I need to get over. Again, given that he is doing better and that he is older makes a difference. Also, having his sister around makes a big difference. I know that she will ensure the right thing for him.
Going the nutrition route also requires a great deal of trial and error and a great deal of patience. However, it is not like pumping in external chemicals and be controlled way more easily. Also, the way V's metabolism works, he shows results right away. If a food didn't seem right, his body would reject it that night or the next day – it makes it easier. Having gone down this path and seen it succeed, I am a very firm believer and passionate about this method.
No comments:
Post a Comment