Progress since the new doctor
It's been about two months since we went to see our new doctor and the neuro-development therapist, so it's time for an update
On the advice of his regular pediatrician, as well as the new doctor, for the last two months, Bright Eyes has been on ever-decreasing doses of risperadone, and this week, I stopped giving it to him altogether. So he is officially off the big meds!
He's been having daily doses of zinc and B6, Omega 3 oils and a thing called SAM-e. He's also been on a fairly intense regime to remove impacted faeces. It will take an x-ray to see what's going on in there, but let's just say we've seen some 'results'.
As well, he's wearing his new glasses, he's been on sound therapy for half an hour a day, plus specific exercises focusing on laterality in the brain. He's coped with these admirably, although he does complain loudly all the way through the exercises. "I'm tired, I don't want to, this is for losers, I hate this..." etc etc. But he still does it, and gets it right.
So, the big question is: can I see any differences?
Well, yes, but in a funny kind of way. We originally put him on the big strong meds a year and a half ago because he just wasn't coping with life. His anxiety levels were constantly up and he was always on edge. The meds made a BIG difference to this. Theoretically, when he's off them, the anxiety ought to be up again, but it's not. So he's come off the medication and you wouldn't even notice. Is that because of the zinc etc? Perhaps so.
With the glasses, he's taken to reading. In fact, his reading has taken off over the last two months. He now voluntarily sits down with a book and enjoys it all by himself. Sometimes I find him upstairs in his new bed, reading a library book. This is great!
AND, I think I'm seeing a difference in his conversations. He seems able to have slightly longer conversations with slightly more detail and meaning in the way he explains things. The other day I asked him if he was sitting at the same table at school, given that we've just started a new school term.
"No, it's different. It's just me and H," he said. And then he thought again. "That's from the old table. Then there's P. She's opposite Hayley." And then he thought again, without any prompting from me. "And there's O as well. It's a table of four. O and P are new."
I never would have had that amount of detail, plus the thought process that went into thinking, "hang on, mum needs more information than this." I would have had to dig for every detail.
So, I THINK I'm seeing the good things. It's slower than I would like, of course, but that's because I'm an impatient sod. I'd really like to be able to freeze-dry a clone of Bright Eyes every six months, and then get it out again so I can make a really good comparison.