One of the challenges parents of #Autistic children face is *feeding. *It sounds like it would be easy, right? Not necessarily.
The problem is way more complex than just being a *picky eater*.
In fact, there are many reasons that feeding could be a problem. Sometimes it's sensory related other times the problem may be poor muscle tone.
Contrary to popular belief, these kids *will not always eat when they are hungry enough. *Many parents have told me that their child will literally stave. Some parents have to take drastically action to make sure their child is properly nourished.
My heart goes out to anyone dealing with these types of problems.
Thankfully, our challenges with feeding aren't as extreme. However, that shouldn't be confused with easy. Our problem eater is Emmett. There are many reasons that contribute to his dietary struggles. Most of the problems revolve around sensory issues. This means that Emmett can't handle the texture, taste, smell and even color of his food.
The other factor has to do with his fever disorder. When his fever flares hit, he breaks out in very painful mouth sores. These sores typically last about 10 days. Unfortunately, when these flares ups occur, getting Emmett to eat *anything *is next to impossible. Presently, we are dealing with this exact situation. We can't get Emmett to eat anything.
Typically he's a challenge to feed but when these flares happen, it's even more difficult.
We have to employ as many options as possible because one of our biggest concerns is dehydration. To counter that, we'll always keep Gatorade mix in hand so that when he does drink something it's going to help.
We also keep coconut milk ice cream on hand as well. This helps with the pain in his mouth and it's much healthier than regular ice cream. I don't like the idea of him living off of ice cream but honestly, I don't have much of a choice and I'm sure some of you out there know exactly what I'm talking about.
This is just another example of things that are commonly taken for granted. Most people never have to experience anything more than a picky eater, when it comes to feeding. Not all families are so lucky.
Just some food for thought... :-)
***Thanks for reading***
* -Lost and Tired*
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Posted from WordPress for Android so please forgive the auto-correct induced typos
