The Reason For It All

Mom asks: Son Rise vs Floortime

Mom has questions about MediCal and IHSS

Dr Feder responds to Question about non-oral medication

Why Juice Plus+???

Making Sense of Disability Labels

Thomas Movie in La Costa

Home Support Provider Needed for Scripps Ranch Family

Mom shares info about private school

Mom needs help with Medical Insurance Plans

Mom shares info about Planner Pads

TASK Presents 2 Meetings in Riverside and Anaheim

Heart of Sailing Back in CA

Family in Escondido needs babysitter

WSJ: Detection at Younger Ages Leads to Greater Gains in Language And IQ; Predicting Risk

Melaleuca, The Wellness Company

Autistic students get help navigating college life

Empowering Through Information & the Fostering of Connections

I never endorse anyone or anything. Opinions expressed in what I send out, may not be shared by me. Everything is for informational purposes only.

People who "advertise" through this newsletter have never been checked out by me. This includes professionals and even people who are interested in babysitting, etc.

Please take the time to thoroughly check out anyone and everyone that will be working with or caring for your child. We are all sadly aware, through news stories and word of mouth, of people who pray upon special needs children because of their extra vulnerability.

Thank you,
Valerie Dodd-Saraf
My enewsletters are archived on my website:
www.ValeriesList.com

Hello Valerie,
could you please ask Dr. Feder and your readers if they have any experiences and thoughts regarding Son-Rise vs Floortime, specifically the following:

We've been doing floortime with our 5yr old son for about 1.5 years. Within the last month we have seen a number of Son-Rise web presentations and listened to a few of their DVD's and CD's. The two approaches seem very similar, except for the following. Floortime is encouraged to be done everywhere and all the time, whereas the Son-Rise therapy is done in a distraction- free playroom, where the facilitator is the coolest "toy" in the room. Playgrounds are used as an example of overstimulating and unpredictable environments where our special kids start to switch partially off in trying to cope with the numerous inputs. Son-Rise also emphasizes "joining" the child in their "isms" (more conventionally known as stims). We've had amazing results in doing this, and it is my understanding that this "joining" is also encouraged by Greenspan.

After doing more Son-Rise like interactions, and not challenging our son with "floortime" like play until we have him fully engaged, we have noticed a marked increase in his willing engagement and enthusiasm to interact with us and seek us out on his own.

My concern is the focus on doing the therapy exclusively in the playroom and isolating the child from outings, school and the outside world in general, until they are ready to cope in such environments.

I would be very much appreciate Dr. Feder's opinion on Son-Rise, and any of your readers' thoughts and experiences.
playing_together@hotmail.com

We are in the process of applying for Medical via our disability waiver and expect it will come through. Next we were going to try to go through the IHSS application process. Is there anyone on the list with a 5 year old mild/moderate ASD child that has been at all successful getting IHSS? Would you mind sharing your experience and what level of support you received?
Thanks so much.
melanielanders@adelphia.net

Hi Val -
I wanted to give a quick reply to the person asking about medication that is not oral. Clonidine and methylphenidate come in patch form. They are very different medications, both might have cardiac-related side effects and of course any medication treatment should be accompanied by a good evaluation of the person, including an assessment of the entire situation : the person, the environment, etc. If medications seem like they might be helpful, then perhaps these two might be worth consideration. While many people do not swallow pills, there are liquid and also fast dissolving oral medications that might be considered too. Depending on the situation we can often have people take medicine in juice or food too and get it in that way. Some medications require regular dosing, but not all need that. Finally, some medications can be given in weekly to monthy injections ('depot medication'). So, there may be ways around the problem, but that puts the cart before the horse: a good evaluation comes first.

I happen to be at the ICDL Summer Institute this week, and guess what? Ricki Robinson and I are talking about the role of medication. I have a preliminary summary that I will email to Marit, our circlestretch web guru. If she is around town and puts it up on the website, you will be able to see my slides at circlestretch.blogspot.com. Give her a couple of days though, as I haven't told her yet!
Dr Feder
858-509-0523

Why Juice Plus+?
The best way to answer that question, is to ask another. How do you think you would feel; how healthy would your body be; how much positive energy would you have, if you ate a serving of 15 different fruits and vegetables and 2 grains EVERYDAY?
That is what JP+ is and that is what it does.

Juice Plus+ provides the natural nutrition (millions of nutrients) of fully ripened, RAW fruits and vegetables in a capsulated form for adults and chewables and gummies for kids.

The cost for adults is $41.50 per month, or $1.36 per day. (Could your buy a serving of 15 fruits and veggies, and eat all of them, RAW for $1.36 per day?)

The cost for kids for Chewables or Gummies is $22.50 per month, or .74 cents per day? Could you even get your kids to eat 15 RAW, fruits and veggies per day?

For more information about Juice Plus+ and/or purchase it, please visit my website here. JP+ is certified GF/CF Dairy Free and Kosher!!!

If you have a JP+ franchise and are interested in selling it, please contact me.

Presenters:
Marlene Suliteanu, OTR/L,
Certified HANDLE® Practitioner
www.GetAbleTherapy.com

Diana Pastora Carson, M.Ed.,
Special Education teacher
www.AbilityAwareness.com

WHEN: 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. Thursday, July 17, 2008
WHERE: The Community Room of the Joe and Mary Mottino YMCA, 4701 Mesa Drive, Oceanside 92056 (at College Blvd.; between Highway 76 and Oceanside Blvd.)
Please call 760-758-0808 with a courtesy RSVP

Please bring your curiosity and interest in prevalent conditions that are often misunderstood, leading to more challenges. The presenters will share
· ways to recognize disability as natural and normal, for easier relationships and fewer challenges
· a holistic viewpoint to recognize root causes of dysfunctional behaviors
· insights and experiences related to dealing with "disability" issues

Valerie
I like to share this with parents out there of kids who love Thomas the tank Engine.

For the month of July, LaCosta Movie theater on ElCamino Real is showing every Saturday and Sunday at 10:30 a.m, the movie "The Great Discovery". The dvd comes out in Sept, but for the little ones who can't wait. My husband, my oldest son and my little one went this Sunday, $10 for all four of us. I think the popcorn and drinks were more than the movie.

It's an 1 Hr and 20 minutes an it was great fun. They show two little cartoons before the actual movie.

27-year-old woman with autism and family in need of home support in Scripps Ranch area. Part-time and full-time options available. Competitive pay. No experience necessary. Must be open to facilitated communication and continued training. Contact Pete Henning at 858.229.8244.

Hi Val-
I read your list every week and am always grateful for the resources you provide. I thought I would submit a new listing for a private school that has proved to be the perfect placement for our HFA son who is 11. Their website is www.rescuacademy.com The teachers, therapists and staff really "get it" and their approach has made a tremendous difference in our family life. Highly recommended! If anyone wants to chat, parent to parent, about the school, my email is marniebe@gmail.com. Thanks Val!!!

Hi everyone,
I have question regarding Medical. My daughter is 5 years old started to receive Medical Insurance Plan and I am in process of picking the health plan/group and can't decide please let me have your experiences on the choices below to help to make right decision. In addition to this insurance he have high deductable PPO plan which is way to high to manage, want to pick a health group to make it work together. There are 4 choices and I only could remembered 2-3 names:
Kaiser, Care First and Healthy Choice?

Which one this has better providers, smooth process in san Diego area works for MediCal.
Thank you so much,
Ferda

Dear Valerie,
I have recently come across a calendar which I believe could be very helpful for those with HFA/AS or PDD- NOS. Each page is broken down into thirds with the highest tier representing general goals that one wants to accomplish, the second tier listing the goals from that list which need to be done that week, and the third tier, a daily planner for appts. etc. Although I have yet to try using this planner, I feel that it may be a wonderful tool to help learn how to prioritize and manage time effectively. Just thought I would pass on the info.For more info see www.plannerpads.com
Thanks for all your work on this site.
Deborah Wais

Team of Advocates for Special Kids Presents:
Assitive Technology 101

When: Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Where: Building Loving Hands
4450 La Sierra Ave.
Riverside, CA 92505
Time: 10:00 am-12:00pm
Cost: FREE
Call: (951) 351-8300 to register or for more information

Assistive Technology Overview
Presented by: A Team of Advocates for Special Kids

When: Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Where: Team of Advocates for Special Kids
100 W. Cerritos Ave.,
Anaheim, CA 92805
Time: 8:30am-12:30pm
Cost: FREE
Call: (714) 533-8275 to register or for more information

Workshop Description:
Information on various hardware adaptations and specialized software for persons with disabilities. We will cover "low tech" items such as adapting books, toys, etc. and "high tech" items such as screen readers and augmentative communication devices. Sorry, no childcare available.

Heart of Sailing introduces sailing to children, teens and adults with disabilities as a form of education and recreational therapy. Very safe fun for the whole family.

San Diego
San Francisco THIS WEEKEND
Dana Point
Ventura
website

Hi Valerie,
We're looking for a permanent weekly babysitter for Saturday nights. Of course we are flexible if something comes up on either side, but mostly we want continuity.

We have two children, a seven year old boy with Asperger's and a four year old NT girl. We are looking for someone who understands kids on the spectrum and will engage our son as much as our daughter as our son will isolate himself with books if allowed.

Usually we like to leave at 6:00p.m. and both kids go to bed at 7:30p.m. They are fed, bathed and ready for bed. Just play with them till 7 and read to them till 7:30!!

We live in Escondido. Thanks.
Lisa

By JEREMY SINGER-VINE
July 8, 2008; Page D1

With the number of autistic children growing, researchers are targeting new technologies to help detect the disorder at ever-younger ages in hopes of reversing some of autism's worst symptoms.

A Yale University research video shows an infant undergoing an eye-tracki