It is a pleasure to introduce Bev Linder, our guest blogger. Bev has been homeschooling for 12 years and has a special heart for children with special needs.
“Two of my three children have been special-needs (and if you count the one who most likely would have been diagnosed ADHD if he went to public school, that makes three!)”, says Bev.
“The blog is more than my own thoughts. It offers hope from God’s Word, from other perspectives, and from my own lessons in life.” Check out her blog for a wealth of encouraging words for moms of children with unique challenges.
Recipes for Kids with Chemical Sensitivies
These aren’t food recipes. I’ll share some of those soon. These are recipes for things that we put on our bodies like cream and lip balm. The kind we buy at the store contain fragrance and lots of other “stuff” that can be irritating to kids who have chemical and environmental sensitivities. Many autistic kids have these sensitivities and a growing number of the population (including myself) find themselves sensitive to things that previously didn’t bother them.
Because we are “whole” people, lightening your child’s physical load can do wonders to help him gain control of other areas of his life. It’s quite a burden to have to constantly fight off reactions to things that make you feel bad.
So here are just a few of my favorite recipes. If you want more, let me know!
All of these ingredients can be found at a store like Whole Foods.
Rich Cream (great for psoriasis, eczema, and very dry skin)
2 oz. shea butter
1 oz. jojoba oil
½ oz. aloe vera gel
optional: 2-3 drops of lemon essential oil (warning: citrus oil can cause a reaction to direct sunlight, so experiment with the cream containing it before using large amounts)
Stir until blended. If the container is just for you, use your finger to stir as the warmth of it will help to soften the shea butter. Otherwise, you may need to microwave for a few seconds. This cream is extremely healing to skin! (especially if you add a little vitamin E oil) Use at night or blot off the excess oil with a tissue during the day.
Lemon Hair Spray
I know your kids probably don’t use hairspray, but they can react to what you wear.
This will give your tresses a lemony fragrance and your sensitive child won’t be bothered. It holds pretty well too!
Chop up one whole lemon into about eight pieces. Boil in 2 cups water. Simmer about 10 minutes, adding water to replace evaporation. Let sit in pan for another 5 minutes after removing from heat. Then pour through a sieve into a measuring cup until cool enough to transfer to a spray bottle. Best to refrigerate between uses. Spray lightly so as not to wet hair.
Lip Balm
You will need a medium saucepan with about one inch of water in the bottom. Place a small pyrex measuring cup in the water. Your ingredients will go in the measuring cup, which acts as a double boiler.
Have ready about 4 plastic pill containers, found in the camping section of a store like REI. The smaller the container, the better, for freshness. The ones I use are about ¼ inch high.
3 heaping tsp. shredded beeswax (You may use a cheese grater to shred it. Wash the grater in the bottom rack of dishwasher, perhaps a couple of times, to get clean.)
2 tsp, jojoba oil ( Jojoba is great because it is the closet thing to your natural skin oils of any oil that exists)
3 level tsp. shea butter
A few drops of vitamin E oil
Heat all these ingredients in the measuring cup. When the water in the pan comes to a boil, the ingredients should turn clear. At that point, remove from heat and add:
4-6 drops peppermint essential oil
optional for girls: a dab of natural lipstick to tint
Pour into the little containers. Leave the lid off until set.
There is little we can do to change the environment “out there”, that is, outside of our home; but there is plenty we can do to control the environment within our own walls—and especially what we put on our bodies. The good news is that if we successfully make our homes a place where our weary immune systems can get a much-needed break, then we will be more likely to be able to handle what we might have to face when we step outside of our doors. This means that if your child is struggling with sensitivities, there is something very practical you can do that does not involve loading him down with drugs (which often creates problems of its own).
By the way: The following link gives the basic ingredients of store-bought hairspray. The article was not written with the intention of being negative, simply matter-of-fact. But just reading these ingredients gives me the willies!
http://sci-toys.com/ingredients/hair_spray.html
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
I absolutely lllloooovvvveeee this site and your articles (as well as the others) are awesome! I have the 15 year old (going on 9!) aspergers kiddo so this will be great for me!
Thanks Bev.
Kay Minkler
720-297-9171