Can Autism Be Healed Naturally?
Looking for a holistic approach to autism that incorporates an understanding of natural medicine, the ancient energetic healing sciences, and the spiritual nature of this highly misunderstood condition?
The following is a modified excerpt taken from my foundational article on autism, which can be found here. If you have the time, I’d highly recommend reading the longer post in its entirety for a more complete understanding of my philosophy. However, if you’re a parent of an autistic child, you’ve likely got only a few extra minutes to spare. So here are some quick and easy steps you can take to improve the health of your child and your entire family.
Previously, I offered an explanation as to how an accumulation of excess toxicity can interrupt the interface between the soul and the body, leading to the array of physical symptoms that we observe in individuals on the spectrum.
I believe that ultimately, we’re here to support our autistic population in a way that empowers them to express themselves independently to the level they desire. So to start, we need to address the barriers that are inhibiting their ability to do so.
The remedy begins with the removal of the cause, so our first step is eliminating toxins at their source. My goal here is to outline some of the most important considerations on the physical side of things — helping you identify some of the most common sources of toxicity in your environment, then providing you with some easy, action-oriented steps that you can implement to mitigate these hidden threats.
I’m sensitive to the fact that not every family has the financial resources to make such drastic lifestyle changes, but consider that the changes you make for your child will ultimately come back around to benefit the health of your entire family. Imagine if you suddenly had the sustained energy you’ve always wanted to tackle your responsibilities as a parent, or the mental clarity to approach your child with a greater sense of patience and understanding.
Keep this in mind as you commit to introducing change at a pace that’s comfortable for you. It may take some time to get the ball rolling, but remember that even little changes add up to produce big results. Progress compounds over time.
Diet
Food is medicine, and the decisions we make every day about what we put in our body have far-reaching effects on our overall health. I know how particular these kids can be when it comes time to eat, and unfortunately, sometimes the only foods they’ll touch are the ones that have been highly processed to hijack our brain’s chemistry and keep us coming back. What we’ll find, however, is that when we pivot toward a more native human diet, the brain will begin to rewire itself and reorient its preferences toward foods that are restorative to our health.
Common toxins in our food supply:
Pesticides, fungicides, preservatives, genetically modified crops (GMOs), artificial flavors and sweeteners, colors and dyes, rancid oils, various molds and mycotoxins.
Steps to take:
Eat food in the form you’d find it in nature. Avoid the junk in the middle aisles of the supermarket and stick to whole, unprocessed foods found in the refrigerated sections.
If your budget allows, buy 100% non-GMO, organic produce. Refer to EWG’s shopper’s guide to see which produce is least contaminated and which to definitely avoid.
If there’s one thing I think everyone should cut out, it’s refined vegetable and seed oils. Canola, sunflower, soybean, corn, and safflower are most prevalent. Go for coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, or grass-fed butter and ghee instead. To learn more, start here.
Replace refined white sugar with natural sweeteners like raw honey, coconut sugar, stevia, dates, or maple syrup.
Source only the highest quality protein: grass-fed meats, pasture raised chicken, wild caught fish.
Go for raw, unpasteurized dairy over conventional milk products.
GI distress is common with autism, so get plenty of fermented foods like coconut yogurt, raw kefir, sauerkraut, or use a quality probiotic supplement to help balance the gut microbiome.
When it comes to being mindful about the ingredients in your food, nothing beats home cooking.
Water
The tap water we use for drinking, cooking, and bathing is a chemical cocktail loaded with heavy metals and pollutants which are absorbed directly through the skin and GI tract.
Common contaminants in tap water:
Lead, chlorine, fluoride, arsenic, pesticides and herbicides, corrosion inhibitors, “forever chemicals” (PFAS), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pharmaceutical residues.
Steps to take:
Search your zip code here to find out which pollutants are found in your area’s tap water.
Source drinking water from natural springs, or fill up jugs at the reverse osmosis station at your local health food store.
Use a filter on your bath or shower head. Chemicals absorb rapidly through the skin.
Consider installing a high quality filtration system in your home. Explore different options with this quick guide.
Personal Care
Most ingredients used in personal care products are known chemical hazards that enter the bloodstream almost instantaneously through the skin and lungs. So if you wouldn’t eat it, toss it.
Common sources of toxicity:
Body wash, shampoo, lotion, deodorant, fragranced products, toothpaste, sunscreen, polyester and other synthetic clothing materials, paints and plastics in cheap children’s toys.
Steps to take:
Get in the habit of reading labels. Find out what’s really in your products with EWG’s ingredient database, or check out their list of verified products.
Eliminate fluoride containing toothpaste and dental care products. Fluoride calcifies the pineal, or master spiritual gland, inhibiting the process of spiritual self-realization. Additionally, seek out the care of a holistic or biological dentist who avoids the use of toxic substances and harmful procedures.
Make your own products with affordable, all-natural ingredients such as coconut oil, baking soda, vinegar, and essential oils. If you’re looking for a company with a range of options for dental care and hygiene, I’d recommend Living Libations.
Buy toys that are free of toxic chemicals, especially if they’re likely to end up in your child’s mouth.
EMFs
Interestingly, in every instance that humanity is exposed to a new bandwidth of electromagnetic frequencies with the introduction of some new form of technology, a segment of the population falls ill with a previously unseen disease. The human body is electromagnetic in nature, so every energetic frequency that interacts with its delicate circuitry holds the potential for great healing or great harm.
Common sources of EMFs:
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular devices, smart watches, thermostats, baby monitors, smart meters, solar panels, cell towers, power lines, satellite dishes, electric car charging stations.
Steps to take:
Take advantage of the Earth’s natural healing frequency and let your child spend time outdoors with their bare feet on the ground. Learn more about the benefits of grounding here.
Unplug your wireless router overnight or when you’re not using it.
Limit microwave use as much as possible.
Turn off your phone’s Bluetooth and ditch wireless headphones or smart watches.
Call your electrical provider and have your smart meter replaced with an analog meter.
Minimize exposure to artificial light and electronics after dark to improve sleep quality.
Home
If there’s one environment we want to make sure to get right, it’s the one we spend the most time in. It can also be the place where we’ll find some of the most unsuspecting sources of toxicity.
Common sources of toxicity in the home:
Household cleaning products, laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent, toilet paper, air fresheners, fragranced candles, plastics, aluminum or non-stick cooking pans, mold and mycotoxins, fertilizers and pesticides, chemical off-gassing from furniture, paints, couches, mattresses, etc.
Steps to take:
Spend less time indoors and more time in nature. Full-spectrum sunlight is essential to human health.
Replace cleaning products and detergents with a homemade or natural alternative. For my favorite all-in-one product, check out Branch Basics.
Use cast iron or ceramic pans for cooking.
Buy BPA-free cups, plates, and food storage containers.
Use parchment paper instead of aluminum foil.
Pharmaceuticals
A quick note on pharmaceuticals: I can’t blame anyone for turning to modern medicine for answers, but keep in mind, pharmaceuticals are synthetic chemicals intended only to mask and suppress symptoms. They do not address the underlying cause, nor will they ever account for the depth and complexity of the human being. Any combination of chemicals that is powerful enough to eliminate a symptom in one area of the body can be reasonably expected to throw every other part of the system out of balance. I’m not a trained healthcare professional who’s qualified to give medical advice, but it may be worth considering a naturopath or holistic practitioner who can help you find more natural and long-lasting solutions.
Having addressed the purely physical side, we can now begin incorporating strategies at the higher levels of mind and consciousness, where we must take a leap from the matter-to-matter inputs of our material world into the invisible realm of energy and frequency. Here, we’ll need to alter our approach to include more specialized forms of knowledge that originate in the esoteric spiritual sciences and the ancient healing arts.
Such strategies are highly individualized and subject to change with progress, so this is where it can be beneficial to seek guidance from a psychic healer or intuitive you trust — someone who can interpret the energetics of your child and pinpoint his or her immediate needs. Otherwise, there’s a near endless wealth of other options that are available for you to explore, most of which come with very minimal risk: energy work, qigong, reiki, acupressure, homeopathy, flower essence therapy, herbal remedies, color therapy, biofield tuning, and sound healing, just to name a few.
I know a lot of this sounds like the “woo-woo” stuff from the New Age spiritual fair, but remember that the body is essentially a holographic projection of the soul into 3D form, so if you can change the code on the back end, you change the way it shows up in physical reality. This is the basis of all instantaneous healings and miracles recorded throughout history. Just as Einstein predicted, “Future medicine will be the medicine of frequencies.”
The resurgence of the sacred healing arts will only continue to grow in the coming years as an increasing number of individuals tap into distant memories that will further advance this body of knowledge at this critical juncture for humanity. In fact, what you’ll probably find is that your child is highly receptive to all this psychic, “woo-woo” stuff — far more than the adults around them. Most of them are looking for people who can meet them at this level of depth. The look I often get from them says something along the lines of, “I recognize you, and I know you see me too.”
