Superheroes and Mushrooms; a Metaphor for SPD and Food Allergies.

This morning while my family and I were enjoying a breakfast of garden skillet (fried zucchini, onions, mushrooms, garlic, and potatoes with scrambled eggs on the side) and a cool glass of banana, apple, mango smoothies, our kitchen table conversations covered why mushrooms are disgusting and why superheroes should NOT wear underwear.

I learned that my 3 year old thinks mushrooms are disgusting.  I failed miserably in trying to tempt him into eating them when I suggested that they were special because Fairies used them as chairs because Dad then quipped, “Well that mushroom must have been a casualty of a flatulent fairy.” 

Which brought to my mind an image of a very gaseous fairy expelling foul, and dangerous clouds of sickly green gas that would render creatures unconscious and the germ of a story was planted in my imagination.   By the time the vision of the new story idea passed, my children and husband were discussing my youngest son’s proclamation that superheroes don’t wear underwear.  This stemmed from an incident the night before when my three year old galloped into the kitchen, as bare as the day he was born, clutching his Spider Man costume and asking Dad to help put it on him.  Dad asked him to go put underwear on at which my three year old protested that superheroes didn’t wear underwear.

“Why don’t superheroes wear underwear?” Dad asked, perplexed.

“Because then the bad guys can give them wedgies!” John stated as if that should have been obvious.

Which brings me to the main topic of this post; what do superheroes and mushrooms have to do with SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder) and Food Allergies?  Well, the later is fairly obvious, but what is SPD?

SPD (www.sensory-processing-disorder.com) is the inability to correctly process the information the five senses sends to the brain.  Two of my sons were diagnosed with this disorder.  Let me illustrate what this disorder is about.  Things such as clothing tags and seams that you or I wouldn’t notice, can really bother some kids with SPD to the point where they become miserable and refuse to wear certain clothing.  Superheroes who have SPD don’t wear underwear because the waistband is bothersome.

Some kids with SPD also have a hard time with certain foods.  I have one son who craves hot, spicy foods in order to satisfy his need for oral stimulation, while my other son avoids it.  He’d rather chew on non-food items to get the joint compression he needs in his jaw.  One son cannot stand the texture of oatmeal, and prefers the creamy consistency of creamed wheat (which unfortunately we learned he has an allergy to).  It’s not that they are just being picky eaters, it’s a serious problem.  But there are strategies to employ to overcome this.

We have learned this past year that our family has definite allergies to wheat and dairy.  I suspect other allergies and am in the process of discovering for sure, but until then, I concentrate on providing meals for my family without the aforementioned foods.  Challenging?  Not really.  There is a wealth of information on the internet about food allergies.  I have done some research in which I will share what I have found and the recipes I use for my family.  Until next time.  Eat Well, Be Well, and Be Happy.