My son came down with a fever last night. He had an amazing day yesterday and then when we were out to dinner with family he layed down in the booth and fell asleep. This is not like him - so I felt him and he felt a little hot, but the diner was sweat-inducing so it was hard to tell. When he got home he fell asleep on the staircase and then basically went to bed. My son is a puker. Before he went on the gfcf diet he was a frequent vomiter linked to dairy consumption. Now gf/cf - he pretty much only throws up when he is sick, as it should be. But if he is sick - I can usually count on at least one night interupted by him throwing up at 2am (usually in MY bed). I just got new furniture, and I've been trying to keep him off of it because I don't want it to be 'blessed' within the first week of ownership. Welp, as I write this he managed to throw up in the toilet. Poor kid. He has had very little appetite and has only drank a little bit of juice and some Neocate EO28 Splash.
He woke up chipper and his fever appeared to be gone. Still, I kept him home from school today. Tomorrow is a Jewish holiday and the kids have off so I figured I'd give him a day of rest and recooperation. He did keep on demanding to go to the doctor - he even entered the doctor's name and address into my GPS. I didn't take him thinking that he'd just sleep it off and will take him tomorrow if he is still sick. He seemed so 'healthy' and 'normal' this morning. We dropped his sister off at preschool and went to Costco. He sat quietly, asked me specifically for a few items that we needed (like Heinz Ketchup). He held the receipt like he always does and was so good. I texted my husband about the good behavior, "almost angelic" is how I described it. We went and picked up his sister from preschool and headed home. I could feel his fever starting to boil up at this point and he ended up napping. He later asked to eat, but didn't keep it down - and it would appear that there is a small wetspot on the couch. He got it, darn it.
But, back to the topic of this post: The Link between Fever and Autism.
It has been proven that fever can affect kids with Autism and they can show improvements in behavior and autism symptoms. When Alex has a fever he pretty much just sleeps but when awake his communication does seem to be better - more back and forth and what little bit of stimming he does do - he doesn't do when sick. I've always attributed to the fact that he is just too tired and sick to engage in them. But, maybe just maybe - it has to do with the fever. The studies certainly point that way.
Q: How does your child on the autism spectrum act when they are sick with a fever? Do you see a marked improvement in their behavior?
Related Articles:
WebMd Report: Fever Improves Autism Symptoms
NPR: Autism Study Lends Credence to 'Fever Effect'
Huffington Post: Can a Fever Cure Autism?
ABC News: Fever May Improve Behavior in Autistic Kids
8 comments:
I used to feel so guilty I because I looked forward to fever season. My boys both became so easy to deal with. Like you, I assumed the fever zonked them out enough that they didn't have the energy to perseverate. But maybe a hotter brain = more developmental gain. Makes me wish I'd gotten a degree in neurology instead of poli sci.
Apart from being calmer, no difference.
Thank you for the beautiful photo of Alex for my new blog. :)
I haven't noticed, but I will keep it in mind and look for it...
This is so interesting! Does anyone have any idea why this is?
Alex looked cute on the Autism Faces blog! My daughters do seem calmer when they have fevers. They don't get sick very often. My 2.5 y.o. daughter has not really had a fever but 2x, once when she was vaccinated, and 1x about 4 months ago and she starred a lot at the fan.
AC
Life of a Juggernaut
crazyjugs.blogspot.com
I've never seen this Neocate product--does it have artificial colors and dyes? A great alternative to gatorade if not!
no, J is extreemly aggitated when he has even a slight fever. He gets super clingy, whiny, and his anxiety raises.
But he does seem to be temporarily cured when he goes to g-ma and g-pa's house w/o me. I get all kinds of wonderful reports about them both.:)
my son is asd, had a fever 3 weeks ago for 5 days up to 105 and was very aware and lots of back and forth communication, I figured it was because we backed off the biomeds while he was sick. But the ASD symptoms came back. Now he has a fever this weekend, again very communicative....after reading your post, MY GOD, I think you are right. The fever does something to them, that is good!!!
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