I Could Cry Tears of Joy!!!

So today was the first appointment with the feeding clinic. Ayden woke up on the wrong side of the crib and asked to be nursed so we had a nursing session this morning. The feeding clinic wanted him hungry, so he didn't have anything to eat before we left.

When we got there, Ayden seemed nervous. It wasn't his normal doctor's office and it wasn't his normal routine. We were seen first by a nurse practitioner. She was really nice and she took Ayden's weight and height (he's still on the charts and his weight is proportional to his height! :) ).

The NP asked us some questions about routine, techniques, history, etc. Ayden continued to be nervous and was really shy.

Then the dietitian came in. She asked us some more questions and stressed the importance of routine and not eating/snacking outside of scheduled meal or snack times. She also suggested that I cut back on nursing... she suggested I not nurse Ayden in the morning or after daycare. She also suggested that we move the bedtime nursing to a different room and eliminate nursing in the middle of the night (that one is not going to happen... we've tried). The after day care one won't be too hard; he doesn't always nurse then anyway. The morning one... he only does half the time anyway...

After the dietitian, the Occupational Therapist and Speech Therapist came in. They did some sensory tests with him: rubbed his legs, arms and back with a soft brush, rubbed lotion on him and tried to brush his teeth. He continued to be really shy but tolerated most of it well. We sat down at the table and the eating experiment began!

Zelda, the speech therapist said that his chewing and swallowing was great so that wasn't of concern.

Katie, the OT made him some sliver dollar pancakes and put one on a plate with yogurt on the side. Ayden was REALLY happy to see the pancake and proceeded to gobble it up. When he was down to the last bite, she dipped a little into the yogurt. Ayden cried and tried to hand me the pancake. Katie tore the bit of pancake with yogurt on it off and gave the rest to him. He ate it. Of course he asked for more. The next one she dipped in yogurt right away. He started whining right away but she told him it was okay and after a little hesitation, he started eating it from the other side of the pancake. Katie moved the plate out of the way and put some yogurt on the table in front of him and spread it around. She was showing him how she was playing with it and drawing in it. He ignored it and ate his pancake. She said it was good that he was able to tolerate it being in front of him while he was eating. Then she put his hand in it and he cried. She wiped it off. He ate more pancake (I think he ended up eating four all together). after she wiped it off... she put his hand in the yogurt again. He started whining again, but she busied herself with preparing the next thing... he continued to eat pancake with it on his hand. They also gave him some sweet potato chips, which he brought to his mouth, but didn't like. They also gave him these veggie chips that looked like french fries. He liked those. Katie made him some ravioli and made sure there was sauce all over the plate. She put some of the veggie chips on top of the sauce and he tried one or two but wasn't happy about the sauce. She then gave him some Goldfish and put THOSE on top of the sauce. He was a little hesitant again, but he ate them... then she made a pile of sauce and started dipping the fishies into the sauce. He was NOT happy about that. He would eat them if they had a very little bit of sauce on it, but wouldn't if they were coated or dipped.

Then they let him eat some more fishies and gave him some water and that was it.

Over all I was encouraged and just about cried when he ate the pancake with yogurt on it... and again when he ate the veggie chips... and again when he ate the fishies with sauce on them. Everyone was REALLY nice and were great with Ayden. They recommended ongoing therapy. We're going to make sure insurance covers it and try to find a place close to home for the weekly therapy.

Anyway, I shared this info with the daycare too, and they're also encouraged. They also said that yesterday he ate all his cereal (usually he just eats the dry parts on the top - I assumed the gave it to him separately). :D

I feel so relieved and excited! I hope things continue to improve!!! <3

Tomorrow is the Day!

Our first appointment at the feeding clinic is tomorrow! I am excited and a little nervous.... I'll post tomorrow with news of how it went!