There's a Panda in my Bellybutton

May 2008 Ryan, now six years old, completely trashed his classroom. This was the biggest most violent episode we have seen to this point. I started a food diary and once again turned my attentions to my suspicions that several food colourings, but particularly the preservative E211 Sodium Benzoate, seem to cause him to be extremely hyperactive. I paid for Ryan to have a full set of allergy tests done on Wednesday 25 June 2008. We found from those that Ryan has many intolerances to food, the worst of which is Gluten, closely followed by Wheat and all Dairy products. Also Oats, Barley, Oranges, and Yeast. I took this information to my GP as I wanted to request a more detailed assessment for behaviour due to recent developments in school. The GP however did not agree that food intolerances even exist let alone have any impact on behaviour. He did try a refer Ryan for a behaviour assessment but was told they would not see someone as young as Ryan. Unfortunately Ryan trashed his classro

Life changing decision. 2005 was not a good year as they go. In fact it all started in November 2004, the 5th to be exact when Dadi Skilts (DS) was rushed to hospital. He had been ill for most of the preceding year and thought he had discovered a brilliant new diet where you drank litres of water and lost loads of weight (although you had zero energy and slept most of your life away). I assured him women across the world would have sussed that one, millennia ago. I don’t know why, but I encouraged him to get a diabetes test as the local pharmacy were offering free ones. After copious nagging and most likely just to shut me up, he went; but unfortunately it appeared their test kit was faulty because it gave a stupidly high reading and it was suggested he should visit his GP for a more reliable test. More nagging and an eventual Doctors visit on that fateful day once again showed a reading so stupidly high that the Dr thought his machine was also broken until DS commented that wa

After Maternity Leave I finished my statutory maternity leave during 2012 and it was time to return, once again, to the world of work. Ryan enrolled in Private Day Nursery where his brother already attended and positively thrived. Ryan got on well to begin with, they were pleased that Ryan already had a routine. He went every day from 8am – 6pm. It wasn't long however that cracks began to show. The term I heard on an almost daily basis was ‘ He’s a busy child isn’t he ’. This became the most over used phrase known in Ryan’s life over the next 5 years. Ryan wouldn't settle, wouldn't eat, wouldn't interact with the other children. I began getting more and more calls asking to collect him. I wasn’t enjoying generally not seeing my children for long hours. They were spending longer at Day Care then at home  with us . I asked work to be considered for flexi hours, my boss said to me “We dictate your hours, not you. You chose to have children so you choose between wor

Hi I'm Ryan.   I used to play Xbox and games like Call of Duty and Minecraft. Other games are available. Now I am a PC gamer. I play Warframe, Terraria and CSGO. I am not religious, I used to have Asthma, I am hyper-mobile which means I can dislocate my thumb and roll my belly muscles. I can move my diaphragm downwards at least I think that’s what it is. I remember Nanny and Granddads’ house in Birmingham with the humongous stairs. There were about 5 flights, but I don’t remember my own home. I don’t really remember the 1st house we lived in when we moved to Wales, but I do remember there was a snow day and we played outside. I sort of remember the farm house though. At the second house we moved to in Wales there was a pigsty and a little cubby hole in the middle of the stairs. I was probably the worst behaved child in the entire school. I only really remember one of the teachers with many names, Evil Edna, The Soul Taker, Mrs Reaper. I trashed the year 2 class room. I thr

Once upon a Saturday morning.  10 November 2001, only hours after leaving my job on the Friday evening to start my maternity leave, I gave birth to my second son. For the previous nine months I had convinced myself that I was having a girl. I already had a wonderful son and a little girl would complete our small family perfectly. I didn't even have a boy's name picked, so when the midwife congratulated my disgustingly easily labour and invited me to say hello to my beautiful new son my first reaction was total shock and my first words were (yes I am almost embarrassed to say) "I didn't order a boy, I am having a girl, her name is Megan. Can you send him back?" Of course, this shock only lasted a matter of seconds for the moment the midwife placed him in my arms I was hooked to this utterly gorgeous bundle of tiny awesomeness. I cannot pinpoint the day or time exactly when I started to suspect that things were slightly amiss, but very early on in Ryan's li