The first time I heard about Neurotransmitters was when, my son, Jason had been diagnosed with a mental illness over twenty years ago. The diagnosis was “high-functioning autistic”. There were a few books or articles written about autism, and to me, they seemed to be only theories. Some reasons were: 1) food coloring placed in certain foods; 2) allergies to preservatives; and 3) not enough nurturing took place in the child’s life by the mother.
Jason was one of 10,000 diagnosed. Today, Autism occurs in 1 in every 500 births and in a rate of 5 boys to every girl. Autism currently affects over 400,000 people in the U.S. Autism is the third most common developmental disability following mental retardation and cerebral palsy. Autism is more common than multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis or childhood cancer. Autism receives as little as 5% of the research funding as other less common diseases.
Neurons are the “building blocks” of the brain. Neurons do the work of the brain by sending messages using chemicals called “neurotransmitters”. Neurotransmitters travel from one neuron to the next across a little space called a synapse. Neurotransmitters are an important part of our thought processes/our emotions. In a person that does not have normal brain function, and they are not on some kind of medication, the neurotransmitters travel much slower than normal, which causes their thinking process to be delayed as well as their inability to articulate to others what they are thinking in an understandable/normal fashion.
Because of Jason’s health issues, I’ve come up with some theories of my own as to what happened to him. 1.) He was born two weeks early and forceps were used in the delivery. 2.) He wouldn’t nurse from my breast so he wasn’t able to build up his immune system. 3.) When Jason was around 9 months old, we took a trip and stayed in a motel for the night. It was a restless night for us. Jason’s father was bad tempered and took Jason and threw him on the bed in our room. Jason was frightened by the action his father took. I was hysterical! We left the motel and continued to our destination. It was an awful time! 4.) At 4 months old, he had his first immunizations: #1 DPT and #1 Polio. 5.) At 6 months, he received more shots. The doctor wrote that he had a possible reaction to DPT—fever, nasal congestion, coughing; he was put on antibiotics. 6.) At 3 years old, in addition to having flu-like symptoms, the doctor noted that he had mental stress. 7.) At 5 years old, school officials came to the preschool to observe the children before placing them into Kindergarten. They requested an examination for Spasticity and soft neuro signs, and clumsiness. The doctor made these observations: Poor tandem walking, cannot skip, poor balance, follows direction poorly. 8.) By the time he started school, his speech pattern was poorly developed. He only felt comfortable around people he knew very well, like his mother, grandparents, some teachers, etc. 9.) By 7 years old, the school system wanted to move him from Developmentally-Delayed class to Emotionally-Disturbed Class because of behavioral difficulties.
His early development was normal: At 2 months: he smiled and cooed, grasped objects with his hand, raised his head, rolled from stomach to back. At 4 months, he smiled in mirror, turned his head toward voices. At his well-baby checkup, he weighed 15 lbs. 10 oz. and his height was 25 ¾”. The doctor wrote: He was a happy, alert, well-nourished child. At 6 months, he sat up. At 10 months, he crawled. At one year, he spoke single words. At 15 months, he walked. At 2 ½ years, he was potty trained. He was a mild, happy child. He loved being held.
By the time Jason was 9 years old, the doctor tried him on various kinds of medications—one of those being ‘Ritalin’, and it had the effect of making him lethargic during school and wakeful at night. Another type was tried on him, and the doctor said it would help him to become more aware of what’s going on around him—to help him socially. This was the year that Jason and I moved far away from his father. I started working full-time, and Jason was placed in a new school.
Some things I learned about Jason were that he did not do well with change, the trauma in his life, or crowds (this made him nervous).
Jason had to be on various types of medication for his mental illness for 22 years of his 31 years of life. The diagnoses changed as the years passed. By the time he was 18 years old, he had been diagnosed with ‘schizo-effective disorder’. What this meant was more medications for him to take, plus medications for the side effects of the primary medications. He was on high doses of Lithium in the mental hospital. Other meds came along to replace the high dosage of lithium—all of these medications were experimental to see what effect they would have on him. What might work on one individual, might not work on another. After about 2 ½ years, Jason was ‘stabilized’ enough so that he could be placed in a group home setting, where there were caretakers 24 hours around the clock. He was later diagnosed with ‘Bipolar Disorder’.
Another trauma Jason was faced with was Testicular Cancer when he was 21 years, and had to undergo surgery and then receive 5 months of highly aggressive and toxic amounts of chemotherapy. He was afraid of dying; however, after seven years he became a cancer survivor.
What were some of the side-effects Jason experienced as a result of the medications for his mental illness? He experienced lethargy, thirst, hand tremors, increased urination, extreme weight gain, acne, high blood pressure, chronic diarrhea.
Why is there a tremendous increase in recent years of such mental illnesses as autism, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, etc., among so many people in the United States?
As a mother of a son with a mental disability, it is my desire to let as many healthcare professionals be aware of my concern for the mental as well as the physical well-being and health of other mother’s children. I wish for these mothers to have a better understanding of the major role they play in their children’s lives.
What are people saying in our society today? “I don’t have enough time to prepare nutritious meals for my family? I don’t have any energy, so how can I get adequate exercise? There is too much going on everyday—I get up early in the morning and don’t get finished with my chores until late at night. How can I get adequate sleep?” These kinds of people have no real purpose. They stay up most of the night. They eat convenient, pre-packaged foods that have all kinds of preservatives and addictive ingredients in them. They sit in front of the television and become stressed. They don’t have any energy to do anything else. Is it any wonder that a lot of people are in a constant state of depression?
It is going to take time to create awareness in people so that there is a paradigm shift for the improvement of health, wellness, and energy. This is an age where people can become better educated about their health. What they can do for themselves? What they can do for their unborn children as well as setting the example for the children they already have, and so on.
Here are some recommendations that I have incorporated into my own life, and they may help to alleviate or lessen the malfunction of neurotransmitters in the brain:
1. It is crucial that a person, especially children, receives enough sleep each night. If they lay awake worrying about something that has already happened or is about to happen, their outlook on life will be a little distorted and they have not acquired the skills to sort these things out in a logical manner. If a young child has suffered some kind of trauma, and we tell them ‘Oh, don’t be silly’ or ‘that’s nothing, go back to sleep’, we are not helping them. They will be afraid to come to their parents, if their fears are overlooked.
2. Adequate exercise is needed in our stressful lives. Stress has become quite an issue in our modern technological/information age. Stress depletes our nutrients. Stress causes us to have sleepless, worrisome nights. Stress zaps our energy level. To rid our minds as well as our bodies from this stress that is created because of the expectations we place on ourselves or others place on us, we need to exercise in some fashion that:
a. gets our hearts pumping to move the blood;
b. moves the carbon monoxide out and oxygen into our lungs/brains;
c. removes excess calories or pounds;
d. and receive much needed sunshine to brighten our souls.
3. The need for proper nutrition is an important step in maintaining the renewal of cell tissues on a daily basis. With our soil depleted of many nutrients, it is important now, more than ever, to add supplements to our diet. Grow our own fruits and vegetables or buy the organic varieties. Fruits and vegetables are necessary for fiber, for vitamins and minerals, for energy, etc.
What changes could people make when they or a loved one is faced with some type of mental illness:
1. If you insist upon having your children receive vaccinations, read about the pros and cons. If your child is susceptible to every illness that comes around, or have a low immune system, wait at least until they are two years old.
2. Eating a proper diet while pregnant and breast-feeding your newborn babies. Breast-feeding gives your newborn the extra boost of immunities.
3. If your child is experiencing some kind of trauma, try to find out what is bothering him, and remove the child from the problem early in their life.
4. Change eating habits and sleeping patterns, especially if there is already a diagnosis of a mental illness.
5. Become a member of the support group NAMI.
6. Read up on current material on your child’s illness.
7. Understand that people with a mental dysfunction may look normal, but they are unable to reason, unless things are explained to them in the simplest way possible.
8. Work with a holistic doctor to help your child have as healthy of a life as possible.
9. Be patient with them, but firm, and have a healthy sense of humor.
I have written this article in memory of Jason, who died in his sleep on April 6, 2005, due to medical complications days following a root-canal procedure. The medical examiner in Salt Lake City said that the pain medication that was still in his system at the time of his death might possibly have been the cause. He also made mention that Jason had an enlarged heart. Special Note: his heart probably became enlarged due to his sudden increase of weight over the past two years due to the side effects of the medications, and his diet. Because of his extreme weight, he had sleep apnea, and had passed out once or twice at the day treatment center where Jason went during the week. He did use a C Pap machine to help this problem at night for more restful sleep.
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