If you know us, and you know Brice, you know that things have not been easy. He's been a tough kid from the moment he was born--strong-willed, temper tantrums that would go for hours, defiance, moods (!!), etc. You name it. And if you have a tough kid, you know that whenever you talk about the issues, people give you LOTS of suggestions. Finally, after several people suggested this, we tried to put Brice on a gluten-free diet this past January.
It wasn't hard; we live by Trader Joes and Whole Foods, so we are close to lots of excellent gluten-free options. We've always been careful about food dye. The change we saw in Brice was amazing. He calmed down, he was happier, easier to work with (note: not easy; still Brice. Same issues, just at a very manageable level).
So, a few weeks ago, we decided to try and add a little gluten back in. And oh. my. goodness. The poor child. Poor us! It was night and day. It was hard for me to even be around him. So, for the past 5 or so days, we're back (all of us) off gluten. And even though i'm sure there is still some in his system, he's back to Brice. Hard, but happy-ish. Excitable, but accessible.
