A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

May 30 was Carter's 4th birthday. It was also one year and 7 months since his first day of GAPS. And it was another big milestone for him. It was the first day we could say he was no longer on GAPS. He was healed. GAPS had done it's job, and what an amazing job it did.

Carter's 3rd birthday was a foodless celebration. He had a cake made of presents and a cupcake candle on top of his honey-drizzled shaved ice.

 This year it was something completely different. On the menu were typical, ordinary preschool foods. Yet, they were three foods he had never had before, not even a taste of them, for fear of the after effects.
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich. An ice cream cone.  And store bought birthday cake. Nothing was homemade. No ingredient labels were studied. Best of all, no side effects were seen, except huge and happy smiles. He went from consuming nothing but meat broth, boiled lamb and beef and pureed pumpkin to being able to walk up to an ice cream counter and pick out whatever flavor he wanted. What a difference a year makes!

If you haven't been following his story, you may be wondering how bad he could have been. Did we really need GAPS? Is that what really saved him? It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words and in this case I believe it's true. You don't need to  read every post I wrote to know where we have been . I am sharing these photos for those of you who are wondering if GAPS is right for you . For those of you who are just starting on the path and are scared and overwhelmed. This was our live before:












A scope at 15 months to look for causes of bloody stools and lack of weight gain and a reason behind his failure to thrive.


 Hospitalized at 20 months for severe upper respiratory infection caused by topical food reactions.

Hospitalized at 2 and a half for a massive intestinal blockage. His intestinal tract did not know how to process and work correctly.









A little boy who was too tired from just trying to survive. A little boy who endured countless tests  and doctors appointments. A little boy who never played for very long. A little boy who had a limited quality of life  for  his first three years.

This is our boy today. All smiles. All energy. All noise. All the time. He's a typical four year kid. I've said it before and it still rings true. GAPS is Hope. It's hard. It's scary. It's exhausting and will probably remind the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. But almost 2 years later, so much of the Hard is a blur, replaced by this magical little face greeting me in the morning and asking. "Momma, I want a new food that I never ever had before". And I get to say, YES!

The time has come

Three years and 8 months since Carter John Dyck was born. Three years and 8 months since Carter threw up for the first time. Two years and nine months since Carter nearly died for the first time. Two years and 3 months since I started writing this blog. Two years since Carter was hospitalized for the first time. One year and 3 months since we started GAPS. One year since Carter’s last FPIES reaction.

We have reached a new place in our lives, a place where Fear does not reign over our lives. A place where Food is does not control our lives. A place where Crayons, Markers, Palydoh and Paint are no longer enemies. A place where Sleep is not an exception to the rule. A place where “Just a Taste” doesn’t mean a trip to the ER. A place where the nebulizer doesn’t live on the kitchen counter. A place where screams of pain do not fill our home. A place where days are spent playing and laughing.

What is this new place, you ask? It is the land of GAPS. The land of Healing. The land of Hope. We have sailed across stormy waters and turbulent seas to get here. We’ve endured more than we ever thought possible. And we have left the land of FPIES . . .  FOREVER. We will not be returning to that darkness. We have found Life for our little boy.

 

Fear has kept me from uttering these words for far too long. The FPIES mindset is a hard one to overcome. When you live in fear 24/7 for over 2 years, it’s hard to imagine you could ever come to live in the land of Healing. But we are here. And we are never going back to the land of FPIES.

 

I want to end this by thanking YOU for being on this journey with us, for helping and supporting us as we found our way through the maze that was Carter’s life. YOU have helped save this little boy and our family. YOU gave us strength when there was none and hope and help. Thank you!