Our Functional Medicine Story

We are a family of four, the Blymillers. We are also a special needs family. Navigating this life as a special needs parent can be isolating. We’ve found that there’s no such thing as a “one size fits all” approach with anything we do in this journey.

We started out on this path with a whole lot of denial, betrayal, and guilt. Mainstream medicine & practitioners seemed like they had failed us… and they had. It was the only option we were aware of at the time. We did our best with what we knew.

After countless hours of research on PubMed and connecting with other parents we decided to turn to a diet change. We had nothing else to lose, we had lost our typically developing son to “severe regression”. A gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, casein and dye-free diet was attempted for just 1 week. In this seven-day time period our little boy had regained eye contact and resumed responding to his name. Both things he had lost.

Just one week with this non-traditional approach and we knew we were on the right trajectory. Over the years we were led to doctors, therapists, and specialists who all have had an impact on our son's healing and growth. Sadly, the majority of them are unable to take insurance. Medical insurance dictates so much of what our practitioners can do in their work which in turn completely limits the way they can practice and help their patients. As you can imagine, the fees we have had to pay specialists who cannot accept insurance are very high. Functional Medicine has been our North Star because it seeks to understand the root cause of symptoms and doesn’t attempt to just mask it with medication. Functional Medicine has been heaven-sent to us. 

Along the way we’ve connected with countless parents who have found their magic “cure”. Ohhhh emmm geee I cannot tell you how many parents have reached out to us asking if we’ve tried “this diet” or “that supplement”. I honestly wish we could tell you that we’ve found that special something that cures all regression… however, we’re just like you. We’re here, on this journey, taking one step at a time and doing the next best thing for our son.

If there was ONE piece of advice I could give any parent who’s child is newly diagnosed with a special need it would be this: You were hand picked by your child for a reason. YOU have everything you need with in your own self to help your child. Get still, get quiet, turn to your higher power & trust that you are exactly where you’re supposed to be. Right here, right now, amidst so much heart ache and pain, you are exactly where you’re supposed to be.

Trust us when we say that the more we learn to trust ourselves and our parent intuition in this process the more our child thrives. There’s no way our children can grow and develop with their unique special needs unless we first attend to OUR OWN special needs. Self care is the common denominator in all of this. 

We’ve learned that self care, education, connection & finding the joy amidst the hard times is what propels our family forward. We want to help you do the same. Follow us in our journey, let’s grow together.

Angela

 
When Angela came to me wanting to change Theo’s diet, I thought she was crazy. What woo-woo, hippie, wives' tale logic led her to this conclusion? I was the biggest naysayer and mocked the idea for months. Until one day our daughter came to us crying. She asked, “Why doesn’t my brother love me?” We said what do you mean of course he loves you. She explained that all of her friend's brothers laugh and play with them. She said, “Theo doesn’t play and laugh with me.” I turned to Angela and said alright let’s try this diet thing for 2 weeks, if it doesn’t work I don’t ever want to hear about this hippie logic ever again. One week later, Eva came running into our bedroom so excited. Mommy, Daddy, did you hear that? Theo was laughing with me. He loves me! I turned to Angela and said: “Alright, I guess we are doing this.”

That was the start of exploring new alternative healing modalities. We later found a Functional Medicine Doctor that helped Theo so much. We decided to start doing more of the things we were doing for Theo. Our health improved. That’s when I decided to get my Functional Medicine Coaching certification from the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy. It was life-changing for me. It introduced me to Positive Psychology which focuses on what is going right with you, and not just on your weaknesses and shortcomings. We learned through Eva’s affirmations that the way you speak to yourself is the root of all wellness. That is why we love affirmations so much and why we wear them on our clothing. Cognitive Behavior Therapy seeks to change the root thought so you can change your behavior. Affirmations are tools of the mind to help you reach for your peak potential. 

All of these lessons lead us to create a federally recognized 501-C-3 nonprofit organization to help support the families of kids with autism or other chronic autoimmune illnesses. 

So whether you are here to support us by cheering us on, or buying our clothing products to help to support our federally recognized 501-C-3, we want to thank you for hearing us and seeing us. Because that is probably the most impactful gift you can give anyone. To see them and hear their story from their perspective with zero judgment and just love and curiosity. 

We appreciate you taking the time to learn more about us. 

Shawn