Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy Review Paper
By Linda on Jul 26, 2010 in F.I.G.H.T., Infections, Toxins | comments(0)
Linda’s Comment: There is a real thing called Munchausen Syndrome, but it is a sad state when doctors document Munchausen Syndrome, because parents are stepping outside the box to treat their children, EXPECIALLY those of the Autism Sprectrum!! Main stream medical practitioners for the most part will not admit that autism needs to be treating the WHOLE BODY. What is really scary is if you take your child to the ER for a legitimate injury, will that ER doctor see that it is a real injury, OR will they accuse you of abusing your child. My own daughter was a star athlete and one of her sports was racing bicycles, competing nationally. Needless to say, we were in the ER frequently. When I found an ER doctor that was competent, I stuck with that ER. Only once did I have an ER doctor question her injuries. By the time I was through throwing my fit, in his face, he was just anxious to get me out of there. Unfortunately most parents are a wreck when attending their children’s injuries, and are fearful of taking charge of what the doctor is saying and doing.
What is even more SAD and IMHO criminal is we have, right here in Arizona, a mother and father on disability themselves, who are taking care of their (5) children with Autism and a host of other medical conditions. They went to Children’s Hospital with sick children with asthma and the idiot doctor said, “this looks like a case of Munchausen Syndrome”…..Child protective services (which I have little respect for here in Arizona) took all the children and put them in Foster Homes. These child are NOT getting their special diets, supplements or the care for Autism, that they had been receiving….Guess what??? They are sicker, and one was, IMHO, abused, by being put outside in this 115 degree heat, because the foster mom had a guest over!!!
I’m also quiet frankly, sick and tired of the doctors NOT putting these children first. Those with children of the spectrum, MUST step outside of the body from the AMA standard of care, if they are to reach a normal life…The parents only have until the child is 18 to prepare them for an adult with Autism. You wouldn’t believe how many doctors don’t think that diet is important!! I tell these parents to RUN FOREST RUN, as fast as they can from this doctor.
Since mainstream medical practitioners, to a large degree, haven’t acknowledged the fact that autism is a whole body condition that can be treated biomedically, have you ever been concerned that by providing your child with biomedical care you would be accused of having Munchausen Syndrome By Proxy (MSBP) and that your custody of your child could be threatened? Do you shudder when you need to take your child to the emergency room for a sprained ankle, wondering what is “safe” to say or not say about your child’s health history, medical care, and providers?
In recent years, many mothers in the autism community have been accused of MSBP, in which the mother is thought to be imagining or fabricating the medical problems in her son/daughter and is often accused of subjecting the child to excessive medical care. A case is going on right now where a mom took her child to the ER for a routine injury, and now custody has been taken away on the basis of MSBP. As long as the mainstream medical community does not acknowledge that the diagnostic label of autism is underpinned by legitimate physiological dysfunctions, parents will be in danger at the hands of social service workers and judges who do not know better simply by trying to provide truly responsible and appropriate medical care for their beloved children.
Former law professor Dr. Bill Long wrote a review paper for lawyers and judges on MSBP. Dr. Long’s executive summary as well as the 41-page paper can be accessed via www.autism.com/fam_munchausendebunked.asp.
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The Legacy of Dr. Rimland
Many people in the autism community regard the late Dr. Bernard Rimland as the pioneering hero who shifted the paradigm of autism from one of destructively blaming the mothers to constructively treating the affected individual’s legitimate physiological dysfunctions. So many of Dr. Rimland’s editorials are relevant today. See legacy.autism.com/ari/editorials/rimland_editorials.htm for Dr. Rimland’s words of wisdom on such topics as the benefits of vitamin B-6, magnesium, dimethylglycine (DMG), and vitamin C; and puberty, aggression and seizures.
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SPOTLIGHT ON STAFF
Nancy Cale is a mother of three children and grandmother of four, including Wynn (now a teenager), who is on the autism spectrum. In 1999, along with two other moms, she started an awareness, advocacy, and educational organization called Unlocking Autism (www.UnlockingAutism.org). Nancy was instrumental in starting their parent hotline, and when Dr. Rimland passed away in 2006, the Autism Research Institute (ARI) asked her to take the phone calls from parents that he had handled for so many years. Ever since, Nancy has been taking calls for the ARI’s Call Center (1-866-366-3361). In addition to this, she also serves as outreach coordinator for the ARI/DAN! conferences – she researches the cities and outreaches to doctors, hospital departments, pharmacies, labs, and other companies that might come in contact with children on the spectrum to give them information about the conference and ARI. And as if that’s not enough, Nancy also monitors reports of vaccine reactions for the National Vaccine Information Center (www.nvic.org). She does all of this from her home office in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. When asked about her connection to the autism community, Nancy said, “We will never give up; we will always be looking for ways to help those with autism and the parents manage the issues and struggles, and we look forward to the day that we stop the injury of our children and autism is a thing of the past.”
