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Testimonials:
What
our clients are saying about the Los Altos feeding Clinic.
Uma
- mother of 5 year old twins
My daughter Nitya went from eating nothing by mouth
to completely getting all her nutritional needs met
by oral feeding in just 10 weeks. My name is Uma and
I am mother of 5 year old twins (two of surviving 25
week preemie triplets). My daughter Nitya came home
from the NICU at 5 months with a G-tube. Following that,
at 8 months she was on tracheotomy for the next 3 years.
During this time she was not eating by mouth at all
and was followed by OTs for oral-motor sensory issues.
Since her decannulation in Dec 2004, we tried several
approaches: home cooked blenderized food through G-tube,
getting her to be hungry, sensory approaches, etc. all
supervised under an OT - but these did not get her to
eat by mouth. In March 2006, my occupational therapist
suggested that I contact Benjamin Zimmerman at Los Altos
Feeding clinic… Now I am feeding her at home and
this has been such an amazing experience for us to see
her accept food by mouth.
Also in the last 5 years we could not get Nitya's teeth
cleaned. Her dentist suggested that she may need general
anesthesia for a complete cleaning. Well, now since
we started the behavioral therapy she is allowing me
to brush her teeth. She has also randomly spoken 20
words and is imitating babbling now. Nitya has made
tremendous progress in the last few months.
Audrey
– mother of Vivian (18 months old)
Vivian was a 35 week preemie born at 4 pounds
5 ounces and 15 1/2 inches long. At birth her right
lung collapsed. She remained in the NICU for over a
month. During her stay she had her first genetic test
which came back negative for major syndromes, such as
Down Syndrome. Vivian has been tested for over 100 genetic
syndromes, all negative. She was unable to eat much
due to her vaulted palate, bifid uvula, and a submucous
cleft. Vivian had every test (swallow study, upper GI,
etc.), every evaluation (speech, ENT, GI, etc.), and
also seen a ton of specialists all over the country.
No one was able to do much about her eating. She had
been able to suck from a bottle for a few months and
eat about 1/8 a jar of baby food.
When Vivian started eating less and less, we turned
to the Los Altos Feeding Clinic in July of 2006 after
finding them on the internet. Vivian was at the Los
Altos Feeding Clinic for a total of 5 weeks. During
that time various techniques were customized by Ben
Zimmerman to help Vivian to eat. By the end of the 5
weeks I was doing all food preparation, calculations,
and feeding. Vivian went from taking 690 ccs of Pediasure
to eating up to 1680 calories by mouth!
Linda
- mother of 26 week twin preemies with cystic fibrosis
My 6 year-old twins were born at 26 weeks
gestation and were on ventilators for the first 3 months
of their lives before they were finally diagnosed with
cystic fibrosis, a genetic illness which affects the
lungs, pancreas and other mucous producing organs.The
long intubation led to severe oral aversion, and the
increased acid production,common in children with cf,
led to reflux and emesis, contributing further to their
aversion.
After many years of feeding therapy that resulted in
little progress, we learned of Ben Zimmerman's clinic
through their Gastroenterologist's office and also through
a client whose older son attended the same kindergarten
as my son. I was excited by the progress of her toddler,
and called the Los Altos Feeding Clinic for an appointment
for my twins in May of 2006. 5 months later, they are
no longer tube dependant, they are drinking the special
high-calorie formula they have been getting through
the tube since birth, and they are eating calorie enriched
baby food for the first time in their lives. What is
especially remarkable is that all of this was done without
having to resort to the technique of introducing hunger
to them - which is something we couldn't do because
maintaining a high calorie diet is essential to the
health and well-being of children with cystic fibrosis.
For the first time, we are looking forward to a future
in which my children can enjoy food and all the social
milestones where food plays such an important role.
Thank
you Los Altos Feeding Clinic and Mr. Zimmerman!
Helen
--- Mother of Rebecca
Rebecca
is 2 years old, she has a rare metabolic disorder (UMPS),
which means that she can’t produce enough energy
to grow & develop. She has been diagnosed with failure
to thrive and developmental delay.
She was born at 2.5 kg (5.5 lbs) and from the start
had difficulty feeding, she had recurrent thrush in
her mouth and would not suck. She was weaned at 4 months
and seemed to enjoy solid foods more than milk but she
still did not gain sufficient weight. At 4 months we
were told there was something wrong and investigations
started. At 6 months Rebecca was placed on an NG tube
as her weight was so low. She remained on the NG tube
for 7 months, at this stage her doctors wanted to give
her a G-tube. Rather that let her go through this we
managed to wean her onto drinking from a cup and managed
to get her to drink sufficient high formula milk to
enable us to get rid of the tube altogether.
Rebecca was finally diagnosed when she was 16 months
old and was placed on medication. At this stage we felt
it was time to try and resolve her feeding difficulties
as she could now get the necessary calories and energy
from her food. All the interventions that had given
her nutrition had resulted in a complete phobia for
eating. She would not open her mouth for food, if we
managed to get any food in her mouth she gagged or vomited.
To get her to drink sufficient high calorie milk we
had to bribe her 8 –10 time a day with books and
music. Her weight gain was very poor and we were again
being threatened with the g-tube.
We are based in Ireland and had tried all the usual
food desensitisation programs. We searched the web but
could find nothing in Ireland or Europe, which would
actually make Rebecca eat without giving us advice or
starving her. Eventually we came across the Los Altos
Feeding Clinic web Site and it seemed to offer what
we were looking for. We spoke with Ben Zimmerman and
with other parents who had been through Ben’s
treatment and we were convinced. We took the 11hr flight
to San Francisco and did not look back.
Ben worked one-on-one with Rebecca and had her eating
solid foods within 2 days. He modified existing protocols
and developed new techniques to deal with Rebecca’s
food refusals. After a month Rebecca was taking 1200
–1500 calories orally she had gained 1lb and was
being fed 3 times daily. Each session taking just 30
minutes.
In the month since we came home Rebecca has gained 4lbs.
She has so much more energy and stamina – we never
expected that food would make as big a difference as
it has – but every week she seems to hit some
minor development milestone. We know that we would never
have got her to this level of eating without the Los
Altos Feeding Clinic and even better Ben continues to
stay in touch and help us fully refine her feeding process.
I have no hesitation in recommending Ben Zimmerman and
the Los Altos Feeding Clinic. It works. Thank You!
Jennifer
---- mother of Max who is 3 years old
Hi Moms,
I
recently began taking Maxwell, my 3 year old, to a feeding
clinic in Los Altos for severe food refusal. Those of
you who know me well, know that he has lived off of
milk, yogurt, cheese, and crackers for the past two
years (I am not exaggerating -- he has never eaten pizza,
fruit, macaroni, juice, etc).
I
have taken him to see several different paedatricians,
a nutritionist, an occupational therapist, and a child
psychiatrist, but until recently was unsuccessful in
finding someone who could help him. I had tried everything,
except putting him in an inpatient behavioral unit (i.e.
a hospital setting). I recently discovered the Los Altos
Feeding Clinic and started taking him there.
Before
going, he refused to try anything (he said he was scared
of the food and so on). He has some texture and sensory
issues, which is what initially started his food refusal.
Ben Zimmerman started working with him, and after only
a month, he is eating food at home (all pureed at this
point). We will be gradually increasing the texture,
until he is eating "real" food. My husband
and I are thrilled with the results so far and wanted
to share this information, in case you or someone you
know is in a similar situation.
Trisha ----Mother to Mackenzie (16 months old)
Hey there Moms!
My name is Trisha. My son Mackenzie is 16 months old.
He was born full term and weighed 8Lbs 12oz, however
he was born with congenital heart disease. At 2 days
old he had his first open heart surgery to repair his
Aortic valve.
At 7 weeks old he was still in the hospital and had
not gained any weight. He refused to drink by mouth.
Knowing he needed an other heart surgery, we knew he
needed to grow; therefore the next step was a G-Tube.
At 8 weeks old the g-tube was in place and Mack shut
down. He refused everything in his mouth; he would gag,
wretch, vomit and could only handle about 60 ccs/hour
on a continuous pump for 18 hours a day. Life was tough
for him and our family. We made it to 6 months for his
second heart surgery; a VSD repair and de-banding of
his PA valve. Mack came through the surgery ready for
life. He had much more energy.
We thought it was time to feed by mouth again. OT, GI's
and PT were absolutely no help what so ever. They'd
say stop feeding him by mouth the second he gags; I
would put a spoon to his mouth and he's gag so the feeding
would stop. Their theory didn't work.
After a 3 month wait we were accepted to St Joseph 's
in NJ for an intensive feeding program. The first day
there Mack ate 4 oz of peaches, so the doctors and behavioral
specialists told us to go home and we would have more
"FUN" feeding Mack at home. By this time Mack
was 1 year old. The next 3 months at home were no "FUN"
at all.
Mack shut down, it would take over and hour to feed
him 4oz of baby food and he wouldn't drink anything;
so back to using the g-tube forever at this point. Until
I found Ben Zimmerman at the Los Altos Feeding Clinic.
Thank God! Ben took Mack on within weeks of my first
phone call to him. Within the first week at the clinic
Mack was no longer using his g-tube for nutrients. After
2 weeks of Ben feeding Mack I got to try. Incredible!
Less than 30 minutes to feed Mack 8oz of food and 6oz
of milk. Real milk, no more formulas!!
We spent 4 full weeks at the clinic and then went home.
Everyday gets better, and faster to feed Mack. Ben Zimmerman
is a miracle worker; I had lost a hope of Mack ever
eating like a normal child, and Ben gave me back hope,
and a life. What he gave Mackenzie is much more. Mack
is talking, eating and walking. He is thriving in a
matter of a few short weeks. All I can say is trust
Ben, he knows!! And trust in yourself and your child
that you can get through the feeding by mouth; everyday
is a huge improvement. Mack has a chance now at a normal,
healthy life because he is eating by mouth. He is much
happier, he's personality has changed for the better,
even his color has changed from eating real food!!
Eileen--- Mother to Daniel (14 months)
We have used the Los Altos Feeding Clinic (LAFC) and
would love to share our experience with it. First a
lot of background on our situation. Our child, Daniel,
has oral aversion. In other words, he does not tolerate
things in his mouth, be it toys or food. This child
will literally starve himself to death given the chance.
At two months old, I found that he would react to nursing
as if he had reflux. Feed for a few sucks then yank
himself away, arching his whole body away from me, crying,
kicking and pushing. Nursing was brutal. We figured
out that he fed better when he was too sleepy to fight
us. So we would schedule his feedings with his nap time
– rock him asleep, and start nursing. At four
months old I was excited to start him on solids thinking
things would be different. We persevered with solid
foods for a good four months until he was 8 months old
with no progress at all. Then one morning he was intently
watching me eat a piece of toast, he seemed quite interested.
So I offered it to him. Daniel licked the toast and
a TINY speck (size of a pinhead) of a crumb was on his
tongue and he started retching. Immediately I swept
it out with my finger and called the paedatrician. He
said that that was definitely NOT normal and told me
to hold off giving him real solid food for now.
I continued trying the jars. If he was given the fruit
jars, he was retch the first few bites, and end us taking
most of the stage 2 jars vomiting approximately every
other day on them. If he was given a vegetable (peas,
carrots, sweet potatoes) or protein jar (beef and vegetable,
chicken noodle), he would retch, gag, and vomit at the
first bite and empty out the entire contents of his
stomach. Given how difficult it was to get the food
into him, we simply didn’t bother giving him vegetable
or protein jars anymore. He readily took the Yobaby
jars at first, then he started retching also, vomiting
approximately every other day on those too.
He required A LOT of toys and distractions, feeding
at the park, in front of the television, or in the bathtub
to take jars or yobaby. He required to be rocked asleep
for his milk feedings. Things were quite difficult with
a lot of cleaning up of his vomit.
The paedatrician referred us to O.T. specializing in
oral issues. We were then referred to GI after about
4-5 sessions with minimal progress. The GI said it was
classic oral aversion and there was nothing they would
do for us. Daniel even went in for an upper GI study
and swallow study. Results came back normal except for
the fact that he vomited during the study. She recommended
the Kennedy Kreiger Institute (KKI) (sp?) in Baltimore
Maryland where they have a behavioral feeding clinic.
She said that they have success with kids that they
can’t help. We were also seen by the Stanford
Infant Behavioral and Development Clinic across the
street from Lucille Packard Children’s hospital.
Everyone said that Daniel had severe oral/feeding aversion
but they all threw their hands up and said they couldn't’t
help and did’t know what to do. Then I read a
glowing review about the LAFC from a mom who had a picky
eater. If I recall correctly, this boy only ate dairy
items and breads. He had never eaten a sandwich or fries
or any “normal” food that a 3 year old eats.
We went in for an initial evaluation. Ben Zimmerman,
the guy who runs the place, observed me feeding Daniel
a jar. Then took over the feeding for the last a few
bites. When he was done, Ben said that Daniel was “a
simple case.” I was shocked because all the medical
establishment people had no idea what to do with Daniel.
Honestly I had my doubts. It seemed like too confident
a statement to make. We went in for another seven sessions
and Daniel came out like a different child in two and
half weeks. He now takes the protein and vegetable jars,
without vomiting. There usually is a retch for the first
one or two bites, but these days, he is vomiting approximately
once every week or two. And he doesn’t empty the
entire contents of his stomach. Daniel will try to make
the effort to keep it down. He also has started to take
some normal food like scrambled eggs, pasta, Chinese
noodles, hamburger, and fries. And we no longer have
to give him his milk asleep – he is drinking it
from a special cut-out cup that we feed to him.
Daniel started out in the 10th percentile for weight
and was quickly dropping as we started the LAFC. The
doctors were talking about the possibility of Daniel
getting a GI tube. Now he is a little below the 50th
percentile for weight and never required the feeding
tube. He still has some areas to work on though, like
taking more textured foods and weaning him off the baby
jars. Our insurance did not cover it although others
do, but it was truly worth the expense. It is some of
the best money we have EVER spent.
I also know of another family with 6 yr old cystic fibrosis
(CF) twins who are classmates with my older child. They
were taking most or all of their food through the tube.
One of the twins is ready to come off the tube through
the work that Ben has done at the LAFC, and the other
who did not eat any food orally before is making significant
progress.
Best of luck,
Eileen Shih
Vlada---- Mother to Julia (8 months old)
My baby girl who nursed so well in the first month of
her life stopped eating when she was 6 weeks old. She
could go without eating for up to 11 hours (which is
not OK for a 6 weeks old baby). She would not nurse
or take a bottle except when asleep. Even when asleep
it was a challenge: it would take her 3 hours to finish
a 3oz of milk or formula. By the time she finished it
was time to feed her again; we were constantly feeding
her.
She was diagnosed with reflux and was prescribed Zantac,
which helped very little. She was still eating slowly
and showing no interest in food. Because she was refusing
to nurse or take a bottle for long hours, we started
using a dropper or a spoon to feed her. The spillage
was high and she would vomit once in while. We went
to see a regular hospital feeding therapist who encourages
us to continue distracting her attention by showing
her toys or TV. We did not even go for a follow up visit
because these methods were not effective. Our daughter’s
weight gain slowed and I was extremely scared for our
baby’s health and development.
I hoped in vain that she would eat better with solids.
It would take us an hour to an hour and a half to feed
her one meal. She would hold food in her mouth and swallow
only if we gave her a pacifier. She eventually developed
a dependency on the pacifier to trigger her swallowing.
Toys and TV were effective distractions only in a short
term.
Then, a couple of months ago I heard about the Los Altos
Feeding clinic and Ben Zimmerman who does miracles with
babies and kids: THEY START EATING! Kids who never ate
by themselves started eating at his clinic.
I cannot describe how much I appreciate what Ben did
for us. It was hard to change our behavior during feedings,
to pay attention to our own reactions and responses
to the baby. But the results have been overwhelmingly
successful and worth all the hard work.
Ben showed us techniques that we had never heard of
or been shown before. After only one week of feeding
her and learning her habits, Ben was able to teach us
how to stop using distractions during her meals. We
adopted Ben’s protocol on a gradual basis, and
brought our daughter’s caregivers into the process
on an equally gradual basis. This has worked very well
for both baby and adults, and will continue to bear
fruit during the coming months.
We know our daughter will continue to improve if we
stick with the program – and this is the best
program we have seen! I would unreservedly recommend
Ben’s feeding clinic to any parent whose baby
has feeding issues.
Kathleen
----mother to Kristen (7 years old)
My daughter Kristen was born in March of 2000 with congenital
Hydrocephalus, and as a result of elevated intracranial
pressure in utero, she suffered an ischemic episode
and developed hemiplegic cerebral palsy, severe visual
problems, epilepsy, and developmental delay.
Kristen had her first shunt placed when she was 2 days
old. She was sent home at 6 lbs, with a nasogastric
feeding tube in place and instructions to feed her through
the tube whatever she couldn't finish through the bottle.
After her 4th neurosurgery at 7 months old, she was
still barely 12 lbs. It was suggested that I stop attempting
to breast feed and the NG tube was re-inserted, this
time it was in for nine months. Because Kristen could
not handle the volume, she developed severe reflux,
even though we were extremely careful to run the pump
very slowly. We would think she was okay, then before
we knew it she would be throwing up across the room,
choking, and turning blue. The feeding tube that went
in through her nose would come up out of her stomach
and out of her mouth, and I would need to leap across
the room and pull it out. And if that wasn't awful enough,
I would then have to re-insert it. Over and over again.
We were referred to a local feeding therapist when Kristen
was almost a year old, whose evaluation stated that
her "oral-motor components are intact and adequate
for the management of liquids from a bottle and pureed
foods from a utensil other than a spoon. At this time
Kristen has an oral aversion to the spoon and when it
approaches she closes her mouth and turns away. She
seems, however, to enjoy the taste and texture of the
food that is offered to her either by finger or by dropper."
At this time, I began to feed Kristen with a 1 ml dropper,
because of her "oral aversion to the spoon".
As you can imagine, it was an extraordinarily time-consuming
process. I continued to do so until some other well-meaning
therapists said that I shouldn't try to feed her when
she didn't want to eat and suggested that we go back
to feeding her with a bottle until she "wants to
eat". By this time, I had managed to get her into
the 5-10th percentile on the growth charts, and her
"failure to thrive" diagnosis was considered
resolved.
Time passed, Kristen was almost 3 years old, and ready
to enter the school system. Her main nourishment was
still Pediasure from a bottle. No one knew what to do
about her feeding situation. I knew she wasn't getting
enough, but I didn't want her to have a feeding tube
placed because if an infection were to occur in the
G-tube site, it could travel to her other shunt endings
and end up infecting them, which could have deadly consequences.
We prayed and prayed that every year, she would somehow
"start eating". How that was supposed to happen
was a mystery to all, as she was still turning away
from the spoon. She underwent her 8th neurosurgery for
shunt malfunction when she was 3 1/2. She remained on
Pediasure in a bottle for the next 3 years, when we
re-initiated feeding therapy with the same therapist.
By this time, Kristen had fallen off of the height chart,
and was barely on the weight chart. We were given almost
the same advice from the feeding therapist as we had
the first time. The doctors said her intake needed to
be at least 1400 cals per day, but when we began trying
to give her that much she fought even more. When the
school nurse contacted me and said there was a problem
with "restraining" Kristen at school so she
would eat, I felt that I had reached the end of my rope.
Maybe I would need to pull Kristen out of school so
I could feed her at home all day so she would be able
to get the appropriate amount of calories the doctors
recommended. I wondered if anyone knew what a nightmare
we were going through, and how almost the only thing
I could think about from the moment I got up in the
morning until the time I went to bed at night was the
amount of food/Pediasure/calories that Kristen had consumed
for the day and if it had "been enough". Of
course I knew that most of the time it hadn't, and the
anxiety it produced was almost unbearable. There seemed
to be no place to turn.
I went online and searched again for help. This time,
the Los Altos Feeding Clinic came up, and I read and
read all of the success storied and testimonials of
children that Ben had helped to eat. It seemed almost
too good to be true. I called that afternoon and spoke
with Ben, who listened carefully and was optimistic
about Kristen's abilities.
We went in for an evaluation a few days later, and showed
Ben how Kristen wouldn't eat. He said it was a pretty
"straightforward case" and we almost fell
over. We made an appointment for the following morning.
The next morning, Ben was able to get 9oz. of thick
pureed baby food in Kristen in 15 minutes. We continued
for 3 sessions per week for about 2 1/2 to 3 weeks,
and then I learned how to feed Kristen. After 7 years,
Kristen's caloric intake is now up to over 1400 calories
per day of thick pureed food, she is being fed entirely
by a spoon and a cup from the front, each meal averages
less that 15 minutes, and she is completely off of Pediasure
and the bottle. We look forward to continuing to work
with Ben to upgrade the texture of Kristen's food and
to facilitating her to self feed as well.
To this day, I don't understand why this help was so
hard to find. Did I mention that I am an occupational
therapist? Did I mention that I have had access to the
"best of the best" as far as feeding therapists
are concerned, both on the web as well as through the
continuing education that I have access to as a healthcare
professional? I have read book after book, article after
article, on sensory integration theories, occupational
therapy intervention, adaptive feeding techniques, gastroesophageal
motility issues, etc., etc., etc. In looking back, I
realize that these behavioral techniques could have
been employed with Kristen following that initial feeding
evaluation, when Kristen was less than a year old. Why
did it take over 6 more years?
We remain profoundly thankful to Ben Zimmerman and the
Los Altos Feeding Clinic for the therapy that we feel
"saved our lives". If that sounds somewhat
extreme, consider the psychosocial ramifications of
being out in public with a 15 year old drinking a bottle.
Every piece of literature that I researched stated that
feeding problems do not get better, they get worse with
time. And the insertion of a feeding tube into Kristen's
stomach had the potential of deadly ramifications. But
even in my training as an occupational therapist, feeding
tubes are seen as "necessary" and "beneficial"
when a child refuses to eat. The risks, the strain on
the family, and the daily stress of the care of a child
with a feeding tube are something no doctor or therapist
can begin to explain.
Thanks Ben, more than you will ever know.
Marion--- mother to Luke (4 years old)
I am the mother of a four year old little boy that ate
normally solid foods from a spoon up to the time he
was fifteen months old, which was exactly the moment
his brother was born. Subsequently, he would only take
the bottle and refused solid food. The bottles were
like a smoothie, filled with protein, carbs, vegetables
and fruits. We went to a food clinic within a hospital,
went to many different therapists and consultants, to
no avail. Prior to starting the program with Ben, my
son would drink eight to nine bottles a day and would
eat occasionally a yogurt, refusing any other solid
food.
The first session with Ben, my son was fed 8 oz. of
solid food with the spoon. We saw Ben approximately
for 3 1/2 weeks, mostly three times a week. My son is
now fed solid food with the spoon and drinks from an
open cup. He has three meals a day, no bottles, and
is rather happy to sit down and eat.
I am thrilled and overwhelmed with the success of Ben's
method. I wish I could tell all the parents out there
that have feeding difficulties with their children,
do not waste your time and money to go down the road
of therapies after therapies. Go to Ben, his method
works like a miracle. Some people may think it is hard
to go through it, but it really is not. It is in the
best interest of your child. Thank you Ben! May many
parents benefit from your knowledge.
Marion
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