Who Am I?
My name is Dave Borden, and I am simply a Dad.
Over the past few years, tens of thousands of parents have come to my website to learn how they can help their children with autism, ADHD, and other conditions.
From the emails and messages I’ve received, the information here on ImSimplyaDad.com has been immensely helpful for many families on their journey towards health and healing.
Some families have even seen remarkable results, and they were so kind to email me and let me know about their progress.
Here are just a few wonderful improvements parents have told me: (mostly after starting a GFCF diet)
- He seems to be more with us now. It’s like a fog was lifted from his brain.
- We heard her first words just a few days after starring the GFCF diet.
- He slept through the night for the first time ever.
- He’s less anxious.
- He’s better behaved.
A big focus of my blog is to help parents get started with the Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diet. It’s not a diet I created. GFCF has been around for decades, and it is hard to get started.
It was very overwhelming for me 10+ years ago, and that’s why I have made helping my fellow autism parents with this transition such a focus.
What Are My Qualifications?
As my name suggests, I’m Simply a Dad. I am just a guy who has been doing this diet with my family (or stricter versions of it) for over 10 years.
While I do not have aspirations to gain any professional qualifications, that doesn’t mean I don’t know what I am talking about.
I’ve spent thousands of hours researching food, listening to podcasts (and hosting my own), lectures, and reading many books on the topic.
It’s a safe bet that I know more about food and how families can adapt this diet than your average doctor.
Again, I did not create the GFCF Diet. I’ve just figured out how to make it part of my family’s lifestyle and improve our health while at it. And I want to help you do the same!
Parents Are The Best Resources
I have learned a great deal from lectures, books, podcasts, doctors…etc. My greatest teachers have been other autism parents. When you describe a situation or new, “strange” symptom to a doctor, many of them chalk it up as, “that’s just part of having autism”.
But when you ask a parent that same question or describe the same symptom, you get real answers.
For instance:
When my son would wake up at 2am jumping on the bed and laughing hysterically, parents responded and told me to look into yeast infection.
We treated the yeast (candida) and he stopped getting up at 2am.
I can point to many situations like this along our journey where I reached out to parents on a FB group. There was always someone who had a similar experience. Oftentimes, I would have answers or ideas to learn more about.
The same is true with diet. Many biomedical and functional medicine doctors will recommend the GFCF diet as a first step, but they don’t have any idea how to help families actually start.
Personally, the doctor who originally recommended the diet to us gave us the sage advice to “just give him some rhubarb”. (100% true. The doc acted like it was no big deal to give my extremely picky son rhubarb instead of apples or chicken nuggets)
Paying It Forward
I have learned a great deal on my own and from other parents. That’s why I started this blog. It is my way of paying it forward. Sharing what I have learned on my journey in hopes of making the road easier for those early in theirs.
Having Said That
Having said all that, I do always recommend that your very first step in treating autism is to find a knowledgeable doctor to help guide you.
Kids with autism are quite the complex puzzle. It’s often not as simple as removing gluten and dairy from the diet.
While GFCF can make a huge impact, it is often only a first step towards helping your child
There can be many underlying factors at play, and you really need a professional to assist, assess other problems areas, and make sure everything is done safely.
My 14 year old son with autism (Ethan) has a functional medicine doctor guiding his biomedical treatment, and I think everyone needs a doctor or other professional too.
