Welcome to Special Essentials!

Welcome to our family's "Special Essentials" blog! This site is dedicated to our little guy who inspires our pursuit towards Essential Wellness! 

He is such a blessing and is so adored!

Our journey to health and wellness began the day we discovered our little baby boy had been diagnosed with Down Syndrome. Hannah was 18 weeks pregnant when we received the diagnosis and that's when things started to change....

Hannah is the queen of "googling" - and hearing the diagnosis of Down Syndrome meant that it was time for some serious "google research". This was our real wake up call about the intricacies of our body's biology and the importance of supporting our bodies holistically and nutritionally. This was the beginning of label reading.

Throughout the remainder of the pregnancy, we had made many connects with other families who had experience with Down Syndrome. We read many books and spent countless hours surfing the web to try and prepare ourselves the best we could. Did you realize that individuals with Down Syndrome have a 30% increased chance of being diagnosed with Leukemia? Did you know that individuals with Down syndrome are more likely to have heart defects? Thyroid deficiencies? Immunosuppression? Alheimers? (Neither did we!) But the more we researched, the more we kept hearing the key words: "diet" and "nutrition" - the most basic, fundamental preventative care. We knew this was where we needed to start.

We started reading food labels first... we had no idea so many of our everyday foods and drinks were packed full of JUNK. This is where the first changes for our family began. It had to go! No more Ramen noodles for this Butler Bunch! 

Much to our surprise, our sweet baby Benji was born at only 26 weeks gestation weighing in at only 2lbs and measuring 14inches. He was so tiny and fragile. He did have a significant ASD (hole in his heart), was oxygen dependent (COPD) and it was determined after a few weeks in the NICU had a profound allergy to lactose. (This would of course would lead to more label reading!)

When we finally got our little guy home, Hannah was a Mama Bear watching over him and his monitor, giving his medication, feeding him around the clock, and doing all she could in her power to keep him healthy. Unfortunately, he contracted the dreaded RSV in spite of our best efforts. He ended up back in ICU and on supplemental oxygen for the next 2 years and went home with a feeding tube (he was breathing about 110 times a minute and has already contracted aspiration pneumonia twice). 

The Doctors told us not to use air sprays, candles, and harsh cleaners around Benji because of his reactive airways....and once again, we were struck with a "wake up" call. If we shouldn't be using these products around little Benji? What about our 3 year old Essie? Or our 1 year old Zac (who was also born premature and had Asthma)? What about Hannah and and her own chronic Asthma? Or Joe's family medical history? Or even our pets? It didn't happen overnight, but slowly - we started swapping out these things for safer, non-toxic alternatives. 

As time passed, Benji grew and got stronger and stronger. He was fitted for a CPAP mask to treat his apnea and this boosted his energy to allow him to develop. He began sitting, scooting, standing, and finally at almost 5 years old, Benji took his first steps. 

The follow Spring, Benji had his tonsils removed and was able to come off CPAP and this was the same time we determined to get Benji off the formula and onto a real-foods blended diet. After just months of this diet, Benji was able to discontinue more medications and supplements as his lab work came back better and better and better each time! REAL FOOD. This was when his health really began to improve. 

In the Fall of 2016, our family started our journey with Young Living Essential Oils. Once again, we've noticed benefits for our Benji (and entire Bunch!) We are continuing to swap out junk for good, wholesome products and our ONLY regret is not having started sooner. 

 (Benji's daily NingXia Wolfberry Supplement)

Of course, regret can't change the past. We can only keep looking to the future. "When you know better, do better!" For us, it is a journey in stewardship. Stewardship of our bodies, our health, our family, our home, and our money. 

Yes, this blog will talk about Essential Oils and many of Young Living's products (because its one of the primary sources for the alternative products that we use for our family and with Benji) but it will also focus on other "Special Essentials" like nutrition, therapy, education, and other things we've learned along the way on our Special Journey. 

A Prayer for our Family & Friends -

III John 1:2 "Beloved, I pray that you are doing well in every way and that your health is good"