Brain Development 101

I started this post on the 4th of May. I wasn't necessarily overwhelmed, but i had a lot floating around in my brain and couldn't seem to process well enough to write about it...

Let's see if anything has improved up there in the past eleven days.

If you recall from this post and this post, i've spent the past couple of months working along side some amazing women with the common goal of having our kids evaluated by the "brain lady." Donna Bateman gave her Brain Development seminar on the 3rd. It was all day and it laid the foundation so we could understand where she is coming from when she evaluates our kids. There is so much to say that i am still not sure where to go with this. But. I'll just make it as brief as i can (because i really need to go to bed). It was a very interesting seminar. She was trained at the Family Hope Center in Philadelphia and is their only independent evaluator. She is the only one who will travel to you, rather than going to Philly (or you can see her in Texas). She explained where she is coming from based on a brain development chart (this explains it far better than i can) developed by the doctors and therapists at the FHC. They look specifically at brain growth and development and milestones and don't label. They look at brain level, developmental period (age) and brain function (i.e. sensory, motor and social). She won't evaluate a child and say "He's a child with autism...She's got ADD...He's got CP"; etc. They look at milestones that tell them which parts of the brain have developed well and which ones need some work. Literally, starting with the medulla oblongata, then the pons, the midbrain, the cortex. She evaluates and comes back with a diagnosis of where in the brain there's an injury or disorganization. And then she has strategies to heal the brain, grow the brain and improve quality of life or even make children well (depending on the severity). She focuses A LOT on good nutrition, supplements, movement, purified air and water. It may sound a little hokey. But i think there's so much merit to it. This FHC is constantly researching and following brain development. It's definitely a different approach, but i think an excellent one. Bode has done so well with the occupational therapy program he's been in. But we've come to a point where he just regresses and i've been feeling like i'm banging my head against a closed door. This opportunity to have him evaluated felt like an answer to prayers.

Doug and i sat in the seminar looking at the chart and said to each other, "He's disorganized in the midbrain." Especially in the functions of sensory (hearing and understanding, and sensation and tactility) and emotional/social. We could just see it there in black and white. For example, one milestone is "be at ease in a noisy environment and with all familiar sounds." Another, "feel meaningful sensations, such as light touch, tickling, warm and cool, throughout the body." "Transition smoothly from one situation to another." Oh, i wish! Bode doesn't filter sound all that well. It can be overwhelming and/or distracting. And sensations and textures are in large part very unpleasant to him.

It is so interesting to see things on paper and see how one milestone leads to another and how they can all affect social and emotional development. For example, Bode often misinterprets tone. He doesn't get teasing. He'll call a child "mean" when they're just being loud or maybe trying to engage him at the playground. Because he misinterprets tone, his whole world can be out of whack, loud, large group settings can be overwhelming. So put him in school and let's see if he can make friends and pay attention and process in a learning environment. These are just a few of the concerns i've had.

Donna explained how they heal the brain. Creeping and crawling. Literally. The cross pattern motions of low crawling and hands-knees creeping help develop the pathways in the brain and organize things. One theory they have is that the whole putting your child to bed on their backs limits their development since they're so immobile and probably watching the repetitive motion of a mobile. They don't get the cause and effect at a very early age that "when i move my legs, i move a little bit. Oh, i get it!" So we're going to grow his brain with creeping and crawling and all sorts of other brain stimulation. That's what this program is all about.

One thing i like about their philosophies are that they're not just for Bode. Keegen will benefit. Doug and i will benefit. She's teaching a lot of things that i've been trying to do and hearing things come out of her mouth like, "drink more water, exercise, eat as close to nature as possible; etc." it has given extra motivation to take better care of myself, too.