Brody! Brody! Brody!

Before we get started on Brody, here is short Wyatt update!

Today he tried a piece of pineapple!  He also tried a piece of shrimp!  He also tried 2 bites of broccoli!  Yes, broccoli!  That is unbelievable!  To go from eating literally nothing to being wiling to try broccoli in such a short period of time is....  - well, unbelievable!  Then, not only did he try the shredded beef roast for dinner, but he ate a whole plate of it!!  Yahoo!!

Then when he went to bed I said "Let's say prayers - fold your arms."  He folded his arms right away and started saying the prayer on his own!  He said "Heavenly Father, bless food, hungry, bacon".  Then I helped him finish the prayer :)


Now on to Brody!

Brody's 8 week progress meeting was yesterday and we got more great news!  Again, I have seen the changes and improvements happening at home,  but it is always so good to see the actual data that has been kept and the levels he has moved up, etc.  It just confirms what I have been seeing and they also give me a lot of other good information as well as things to work on at home.

A lot of the changes in Brody are not as tangible as Wyatt's are.  It is easy to say "Wyatt said more words or tried new foods",   where Brody's changes are not as obvious although still very significant. 

Overall we have seen:

• More maturity
• Better following of directions
• Better motor planning and coordination (basketball, baseball, etc)
• More determination (not giving up as easily)
• Willingness to try (and actually like) new foods. 
• Less emotional outbursts
• More calm and less hyper active
• MUCH better focus and ability to stay on task
• Doesn't need as much help or direction when doing simple tasks or chores
• MUCH stronger core - can do sit ups and push ups above his age level now!
• Is now able to do the monkey bars the correct way
• Endurance is much better!
• Not quite as obsessive
• I know there are more, but just can't think of them!

Progress Report Time!

The Beginning level listed is from the 1st day he started (not from the 4 week Progress report).  So the changes are overall from entering the program until now.

Sensory Motor:

• Eye Muscle Coordination and Balance:  Has moved up a whole category - this one is hard to explain :)
• Auditory Processing:  Has gone from level 2 to level 8! 
• Gait/Aerobic:  Has gone from level 3 to level 10!
• Core Stability:  Has gone from level 3.5 to level 7.6
• Interactive Metronome:  Has gone from level 3 to level 7
• Fine Motor Skills:  Has gone from level 3 to level 7

Notes from Coach:  Brody has been coming into the sensory motor room very focused and ready to honor the silent station.  His levels have gone up very nicely and again, Brody gives his best effort and is so engaging.  Overall, I am very pleased with Brody's progress in the sensory motor room and look forward to seeing even more gains from Brody!

Here is a short video clip of Bro.  He likes to ride this "zip line" at the park.   Paige had the idea of pushing the handle to him and having him try to jump and grab it while it was moving and hang on for the ride.  I wasn't sure I liked the idea, but I went along because Brody was excited.  He kept trying and trying but he would either jump too soon, miss the handle or grab it but not hold on tight enough.  He didn't have to try too many times, but his old self would have given up after one or maybe two tries.  When he finally got it he was SO proud of himself and you can see that at the end of the video.  He is such a sweet boy.  

My sister sent a cute care package that we just got today.  It had all sorts of fun toys in it and one was a set of jacks.  Brody has never played jacks before and I tried to show him how to do it.  I knew it would be hard for him to bounce and catch the ball, but then he also needed to grab a jack.  He tried and tried and tried and I could not believe that he didn't give up.  He did get frustrated, but not too bad.  Then he finally did it!  He was so excited!  I was sad because I missed it.  So I watched for awhile and then right when I turned away he did it again!  So then I stayed right there so I could see him succeed again.  As he was trying over and over he said "I did it twice, so I know I can do it again!"  It was just so amazing to see his self esteem and the new confidence he now has that he CAN do it!  (Whatever it may be....)

Cognitive:

• Main Idea:  Went up 2 levels and is at 100%
• Fact & Opinion:  Went up  one level and is at 70%
• Math reasoning:  Went up one level and is at 85%
• Sentences:  Went up one level and is at 97%

Notes:  I am very proud of Brody for the great improvement he has made in his focus.  Brody now recognizes verbally that he needs to focus only on the tasks that are given to him.  In his work he works diligently.  Brody has reached the required level in main idea by reaching level C and is now flowing smoothly through the fact and opinion workbook.  In terms of writing, Brody has shown great improvement.  He is now writing with full sentences that are focused on the subjects provided by the worksheet.


So overall amazing changes!  I can't wait to sit down with him and do some worksheets and compare to what it was like to do homework before.  It would sometimes take an hour or more to do one 3 problem worksheet.  It was HORRIBLE.  I am excited to witness the changes when it comes to academics, etc. 

So to sum up what we talked about:  When we started here Brody's left brain was approximately 9-12 years old and his right brain was approximately 3-5 years old.  Now there were things on both sides that were slightly higher or lower than that, but that is an average.   So you can see how there was an imbalance.  It explains why I had a really smart child who couldn't sit in school or focus.  Or an 8 year old that should know better than to dart in front of cars or do other impulsive things - but developmentally he was much younger than an 8 year old. 

So as we went over his report it showed that he had already hit his "age level" for most everything for the right brain.  Meaning, he went from being a 3 to 5 year old developmentally to being more his age - 8 years old.  So we are done right?  He has reached age 8 so we can pack up and go home!  Wrong  :)  What I now have is a child that has a right brain of his age, but his left brain is still much older  - 9-12.  What does that mean?  It means we still have an imbalance.  It is much less of an imbalance, but it is still there.   So we will continue to work on the right side of the brain until it reaches the same level as the left side. 

So what does THAT mean?  It means that by the end of 6 months I will have a child that is academically similar to a 10-12 year old AND developmentally/behaviorally similar to a 10-12 year old.  In short, a very smart, very well behaved little boy :) 

I LOVED the little boy that I started with, but his whole life was and would continue to have been a struggle.  He couldn't function in school so he was schooled at home.  He was social and friendly, but not socially appropriate and mostly played with children half his age.  He was not able to ride a bike, play sports or many other things that kids his age enjoy doing.  I had no idea how he was going to make it through school, let alone have a job, support a family, etc.  That sounds so sad doesn't it?  Well it is.  It is so sad that SO many children are slipping through the cracks and barely squeaking by.  These children are exceptionally smart and have SO much potential, but they can't reach their potential with these brain imbalances.  WE MUST BALANCE THEIR BRAINS! 

At Brain Balance they don't talk in labels.  There is no Autism, ADHD, learning disabled, etc.   Those disorders are merely lists of symptoms with a name attached to it.  At Brain Balance, there are only left hemisphere and right hemisphere delayed children.  Once you stimulate the weak side of the brain and balance the two hemispheres, the list of symptoms disappear.  (Literally before your eyes) 

There are thousands of children out there without a label.  Children that are just struggling in school, have social issues, sensory issues, trouble reading, etc.  These children all can benefit greatly from the Brain Balance program - and the benefits are lifelong.  It is not just a medication band-aid, or a therapy band-aid.  It is a true solution to the problem.   A solution that gives these kids a future and helps them reach their true potential.  In fact, I realized that I don't have the Brain Balance Mission listed on my blog so here it is:

MISSION STATEMENT

To make the Brain Balance Program available to as many children as possible, so that each child may reach their greatest physical, mental, social and academic potential.

Have you ever heard of a better Mission?  I am so happy that in addition to helping my own children reach their potential (which has been my goal all along),  that my mission will now be exactly what is listed above.  I am truly blessed and honored to be a part of it. 

Goodnight!