Compulsive Disorders: Children Stuck on a Thought

Photo: thedubinclinic.org 

I have always found the human brain to be fascinating. (In fact, at one point I wanted to be a psychologist, but was even more interested in how the body & brain work together, so I opted for a degree in exercise science instead.) In spite of what we already know, there is so much more that we are still learning.

Today's article is a Guest Post by Dr. Albert Forwood, a neurologist & chiropractor who has been working to improve the functional abilities of people’s brains for the last 20 years.

I've had the pleasure of working directly with Dr. Forwood and the staff at the Brain Balance Center in Wayne, PA for the past 2 years. Much of what he, and Dr. Melillo (founder of the Brain Balance Program) taught me, as well as what I learned in the Brain Gym program, has been integrated into my children's yoga programming. I am so thrilled to share one Dr. Forwood's articles with you below:

It is easy for us to think of the nagging child, persistently asking again and again, as a normal stage of a human development. But what if they don't grow out of it? 

There are many questions about Compulsive Disorder conditions that affect people, the people around them, and about the help that may get the thoughts under control.

Compulsive disorders, diagnosed through behavioral evaluations, come in different expressions but the results are the same: unhappiness for those people and the people around them. There is a difference between a nagging child who wants something and a child with Compulsive Disorder. 

When a Compulsive Disorder is present there is no getting off the thought that occurs over and over again. Compulsive Disorder has been in the news of late because numerous celebrities have come out to say they are afflicted with this condition and how it is a problem in their lives. Leonardo DiCaprio, Megan Fox, Billy Bob Thornton, and Donald Trump are just a few as it seems it is common place among the stars.

Compulsive thoughts drive them and the people around them to frustration. Children with Compulsive Disorder can annoy and lose friends with their odd, persistent, and repetitive behaviors.

There are several ways that compulsive disorders can cause distress with time wasting compulsions and other behavioral oddities: 

• Washers have a compulsion to clean for fear of contamination. 
• Counters and arrangers are obsessed with order. 
• Doubters and do-gooders feel harm will come if things are not perfect. 
• Checkers will keep checking things like the lock on the door or other things they associate with fear. 
• Hoarders compulsively keep things.  

When the condition affects children they often experience isolation and can become hard to manage. Compulsive Disorder is common with kids with ADHD, Asperger's, Autism, and Tourettes. This is because there are similarities between these conditions in the way their brains work, or rather, similarities of their brain weaknesses that causes their similar behaviors.

Programs, such as Brain Balance, looks at these conditions as a Disconnection Syndrome of the brain and has an effective approach to improve this condition for children. If this condition is not cleared up in childhood it may become more difficult to make changes to the brain once matured.

These conditions are caused by an imbalance in the hemispheres of the brain. It is commonly caused by "too much left brain" (because of developmental delays of the right brain that cause normal circuits to be under connected). 

The left brain is the approach side, like the accelerator on a car, and the right brain is the withdraw side, like the brake. A mental thought or muscle action may be initiated (with the left brain) and in the normal brain there is a mechanism to turn it back off (with the right brain).  

If the right brain circuits are underdeveloped it cannot do its job and the thought persists, over and over again. 

Children have the unique ability to speed up their lagging development when the correct stimulus is provided, primarily though a daily targeted sensory-motor (exercise/movement) routine, followed appropriate tutoring. That means that if the unique developmental delays of these children can be found, and the correct stimulus applied in the appropriate way, they can speed up development that helps the brain circuits connect in the way they are supposed to. These new neuro-connections will lead the children away from a brain with compulsive thoughts to a brain with thoughts that are under control.

Compulsive disorders seem to be a growing problem at a similar rate of increase as other behavioral and learning disorders. Because children are in the process of development, the areas of the brain that are underdeveloped, can be brought closer to full development. 

The hope for a lifetime of relief from Compulsive Disorder may lie with intervention during childhood. An appropriately developed, balanced brain may provide freedom for the child stuck on a thought.

Dr. Forwood, DC

Dr Albert Forwood is a chiropractic neurologist and director of the Brain Balance Center in Wayne PA. Read more about him and listen to his podcasts at: Natural Health by Dr. Forwood

Dr. Forwood will be presenting at the Gwynedd Mercy Autism Institute, at the 6th Annual Autism Conference, on Saturday April 13, 2013, in Gwynedd, PA 

Related Links:

21 Ways to Grow a Healthy Brain

*(Based on the Brain Balance Program.)

Why are Movement & Creative Activities Important?

Every Brain is a Creative Brain

Senses, Stims and Stress

Brain Balance Centers

Dr. Robert Melillo

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Contact Barbara: bodylogique@yahoo.com or leave a comment below

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Change a Paradigm & Change a Child's Life

This weekend at the BCASC Autism Conference, Carol Gray, the keynote speaker, said so many things in her phenomenal presentation that resonated. One thing she said though really stuck with me:

"Change a paradigm 

and you change a child's life".

A Paradigm is defined as:

     1

: example, pattern; especially : an outstandingly clear or typical example or archetype

     2

: an example of a conjugation or declension showing a word in all its inflectional forms

     3

: a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations and the experiments performed in support of them are formulated; broadly : a philosophical or theoretical framework of any kind.

4: A set of assumptions, concepts, values, and practices that constitutes a way of viewing reality for the community that shares them, especially in an intellectual discipline. 

*Source: Merriam-Webster.com

Carol was referring to definitions #3 and #4.  Many assumptive paradigms exist in education, especially in the area of social skills. These accepted methods used by well-meaning educators & therapists in a variety of settings, only serve to systematically traumatize students further. 

One example that Carol discussed was regarding perceptions & the way we use language. A story she used to illustrate this, was about one of her students who had assumed that Carol had changed her dog's name to "Popcorn".

Instead of immediately correcting the student and saying "I didn't change my dog's name..." and causing the child more confusion, Carol stopped and said, "I need a moment to think..." and proceeded to look from the child's perspective and realized where the child's perception of the dog's new name originated from.

She revealed to us on her slides the reason: the student saw a popcorn bowl being used for the dog's food. For a child with autism, it was a logical assumption that the dog's name had been changed because of this visual evidence. (We believe most of what we see.) Had Carol not stopped a moment to look around, before she responded, she would have not realized the child's perception.

Carol instead replied "You know, I have a very true story to tell you..." and proceeded to explain that the popcorn bowl was there because the dog's other bowl broke. The student's response was "Okay-but can you turn it around? [so "popcorn" doesn't show].

Carol's presentation was filled with real-life examples, such as this one, of how we have the power to support & change interactions for kids. In those few split seconds between the stimulus & the response, how we use our power-and how we respond- can make a huge difference.

In order to move students forward-socially, academically and otherwise, Ms. Gray encouraged parents & educators to pause & think before we respond & to identify/ recognize existing paradigms so we can innovate new methods in order to change what's not working. She has provided a variety of tools to help us to achieve this and I highly recommend her site, her books and related site links to every special educator and para-educator.

As a parent or educator, what paradigms would you like to personally change? How would you go about it?

What paradigms or outdated methods would you like to see changed in general? 

(Please share your ideas in the comments below.)

To learn more about Carol Gray, Social Stories™, Comic Strip Conversations and her other work visit:

The Gray Center for Social Learning & Understanding

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Teaching Resilience with Lorraine Hirst

Photo: Way2Be.Me

Resilience can be best described as a process, rather than a trait. It is an individual's ability to cope with and surmount obstacles, stress and adversity and "bouncing back" to a previous state of normal functioning, or simply not showing negative effects of turmoil. 

For many educators, parents and caregivers, helping children bounce back from defeat can be a huge challenge.

Lorraine Hirst, emotional intelligence and resilience expert, says that  a child's inability to cope can manifest as inhibited social skills, inability to manage emotions, impulsiveness and low self-esteem. She says that helping children get a grip on their emotions is key. 

Lorraine has founded & designed the Way 2 Be Me program specifically to build resilience, emotional well-being, self-esteem and confidence, and to help give kids a "bounce forward" factor. She was recently interviewed by Michelle at the E-Nanny Source on the topic of resilience and I have been invited to share Lorraine's expert insights and suggestions with you today.


Expert Insights:  (E-Nanny Source Blog)

Talking About Resilience with Lorraine Hirst of Way2be.me

by Michelle LaRowe Editor in Chief, E-Nanny Source.com

Find original article here

For many parents and caregivers, helping their children bounce back from defeat is a real challenge, so I reached out to Lorraine Hirst, emotional intelligence and resilience expert, to see how parents and nannies can help children develop their bounce-back factor and foster resilience. Here’s what she had to share.

eNannySource:  Why is resilience important?

Lorraine: There are some children who don’t seem to recover quickly from problems or don’t seem to want to keep trying, i.e. they lack resilience. Resilience, known as the ‘bounce-back’ factor, is a character trait that is argued to be more vital than IQ and of more value to employers than good math and literacy. School teachers and other caregivers can tell you in a few seconds which children these are. They are the ones lacking in self-esteem, who may be victims of bullying, don’t join in group activities or clubs, and seem a bit vulnerable, and despite possibly receiving some additional academic support, they are not quite reaching their potential or coping as well as they could.

In younger children it can manifest as lack of social skills, inability to manage their emotions, lack of impulse control and so on. Having said this, they are still young, so these are the things we help them with as they grow!   As these children get older, they can become more vulnerable to risks such as problems with transition to secondary school, alcohol abuse (and there’s growing evidence that young binge drinking is on the increase, especially in the UK), drugs, self-harm, eating disorders, other mental health problems and even teenage pregnancy. Underlying problems such as anxiety and behavioral issues can be compounded by a lack of emotional resilience.

eNannySource:  How can parents and caregivers help a child become more resilient?

Lorraine: Helping children deal with their emotions is key. This is often called, ‘emotional coaching.’ That’s doesn’t mean dismissing problems, i.e. ‘don’t cry about that, be strong.’ These messages are not helpful. They suppress the emotion. The opposite is also unhelpful, i.e. to over-react, rush in or ‘marshmallow’ the child. This gives the child the message that they are helpless, an opposite trait if you trying to foster resilience. A hug or arm on a shoulder goes a long way to helping a child (or adult!) deal with the stress hormones that follow physical or emotional incidents. Secondly, acknowledge what a child is experiencing. If they can’t articulate what they are feeling, then do that for them, e.g. ‘you must be feeling really sad about that’ or ‘I expect you feel angry right now.’ Offering a magical solution, such as, ‘I wish we didn’t have to do homework or that there weren’t any bullies in the world,’ quickly followed by some adult reality, e.g. ‘sometimes there are some things we have to do or there are some people in life who don’t like us and want to make us feel bad.’ When the child is calm, they often come up with their own solutions to a problem (or you offer some solutions to a younger child, structuring the aftermath). Often, a child who is nurtured in this way will simply get on with what you wanted them to move onto in the first place.

Self-esteem is often linked to resilience, although resilience (also known as the ability to thrive) can be present when low self-esteem is also experienced, studies have shown. Having said this, healthy self-esteem can aid resilience as it can support a ‘can do’ attitude. Self-esteem is learned from adults around us, according to many experts, therefore building children’s self-esteem alone, without addressing your own, is often quite difficult and a whole other topic on its own. Whilst there are many other ways to build resilience in children, including taking up a hobby, praising the effort and not the end result of a task, moderating language that creates limiting beliefs and many more, the emotional coaching would be my number one.

eNannySource:  What is self-compassion?

Lorraine: The point about self-esteem and resilience leads me directly to the issue of self-compassion. Quite simply, I think of this as, ‘giving yourself a break!’ I don’t mean a chocolate (although those can be useful in moderation!), but not being so self-critical. It’s about forgiving ourselves when we mess up. We, including myself, can often hear ourselves saying the ‘should’, ‘must’, ‘ought’ words in our own minds. E.g. I ‘ought’ to be able to do this.’ ‘I ‘should’ be working right now.’ Worse are the voices that tell us we’re not capable, that we are silly, stupid, etc. I’m not talking about real voices but the critical parent in our own minds.

Self-compassion is a willingness to look at your own mistakes and shortcomings with kindness and understanding – it’s embracing the fact that to err is indeed human. When we are self-compassionate in the face of difficulty, we neither judge ourselves harshly, nor feel the need to defensively focus on all our awesome qualities to protect our fragile egos. Studies have shown that having a good dollop of self-compassion leads to higher levels of personal well-being, optimism and happiness, and to less anxiety and depression.

eNannySource:  Why is it important?

Lorraine: Lack of self-compassion may explain why some confident, bright individuals sometimes have less resilience than other people, i.e. they don’t take changes or constructive criticism very well, possibly due to their high expectations of themselves or lack of true self-worth. Ultimately, children (and adults) are more likely to have resilience and be able to ‘bounce back’ if they are willing to see their own weaknesses as changeable things they can correct, to move on from mistakes, committed to learning and improving. Everyone makes mistakes, but resilient people learn and move forward because they know how to forgive themselves first.

eNannySource:  How can parents and caregivers foster it?

Lorraine: In addition to helping children deal with their emotions and view mistakes as learning, it’s important to emphasize that it is entirely normal to feel sad, jealous, angry, etcetera, sometimes. There is no inner state or utopia where we are 100% immune to these feelings.

Modeling self-compassion is probably the key way to teach this skill. This is about not being too hard on yourself when things go wrong or, if you catch yourself being self-critical, such as saying out loud, ‘Bah, I’m such an idiot,’ we can rephrase this and say something like, ‘Well, that was a bit silly but it happened. I wonder what I can do now?’

We can judge the behavior, not the child. For instance, we can say, ‘That was an unkind thing you did,’ rather than, ‘You are disrespectful.’ The former describes the behavior and leaves some room for improvement, while the latter is rather judgmental and can set up a negative view of himself/herself in the child. Also, praise the task, don’t over-praise the child, i.e. ‘That was a clever idea’ is better than saying ‘you are brilliant.’ This is because the latter sets up an expectation, which may be difficult to maintain and then effects the child’s self-worth when they do something which is not so perfect.

Focus on positive behavior and changes, rather than harshly punishing the past. Yes, it’s important to teach children good behaviors, but they need to feel that they have some say in how to find better solutions. That way, they build the ability to reflect, learn from mistakes and move on. For instance, if a child hurts another child’s feelings, s/he can be invited to reflect on the effect of his/her actions (or given some suggestions, if the child is younger) or you can say, ‘How do you think you can behave in future?’

Ultimately, my hope is to explain that self-compassion is NOT about instilling a huge sense of awesomeness, as this is the road to narcissism and potential heightened self-criticism. (An ‘I’m OK, you’re not OK’ life position isn’t very helpful to building a cohesive society.) Parents and caregivers can sometimes overdo the self-esteem angle, which is a form of over-indulgence in itself. It is not realistic to think we can all be rock stars, for instance. Firstly, though, a look at our own inner critic is a good starting place for parents and caregivers. If we have self-compassion, then our compassion for others or ability to nurture children in this important life skill will naturally flow.

Find original article on E-Nanny Source here

Lorraine Hirst lives in the middle of the UK with her family and she loves helping people explore their own inner resilience. Lorraine’s most recent work has been the development of www.Way2be.me programs, which are a series of lessons for children and sessions for parents and caregivers that are tailored to their needs, but that focus broadly on emotional resilience and other essential life skills. 

Lorraine holds a Masters in Public Policy & Management of Care Services. True to her core values, Lorraine has always worked in the areas of early intervention and prevention. Her motto, borrowed from Jean I Clarke, is ‘Take care of the needs of the parents and you take care of the needs of the child.’

A free fact sheet and a regular newsletter are available from www.way2be.me  for those who would like more information on resilience, self-esteem and self-compassion.

This entry was originally posted on E-Nanny Source on Wednesday, March 6th, 2013 at 11:02 am and is filed under Expert Insights. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. 

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3 Ways to Use (Adapted) Yoga in Classrooms to Enhance Learning

Photo: The author demonstrates
breathing technique with
Hoberman Sphere. Watch video here

(Updated from Original Post 9/18/11)

Many of the teachers I talk with are interested in introducing yoga in their classrooms, but they hesitate, citing what are a few common drawbacks (in their minds), such as it will take up too much time from their required curriculum, or there is no room to store mats/equipment or that they are not trained yoga teachers.

In addition, the recent complaint filed by the Encinitas parents, highlights concerns over promoting eastern religions, saying children who exercise their choice to opt out of the popular program faced bullying and teasing. (Read full article: California Parents Sue over Grade School Yoga. I will address this issue in another post.)

While these are all legitimate concerns, the benefits outweigh the them, and each concern can be worked around:

• You don't need to do a complete yoga class for it to have any benefit (of course, 30-45 minutes is better than 5, but 5 minutes is better than none at all. Its more about the quality of what you do in that 5 minutes.)
• You don't need mats or any equipment at all (yoga can be done at the desk or standing next to it.)
• You don't need to be trained in 500 hours of yoga to start out leading students with simple & basic instruction. (An experienced yoga teacher can show you how to adapt & simplify yoga for classrooms.)
• Instruction can easily be adapted and taught in plain & simple "exercise" terminology, with no religious philosophy, spiritual language or references to 'yoga' at all. (Its more about the movement than what type of movement you utilize.)

One might argue that if we do all of the above, then its not really yoga. I argue that it is. The term "yoga" means simply, "to bring [yoke] together". In my mind, this is referring to an intention more than a specific method to realize that intention. So to me, yoga looks different to everyone, and encompasses a variety things that "bring [and individual] together." It can be called whatever you like, and take on whatever adapted form you like, and no one needs to be afraid of it. Its your yoga. I know it can look intimidating when taught in a manner that is foreign and unrealistic for most of us, but I have worked for many years to make yoga more kid-friendly, classroom friendly, and accessible to the average person, and have found it to be so beneficial for myself & for so many. I'm not saying that it is the only way to go-its just one method of many that can be easily used to help improve health & learning.

Yoga in The Classroom, when adapted and applied properly, can be of great benefit to all students (& staff) and can infuse fun into any learning environment! Its most beneficial to set up a daily or weekly routine so the children know what to expect. The key is to make it fun and engaging so the children will look forward to it!

In a typical Yoga studio class, shoes are off at the door, you get your mat, you find your space and sit or lie quietly waiting for class to begin. In the classroom, you can designate a time, area & routine for yoga much in this same manner, using this same procedure as a template. (Kids love to take their shoes off during class and dim the lights. )

Yoga sessions will not look anything like a typical, traditional yoga class for adults. Your class should be of a length to suit the age/ability/attention span you are working with. In general, the younger the children, or for children with sensory/cognitive challenges,  the shorter the activity duration.

For an elementary class 20- 30 minutes is good. For a Middle school child 30-50 minutes and High school an hour is fine for a formal practice. (For children with adaptive needs, 15-20 minutes at intervals through out each day is beneficial.)

Teaching in a conventional classroom may not allow this duration, so short 5- 15 minute intervals of movement & incorporation of various techniques such as storytelling, breathing, art & imagery can be used effectively to release excess or nervous energy, re-focus, relax and reduce overall stress.  (Highly effective prior to test-taking!)

Here are three easy ways that Yoga can be used in the classroom to enhance learning readiness:

1-Improve Focus:
"Where's My Stone" Game (Exercise takes about 5-10 minutes.) Using simple Imagery Games will help children develop skills needed for focusing on writing, test taking, math calculations and more.  Take a bag of small or medium sized assorted natural river stones. (Can be found in craft or dollar stores.) Have each child select a stone by reaching into a velvet bag or another type of drawstring bag.  Once they each have their stone, have them hold it in their hand and feel it. (Prompt them to notice texture, dents, bumps and cracks with their fingers and then with their eyes.) Prompt them to look at their stone carefully and notice the color, texture, cracks or unusual shapes & features of their stone. Once they have observed their stone quietly for a few minutes, have them close their eyes and/or lay heads down on desks. Prompt them to imagine their stone in their minds as clearly as possible. Imagine just their stone. [You can end the exercise here or take it a step further:] Have the children place their stones in a basket or bowl and mix them up. Then pass the bowl around to each child and have them find and retrieve their stone. Ask them to share how they knew it was their stone. (I let them keep their stones at the end of the lesson, telling them that I use this game to help me concentrate better.)

2-Release Stress:
(Duration: 5-10 minutes) Slow controlled movement breaks, heavy work activities, coloring & simple breathing techniques will help a child immediately calm, release stress and re-focus on the task at hand. Movement can easily be incorporated into daily classroom activities or as a transition between subjects. This is not the same as recess or phys-ed. This is movement to help keep the brain engaged during repetitive or difficult tasks. For a description of one simple & effective technique called "The 4Bs" click here. Or try some Summer Yoga Postures or Other postures from our old web page.

3-Improve Social skills:
(Duration: 5-15 minutes) Movement Games & Storytelling activities offer so many opportunities for children to become part of a story, practice social skills & cooperate with a group. In addition, this can strengthen language and literacy skills if its tied into a language arts or reading unit.  Select stories that are familiar & age appropriate to the children or that have familiar themes/characters, such as folk tales, or children's stories or provide a theme and allow the children to add details as they go around the circle. You can use stories from your language arts book or your school library. You can even use a story format for the lesson you are teaching. Or, have each child share a story that they like. Provide props, instruments or other sound effects to bring the story to life. Have the children use yoga poses or just make up movements to "act out", tell & remember the story through movement sequencing. Allow the children work on group a mural that illustrates the story and/or the movements. To offer some inspiration, see our  Story & Activity Archive,  and Sensory Games  pages for you to use in the classroom, therapy room or at home.


A Final Note:

While yoga in itself is considered a complete mind/body exercise system, it is not the only activity that promotes this integration. All forms of movement, stretching, dancing, playground games and other active learning will help with bringing whole-child awareness and focus to the body and the thoughts as a whole.

If you decide to try yoga, you do not have to know the traditional forms perfectly in order to incorporate activities into your elementary or middle school classroom. You don't even have to call it 'yoga'. Adaptive Yoga is just what it sounds like: It adapts & breaks yoga science down into more recognizable child-friendly activities & games that will keep kids moving, calm & engaged. This will greatly benefit classroom environment, reducing tension & anxiety, encouraging positive student interactions & enhancing overall learning on all levels.

I strongly encourage you to try & experience yoga or other daily movement activities, as a before or after school program, or right in the classroom, & notice the difference.


*For help designing a customized adaptive classroom program for your students, please contact Barbara@bodylogique.com .



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