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

To find our growing library of

Webinars and Conference Call recordings 

visit AnyMeeting

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

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In Case You Missed It: September 24-28

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you have some wonderful plans for the weekend. Lots of festivals and local events are happening this time of year-great fun for families!

I will be presenting our "Calm & Connected" live workshop for Pediatric Therapy Services in Conshohocken, PA this weekend.  Our 4 hour workshops are highly interactive, informative & fun!

To schedule one of our professional development programs for your organization or group, please contact barbara@bodylogique.com. (Remember, we now have a special "S.M.Art for a Cause"  fundraising program for schools and other non-profit groups.)

Have a gret weekend! Here are your weekly article links-please feel free to pass them on.

Enjoy!

~Barbara



Babies: Born Scientists

Mapping Media to the Curriculum

Exercise: Tools for Kids

Mindful Mantis (Kids Pose)

Can Exercise Improve Grades?

Calm & Connected

How Reading to Kids Pays Off

Education Enrichment: Helping Kids Learn

Caught in the Middle: Children & Divorce

Physical/Emotional Neglect Harms Children's Brains

Children Consume too Much Sodium

Children & Heart Disease



Contact: barbara@bodylogique.com

In Case You Missed It: August 6 - 10

Vintage Harley Women Photo:
avidrider.com

This week was another full one for me with summer camps winding down and my yearly office clean out in full swing, getting ready for new projects and the transition from summer to fall. I have been able to carve out some time for doing the things for myself that I love, which is so important for caregivers who work both in and out of the home.

For some families the end of summer is a difficult time, due to stress. In fact, the common question or theme from everyone I talked with or had contact with this week was "family stress".  Its fitting (or is it synchronicity?) that this week I also finished proofing my third book, "Calm and Connected: Yoga Based Tools for Self-Regulation" . 

This one is a different format than the "S.M.Art Stories™" curriculum series and was my favorite to write so far, because it gives specific insight into causes of family stress and simple non-intrusive ways to address and minimize it. It is written for adults and educators to guide kids to stay Calm and Connected even at the most chaotic times. This title will be available on Amazon in the next week or two so watch the blog and our Twitter , You Tube and Facebook pages for an introductory offer & other announcements!

And now for our weekly posts.

Wishing you a "Calm & Connected" weekend!


~Barbara



Calming Technique: Peace Ball (Video)

The Mechanics of the Brain

50 Children's Books with a Positive Message

The Best Swim Gear for Kids with Special Needs

For Visually Impaired and Dyslexic Students: A (Free) High Tech Solution

Natural Learning: Brain Based Principles

Visual Affirmation Tools for Kids






Contact: barbara@bodylogique.com

Less is More

Photo: fox.temple.edu

From a article entitled "I Can't Think!" published in Newsweek:

"The Twitterization of our culture has revolutionized our lives, but with an unintended consequence: our overloaded brains freeze when we have to make decisions. "

The article went on to discuss a recent study conducted at the Center for Neural Decision Making at Temple University. The following 2 paragraphs stood out to me:

"As the information load increased...so did activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a region behind the forehead that is responsible for decision making and control of emotions. But as the researchers gave the [volunteers]  more and more information, activity in the dorsolateral PFC suddenly fell off, as if a circuit breaker had popped."

"The research should give pause to anyone addicted to incoming texts and tweets. The booming science of decision making has shown that more information can lead to objectively poorer choices, and to choices that people come to regret. It has shown that an unconscious system guides many of our decisions, and that it can be sidelined by too much information."

Our good decisions are sidelined by too much information. Every time I visit Twitter, or Facebook, and see the endless stream of links, promotions, thoughts, ideas, pictures, complaints, opinions & random words I want to just log out quickly; and every time I read an article such as this I put it in the framework of how it must affect our kids. How overloaded are they? How many kids endlessly text on cell phones-sometimes 3 or 4 friends at a time? How many are on My Yearbook, My Space, Meebo or Facebook for hours daily? How many go to school and are subjected to information and homework bombardment and standardized testing preparation, as their art, music and athletic programs are being cut out entirely? How many of these kids are being diagnosed with a plethora of conditions from ADHD to depression and put on medication because they can't make decisions, focus on or finish anything? Are they too suffering from information overload?

Understanding how the brain works will help us understand how to minimize some of the problems. The human brain has three forms of memory: Sensory, Long-term and Short-term.

Sensory memory is the initial contact for stimuli and lasts about 200–500 milliseconds after an item is perceived through one of the senses. The ability to hear instructions & remember them, or to look at an item, and remember what it looked like with just a second of observation, are two examples. Sensory memory is only capable of retaining information for a very short period of time.

In a study of sensory memory conducted by George Sperling (1963) the maximum capacity of sensory memory was found to be approximately 12 items, but that number drops very quickly (within a few hundred milliseconds). Because this form of memory degrades so quickly, participants would see a display, but be unable to report all of the items (12 in all) before they decayed. This type of memory cannot be prolonged by rehearsal or repetition which would explain why your child forgets the 3 or 4 tasks or commands you just rattled off to them.

Long-term memory is just like unlimited hard-drive space & can store much more information for very long durations (such as an entire life span).  We can remember social security numbers, passwords and telephone numbers for many years through repetition of use. Information retained in this way is said to be stored in long-term memory.

Short-term memory functions much like a very small RAM and is capable to hold only about five to nine (seven is an average) items at a time. Retrieving information longer than this will require it to be grouped together into seven units, or store it in long-term memory.

For example, given a random seven-digit number we may remember it for only a few seconds before forgetting, suggesting it was stored in our short-term memory. On the other hand, remembering your bank password, safe code, childhood phone number or address is somewhat easier due to repetition and commitment to long term memory.

We can use the results of the Temple Study and the knowledge of how our memory works to begin to clear out the verbal and visual clutter & communicate better with each other, especially with our kids and with our students. Its important for kids to learn this too. A good rule of thumb when giving instructions, delegating tasks, outlining steps to problem solving, or introducing yoga, karate, dance or exercise sequences to children or teens, (especially sensory or cognitively challenged) is that less is more. Aim to keep it to 1 or 2 items, (or 1-2 written or spoken words), per age of child, but no more than 7 at a time. Otherwise, you are very likely to trigger an overload and the emotions and upheaval that accompany it.

I show all of the students that I work with a very simple technique to combat this overload. Its a meditation, only I don't call it that. I call it Imagery or simply "relaxation". They can use it anywhere and anytime they feel like they need it- at home, school or anywhere. Essentially, they unplug & turn off everything electronic, and sit quietly thinking of a place (such as the beach) or an object (such as a starfish, flower or a sea shell) and I teach them to use their imagination to focus only on that one thing. (younger kids have an easier time using an object at first)

You can do this at home with your child before overload becomes a permanent problem. Keep a small collection of river stones, shells or other small toys or objects in a jar, and when a need arises for relaxation, have them take one of the objects out, sit or lie down & study it for a minute. Then, close their eyes and imagine it in detail. I've had my 'Hyperactive" students sit for up to 20 minutes doing this exercise. The kids ask for it (especially my teen girls) and they are asking for it because its something their taxed brains and emotions desperately need.

The growing human brain needs down time every day, like the lungs need air and the cells need water.

While technology can be a useful tool to bring people together and create collaborations that may not have been possible otherwise, please take care to use it responsibly and teach your kids to do the same. When it comes to communicating, less is more.


Related Articles:

The Myth of Meditation

I Can't Think!

* Use this link

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Picture This....

Photo: Barbara Gini

I have always enjoyed taking and looking at photos. My favorite gift from childhood was the Kodak110 camera that 'Santa' got me one year. Being a young girl, I took pictures of everything-including my toes and those candid close-ups of my brother sleeping. (Sorry Bobby! )  Years later, I even worked as a children's photographer. (I still prefer candid shots over 'posed' photos.)

I still love to take and look at photos of the outdoors and of kids. I snapped this one at left with my cell phone yesterday while I was out walking. I just wanted to take it all in: the breeze, the quietness of the road & the incredible brilliant blue sky that is not quite captured in this photo. Its as inspiring to look at as when I was actually there, and its now my new screen saver.

There are personal reasons why we love to look at photos: (memories, nostalgia, art, inspiration ) and also biological: our brains are wired for pictures.

What gets your attention most on social networks? A post with words or one with a picture?  (Most of us will agree that we will click on a photo before we click on a link. ) More than 25% of our brains are used for visual processing. (That's more than for any other of our senses.) We will remember 85% of what we see externally (or visualize internally) making images the most efficient way for us to take in information.

We can use this knowledge to our advantage, not only to improve learning but also for reducing stress and increasing productivity.

From where you are sitting right now, what do you see? (Other than this article.)  Is it bright, pleasant and inspiring or is it chaotic and dark? Whatever you see is what is what you are taking in and processing all day long. Its like downloading this program all day into your brain. This visual 'noise' can be as draining & distracting as auditory noise.

Keep this in mind when setting up a classroom, therapy room, office space for yourself or a study & play spaces for kids. The more visually calm, inspiring & pleasing the space, the less stressed the occupants will feel and the more learning, productive work or fun will take place.

There are a variety of ways to make a space more visually engaging and it depends on the individual's preferences. What do you like to look at? What do your students or kids like to look at? Be sure to include more of those things in your working & learning spaces. If its not possible, take a photo (or find one) of something you like to look at. Frame it and place it on your desk or on your wall so you can see it often.

Educators can design a more inspiring learning space for students by making a few simple changes. One is to minimize visual distractors by putting away or covering everything unnecessary. Another is to pay attention to what the students are looking at all day-a white (or black) board? Not too motivating. Be sure to include a few (not too many) visually interesting and inspiring images or cartoons in and around the area they look at most.  Change them every so often. Using more images and less lecture in your lessons, keeps children engaged and interested for longer durations.

In another article I will be outlining more tips on designing a visually calm & engaging classroom environment. But for now, make some small changes in what you are seeing and notice the difference.


Want to learn more about how to improve visual processing? Read: Eye-Mazing!

You also might like: Spring Themed Guided Imagery (self-calming & stress management for kids)

Too Book a Sensory Solutions™ (Yoga Based Strategies for the Inclusion Classroom) professional development workshop, contact: barbara@bodylogique.com


* We welcome your comments and insights!


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Children, Yoga & Executive Function

Today I came across an article that  drives home the point of why our kids are so overwhelmed & stressed and have trouble learning. It discussed the importance of teaching children to focus, which is controlled by a mental process in the brain called "Executive Function".

Executive function is a term used to describe a set of mental processes that help us connect past experiences with present actions. It is the part of our brain function that controls the planning, organizing, strategizing, paying attention to and remembering details, &  managing time & space.

Executive functions include organizing, prioritizing, focusing, sustaining and shifting focus to tasks, regulating alertness and processing speed, managing & regulating emotions, and self-monitoring and regulating action (often called inhibiting). All of these skills enable us to formulate a goal, plan for reaching that goal, then initiate, sequence, sustain or inhibit behaviors to work towards and finally attain that goal. It helps us override procrastination & emotions that would otherwise interfere with these other important activities.
 
Children who have executive functioning weakness often have trouble with focus, attention, organizing, memory, time management, transitions, regulating emotions & dealing with frustration.

In a well planned children's yoga program, all of these important skills can be reinforced through targeted movement, guided imagery, interactive movement games, storytelling and deep relaxation.

As you read the list of executive functions above, it should be clear that these are all skills necessary for children to succeed in school, understand social interactions at home and in the community, and manage daily schedules and routines. Children with good executive functioning take all of these tasks in stride, but those with deficits in executive skills struggle with school and homework demands, social interactions, and changes in schedule. These ever fluctuating dynamics feel overwhelming & confusing.

Executive functioning weaknesses can be managed with a plan & consistent support. There are some simple strategies that can assist the child with weak executive skills. These include:

• Maintaining a regular routine at home and school, as much as possible
• Posting a daily schedule so the child can refer to it throughout the day
• Informing children of changes in schedule, ahead of time (such as a doctor's appointment )
• Create a short set of rules. Be clear on expectations & consistent with following through on consequences for breaking the rules.
• Use Reminders to prepare for a transition: "Jay, 10 minutes until we leave the playground. 3 Minutes ...1  ..... time to go.

The other intervention that is being widely studied by scientists is movement.

We know that daily and varied movement is what helps our brains develop and we know that executive function can be significantly improved, especially if interventions are consistent & begin at an early age. In the current issue of   The Wall Street Journal,  author, journalist & neuroscientist  Jonah Lehrer talks about why executive function is so important. He points out that the very activities that will help our kids develop  are the ones being cut out of school budgets. I like Jonah's candidness. Among other things, he cites studies tracking how this relates to an increase in rates of crime and drug addiction to ways to overcome information overload.

In his article, Learning How to Focus on Focus , he talks about why our kids are so overwhelmed and what can be done by parents & schools to help our children succeed in this age of information. Martial arts, yoga and  board games are mentioned as other interventions to this growing problem.

As I always stress to parents: you are your child's first teacher! If the school doesn't offer what your child needs, get it for him! Don't wait for someone to give you permission to help your child. There is a wealth of information out there all at your fingertips. I hope you find Jonah's insights a welcome addition to your resources.

Find Jonah's Blog here: http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/frontal-cortex/

Every Brain is a Creative Brain

 I do not seek the meaning of creativity. I seek the experience of being creative.
               ~Unknown






Have you or someone you know ever said this?
 
 "Oh, I'm/my son is/my daughter is just not creative..."

Science tells us otherwise: Every Brain is a Creative Brain.

It has been long believed that the right side of the brain is the 'creative' side and the left is 'analytical'. Artists, musicians and writers are considered 'right brained' because they are creative & engineers, computer programmers & accountants are considered 'left brained' because of their analytical natures. Scientists now know that this is not completely true. In fact, many artists are considered to to be 'left brained' & many accountants are considered to be 'right brained'. Here is why:

Learning to sculpt, draw, paint or to play music are skills developed by following a template or pattern that is already in existence. (Such as a musical score, a 'still life' or portrait painting, or a sculpt of the human form.) Many accomplished portrait artists would not be able to paint a portrait, and object or a scene from memory, without having the subject right on front of them. This is a quality of the analytical, left side of the brain.

The right brain has the ability to think up & create something that has never been before-and not necessarily based on anything real. This would place abstract art under this (right brain) ability.

This is where the idea of 'right brained' people being creative originally came from. The truth is, that you, (and your child) can be either left or right brained and still be creative.

One way to stimulate creativity is to expose yourself (and your child) to fun, positive and varied social environments. While some children (and adults) tend to resist new social experiences, they are so important in many ways. They help a child to better understand people, cultures, themselves, the world we live in, & think of creative solutions whether it be problem solving or artistic expression. For adults, a positive social environment can be the difference between staying motivated & stagnating, whether socially or professionally.

Another way, and on of the easiest & best ways for adults & children to stimulate & enhance creativity is movement- play movement games, walk outdoors, swim, dance, yoga, karate, wash the car, dig in the garden, etc. All of these activities help to enhance creative thinking and reconnect the left and right sides of the brain. The TV, computer and other forms of sedentary activity don't help the brain to grow or to form new neuropathways or come up with any new or creative ideas.

Art, music, and reading/writing are other ways to stimulate creative ideas. It doesn't have to look perfect-it can be as simple as singing, or coloring with your child. (In addition, it will  increase focus, and reduce the stress response-which also inhibits creativity.)

The brain relies on stimulation in many forms to function as the amazing, creative organ that it is. Feed it with the right kinds of stimulation and it will always give you the wonderful experience of being creative.


For more information please visit:

Enhancing Your Creativity


BodyLogique Creative Fitness



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