There is nothing more traumatic than having a child clinging to you and refusing to file into school in the morning. Even worse is when a child flatly refuses to go to school and the accompanying meltdowns. Anxiety is the neurological state of feeling unsafe. Feeling "safe" is key to combating anxiety. That is why… Continue reading School refusal, anxiety and the plastic brain
I have been working with a child who has all the dys- specific learning difficulties: dyslexia, dyscalculia (the maths equivalent of dyslexia), dysgraphia (extreme handwriting challenges) and dyspraxia (a lack of spatial/temporal awareness/personal organisation). Through movement and work with his Fear Paralysis and Moro reflexes, I've seen him shift from having extreme sensory challenges and… Continue reading Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia, Dysgraphia and the Plastic Brain
After talking to a worried parent this morning, I decided it was time to express my views on formal diagnoses. Is it worth doing? is it really going to help? Is it counter productive? The objective of this post is to reassure anyone who is either trying desperately to get a diagnosis or shying away… Continue reading Getting an EHCP without a diagnosis: The Law and your child.
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AKA: Supporting your child in their transition through school School is about to start again any second after the longest annual break from routine that our children get. I don't know about you, but I have mixed feelings about this: We've had the most gorgeous six weeks - in the French Alps and Dorset. We've… Continue reading Back to school anxiety – a polyvagal approach
I’m re-reading The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk. I want to relate the way reflex integration works and why it is effective for those with emotional, sensory or learning challenges to this book. The author explains that there are 3 approaches to helping a person with trauma (retained reflexes are a… Continue reading Developmental Trauma and Neuroplasticity
I started flying in 2003. I had decided to have a career change, and went to South Africa to do an intensive course over around six weeks, which was about a third of the price of flying in the UK, and with the promise of better weather, dramatic scenery and incredible wildlife (views of great… Continue reading Flying circuits: what your central nervous system needs to be doing
A brief summary of the Polyvagal Theory
I have no idea what it is like NOT to support a child with SEND. I started feeling stressed pretty much since my son was snatched away to SCBU at a few minutes old, and I feel like I have been fighting the system since a SCBU nurse took it upon herself to start giving… Continue reading Finding your own balance as a SEND parent
Some of our children - indeed, some of us - find it extremely hard to switch off. Our brains work overtime, processing what's happened that day, worrying about what might happen... Some of us wake up at 3am and can't get back to sleep. Some of us are almost asleep when we suddenly jolt ourselves… Continue reading Sleep, anxiety, night terrors – and neuroscience
