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From Surviving To Thriving: How Parents Can Support Neurodiverse Growth · Momtalk Maryland

0:00
SPEAKER_01: Hey friends, and welcome to Mom Talk Maryland.
0:02
SPEAKER_01: I'm your host, Claire Duarte, founder of the Columbia Mom.
0:06
SPEAKER_01: And this is your spot for real conversations, local love, and a whole lot of community.
0:10
SPEAKER_01: Whether you're folding laundry, running errands, or hiding in your car for some peace and quiet, let's dive in.
0:16
SPEAKER_01: You ready?
0:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
0:18
SPEAKER_01: Let's do it.
0:18
SPEAKER_01: Alrighty, here we go.
0:21
SPEAKER_01: Um, oh my gosh.
0:22
SPEAKER_01: I am so excited to have you on Mom Talk Marilyn today.
0:26
SPEAKER_01: Um, it's been such a journey.
0:29
SPEAKER_01: Right?
0:29
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I first met you, gosh, was it May or June?
0:33
SPEAKER_00: I think it was like early summer.
0:35
SPEAKER_01: Early summer, right?
0:36
SPEAKER_01: Um so, well, without further ado, I have Beth Snow of Brain Balance.
0:42
SPEAKER_01: And um before we jump into my whole side of it, can you tell us more about yourself, what brain balance is?
0:51
SPEAKER_01: And um let's watch, let me not get too carry waves.
0:55
SPEAKER_01: Let's start with those two questions first.
0:58
SPEAKER_00: Perfect.
0:58
SPEAKER_00: So thank you so much for having me.
1:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, I am a lifelong educator.
1:04
SPEAKER_00: I started teaching at a private school when I was 21, right out of Towson.
1:08
SPEAKER_00: It used to be called Towson State then.
1:10
SPEAKER_00: Uh-huh.
1:11
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then I was teaching first grade, and somehow I was like a magnet for the kids that were struggling.
1:19
SPEAKER_00: Um, I'm not sure why, but they just found their way to me.
1:23
SPEAKER_00: Um and so I decided to get my master's in education from Hopkins with a specialization in reading.
1:29
SPEAKER_00: So from there, I started working at Gemusy School, which is a school for those that are stuck struggling with language-based differences.
1:37
SPEAKER_00: And um, that was really such a joyful place to work and just work with neurodiverse individuals.
1:44
SPEAKER_00: Almost always these kids had ADHD, and school was not their favorite thing.
1:49
SPEAKER_00: Um, but I started um really being interested in helping, you know, those with neurodiverse differences just be their best.
1:59
SPEAKER_00: So I also became a full-time yoga teacher.
2:02
SPEAKER_00: Um, I really believed in integrative movement, and then COVID happened, and I was uh moved online and was teaching yoga online and then just helping um kids that were digital learning.
2:16
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
2:16
SPEAKER_00: So remote because they're at home and their parents are like, oh, this is how they learn.
2:22
SPEAKER_00: Right.
2:23
SPEAKER_01: So yeah, the rubber hit the road, crashed into the road, really.
2:28
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
2:28
SPEAKER_00: So I was doing executive function and sort of school support online, and then my partner, Chris, um, was interested in doing something in my field.
2:38
SPEAKER_00: He came from a business background.
2:40
SPEAKER_00: So we found our way to brain balance, um, which would be a way for us to work together and for me to be able to hopefully help more people.
2:48
SPEAKER_00: Um, so that's how I found my way to brain balance.
2:51
SPEAKER_00: And brain balance is a non-medical multimodal approach to brain health.
3:02
SPEAKER_00: And um that's sort of a mouthful, but basically it's a multi-sensory way to help the brain be its best.
3:09
SPEAKER_00: And no diagnosis is required because everybody's brain can be a little bit more efficient, a little bit more um uh functioning in its best way, so you can find your your fullest potential.
3:23
SPEAKER_00: And for me, that meant movement and just being able to integrate mind and body.
3:30
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
3:30
SPEAKER_00: So, in a way, being able to help young people um reach that sort of mind-body connection early was really important to me.
3:41
SPEAKER_00: Um, and that's what brain balance does in many ways.
3:45
SPEAKER_00: Um, and I've already seen the changes in people.
3:48
SPEAKER_00: Oh gosh, literally.
3:49
SPEAKER_01: So, wait, when when did you guys first like actually start?
3:53
SPEAKER_01: Because then then you had your build out and now you have your official home, your official location here in Columbia.
3:59
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so this has been a long journey.
4:01
SPEAKER_00: Right.
4:02
SPEAKER_00: Um, it's been almost two years to bring brain balance to Maryland.
4:07
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:07
SPEAKER_00: Um, we are the first brain balance in this state, which is really exciting.
4:11
SPEAKER_00: Um, there are many brain balances all over the country.
4:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:15
SPEAKER_00: Um, but this area for us was important because we both grew up here.
4:19
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:19
SPEAKER_00: And we decided on Columbia because of its central location between DC and Baltimore.
4:26
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:26
SPEAKER_00: And for me, teaching, you know, in my in the Baltimore schools, um, I had a network of um parents, but also um people that would perhaps want to work in this field.
4:41
SPEAKER_00: So we landed on Columbia.
4:42
SPEAKER_00: I love Columbia so much.
4:44
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
4:45
SPEAKER_00: It's such a great, um, it's such an inclusive and diverse space and community-based.
4:53
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
4:54
SPEAKER_00: And already just feeling that with our brain balance families has been amazing.
4:59
SPEAKER_00: And you've been an amazing part of that, helping us, you know, meet meet parents, meet families, meet other professionals in our field.
5:07
SPEAKER_00: So it's the perfect place for us for sure.
5:09
SPEAKER_00: Literally.
5:10
SPEAKER_01: We're so happy that you're here.
5:12
SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, I mean, again, it's funny because I, you know, Jill, who works for works for me, was the one that like kind of heard the murmurs of brain balance um coming or opening, and she was the one that was like kind of passing along to me.
5:25
SPEAKER_01: So when we initially toured and came to visit the space, I you know, I was just excited to kind of like check out a new business.
5:31
SPEAKER_01: And you know, obviously it was like, okay, this sounds like this would be great to kind of get in front of parents, and then as soon as like literally you're touring us around, and like Jill and I were basically on the verge of tears because we're like, oh my god, like our kids need this.
5:45
SPEAKER_01: We were like because Jill also has um a child that has gone through a lot, and um, and same with my son, and um so and we couldn't have met you at literally the more more like perfect time.
5:59
SPEAKER_01: Actually, no, the better time would have been like maybe three years ago.
6:03
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
6:04
SPEAKER_01: But um, you know, a very pivotal time in in my son's life.
6:08
SPEAKER_01: But um, so tell us, um, for those that obviously aren't as familiar, especially if you haven't seen some of um the content that we've already been creating, tell us um, you've already kind of said what brain balance is, but like um tell uh how does a program work and what does that look like?
6:25
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so the program um is based in development and functioning.
6:31
SPEAKER_00: So our first step is working with the individual.
6:35
SPEAKER_00: And again, we work with teen kids, teens, and adults.
6:38
SPEAKER_00: And we start with a discovery visit.
6:40
SPEAKER_00: And at this time, we're really looking at all areas of functioning, um, especially looking at development and just looking at primitive reflexes and then sensory integration or sensory processing, most a lot with the visual system, and then motor skills for sure.
6:57
SPEAKER_00: And then sort of above that is rhythm and timing and coordination.
7:01
SPEAKER_00: So, all of those, if you think of like a pyramid, all of those things are built upon foundations of development.
7:07
SPEAKER_00: So often there's immaturity in development.
7:11
SPEAKER_00: So the discovery visit helps us figure out we know brain bonds can help, but in what ways?
7:16
SPEAKER_00: Right.
7:16
SPEAKER_00: And it's very specific to that individual.
7:19
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
7:19
SPEAKER_00: So there may be symptoms presenting that could be trouble with communication, focus and attention, emotional regulation, um, sometimes just being able to uh not be overstimulated with your sense the sensory piece.
7:36
SPEAKER_00: So those symptoms are why people come to us.
7:38
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
7:39
SPEAKER_00: And it's either calls from parents or call calls from teachers to parents or um just home dynamic.
7:46
SPEAKER_00: And so when they come to us, we're able to outline, okay, here's the areas that the brain is immature, and this is the program that's built for that individual.
7:56
SPEAKER_00: And it's not ever the same.
7:57
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
7:58
SPEAKER_00: Um, because each brain is a gift to unwrap and each person is unique, right?
8:03
SPEAKER_00: So um the program is built upon this foundation.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: And then once we have the plan, we have a length of program.
8:11
SPEAKER_00: So the minimum is 48 sessions.
8:14
SPEAKER_00: That's because it takes some time to get used to being in the center, used to we wear sensory gear, all of that, as you've probably experienced.
8:22
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
8:23
SPEAKER_00: Transitions, that kind of thing, new people, new place.
8:27
SPEAKER_00: So we cannot just be in and out.
8:29
SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
8:30
SPEAKER_00: But at the same time, we we don't want these kids in brain balance forever.
8:34
SPEAKER_00: No, no, for sure.
8:35
SPEAKER_00: Intense customized program to rebalance and reset so that they can go on their way.
8:41
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
8:42
SPEAKER_00: And have things uh come a little bit more easily and smooth their path a bit.
8:47
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
8:48
SPEAKER_00: So they can handle the conditions of school, of life, of you know, uncovering their gifts.
8:53
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
8:54
SPEAKER_00: So that's kind of how we get there.
8:57
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
8:57
SPEAKER_00: And then in session, each hour session, they're working on all of these areas that we've outlined for them using leveling.
9:06
SPEAKER_00: And they do about 30 exercises in one hour.
9:10
SPEAKER_00: Right.
9:10
SPEAKER_00: As you know.
9:11
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
9:12
SPEAKER_00: We keep them moving.
9:13
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
9:13
SPEAKER_00: They're wearing the sensory gear, sensory motor is the main focus, and then cognitive work.
9:18
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
9:19
SPEAKER_00: So just being in the room and following directions and being able to adapt is changing the brain already.
9:26
SPEAKER_00: Right.
9:27
SPEAKER_00: So one step in the room, we're changing the brain.
9:29
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
9:29
SPEAKER_01: Literally.
9:30
SPEAKER_01: Um, well, and if I could kind of jump in, and you can correct me too, but one thing, I mean, this is why I'm so excited.
9:36
SPEAKER_01: Wait to have to have you on the podcast multiple times because there's no way we're gonna fit in everything.
9:40
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I just said a lot of words.
9:42
SPEAKER_01: I know, I know.
9:43
SPEAKER_01: It looks like a lot to digest.
9:44
SPEAKER_01: I mean, please know that you can um obviously defer to Beth as the expert here.
9:48
SPEAKER_01: You can also ask me questions from just our personal experience as well from the parent side.
9:53
SPEAKER_01: I mean, Beth, you obviously are a parent too, but um, but yeah, we're always here for any questions um generally about the program.
10:01
SPEAKER_01: Um I'm literally still asking you questions all the time.
10:03
SPEAKER_01: So, but you know, to kind of uh when we first met and we had our discovery visit and then the assessment, you gave me um one of Dr Dr.
10:14
SPEAKER_01: Melillo's books.
10:16
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
10:16
SPEAKER_01: And um I hadn't heard about it, but I remember I texted a girlfriend of mine who also has a full background in um in education, masters in special education, has family members, um, blah blah blah.
10:27
SPEAKER_01: So I immediately text her because I was like, okay, she knows this world, not out of skepticism, it was just kind of more of like, hey, like, yeah, have you heard of this?
10:34
SPEAKER_01: And she was like, oh my god, Dr.
10:36
SPEAKER_01: Malillo's like a genius.
10:38
SPEAKER_01: I've that book has been on my list.
10:40
SPEAKER_01: And that kind of like gave me that like if she co-signs on it, great, you know what I mean?
10:44
SPEAKER_01: And not that I needed that, but I was just kind of curious to to know about this world, right, a little bit more.
10:51
SPEAKER_01: And as I was reading his book and learning a little bit more about primitive reflexes, because again, this isn't my world, you know, and I'm um, you know, I was the way that I sometimes explain it to parents when they're asking me about it, again, I will never achieve it as eloquently as you do, but I kind of go back to the book because he talks about um, again, the primitive reflexes, and that if those primitive reflexes are still present after the age of one or um not integrated, that that can cause neuro uh developmental um sorry, neurological and developmental challenges.
11:28
SPEAKER_01: And that's fact.
11:28
SPEAKER_01: That's not proprietary research to brain balance or Dr.
11:31
SPEAKER_01: Balil.
11:32
SPEAKER_01: That is that has been studied, that is factual, right?
11:35
SPEAKER_01: And um, so it was interesting reading that because I know that PTs look at that, um, educators look at that.
11:41
SPEAKER_01: Um but then you know I realized he himself was interested so specifically in that and hence created this program to help integrate these.
11:50
SPEAKER_01: So when we sat down and you're explaining all of this, and then when we tested Grant and then went over the things, that's when my brain, my brain was like woken up because I was just like, no one, we have never looked at this before, and never would have thought to look at it from this angle, right?
12:11
SPEAKER_01: And I know in general it is newer research in the educational world, but you know, as a parent that's going through a lot of this, I'm like, I'm like, I, you know, it's not even out of desperation.
12:23
SPEAKER_01: It's like I know my child needs help.
12:25
SPEAKER_01: And this, like, again, very holistic, very integrative approach, I was just like, this is quite literally the answer that we never knew we needed.
12:35
SPEAKER_01: And um, so we need to kind of fast forward, like when we when uh when we went over the assessment results, and Grant was like, you know, tested like severe high for like nine out of eleven or nine out of ten, what you know, the exact number um reflexes.
12:52
SPEAKER_01: I was just like, oh my god, like this just it just makes sense given everything that we've gone through.
12:58
SPEAKER_01: And um, so again, when I'm explaining it to parents, you know, is I kind of say the same thing.
13:03
SPEAKER_01: It's you know, you're targeting that.
13:05
SPEAKER_01: And um, the other thing that Dr.
13:08
SPEAKER_01: Malilla was to talking about is the importance of movement, which is obviously what you guys do.
13:12
SPEAKER_01: And this is just sharing my personal experience.
13:15
SPEAKER_01: I remember when I was reading that at first, I was like, well, that's confusing and challenging when I look at Grant specifically.
13:21
SPEAKER_01: When you look at, you know, obviously one kid, because every kid's different.
13:23
SPEAKER_01: I was like, well, Grant was the kid as a baby.
13:26
SPEAKER_01: He hit all of his milestones early.
13:29
SPEAKER_01: And and I was like, and he was a mover.
13:32
SPEAKER_01: He wasn't like a potato on the ground, you know what I mean?
13:35
SPEAKER_01: He wasn't lacking movement.
13:36
SPEAKER_01: He was, you know, rolled over and crawling, um, you know, between three and four months and sitting by five months, and the same day that he sat upright, pulled to stand, and was walking by 10 months, right?
13:48
SPEAKER_01: And um, and then I also have, so then I'm like, well, that's weird because it talks about the importance of movement and that being able to help the brain kind of form those connections.
13:57
SPEAKER_01: So I was like, well, why isn't that the case when I have also friends that also had kids that were early walkers that don't, right?
14:04
SPEAKER_01: And or then the vice versa of the friends that their their babies were in OT because they weren't walking until like 16 months, right?
14:14
SPEAKER_01: And the reality is so like, well, how does that line up?
14:17
SPEAKER_01: And again, it's just we all know that there's genetic predispositions to some of these things, and um, you know, and that literally every kid is different.
14:27
SPEAKER_01: And actually, and I remember one thing that I had asked you about, because I we didn't realize this initially for grant, is that he was yes, diagnosed with developmental delay and a speech delay at two and a half years old.
14:43
SPEAKER_01: But and and I'm kicking myself for not that I I'm not not kicking myself for getting testing um any earlier, um, because to me that can kind of go here or there at this point, but um, you know, his fine motor deficit.
14:58
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
14:58
SPEAKER_01: And you kind of painted this picture, she was like, you know, sometimes that fine motor deficit can look different, right?
15:05
SPEAKER_01: And it can look like the gross motor, what he was kind of which kind of makes sense.
15:10
SPEAKER_01: He naturally has an aptitude for gross motor, naturally.
15:14
SPEAKER_01: Yes, he's interested in it, he loves it, he excels in it, clearly.
15:18
SPEAKER_01: Um, and so it just naturally overshadowed the deficits, but um in that area.
15:24
SPEAKER_01: Um, so we kind of like we had we knew we had two struggle, two pieces that were challenging, but we never kind of fully realized the fine motor challenge until um we kind of started to see it as he was getting into school.
15:37
SPEAKER_01: Right.
15:37
SPEAKER_01: Um so, anyways, it's just seeing all of those pieces come together um has really opened my eyes to the power of that.
15:48
SPEAKER_01: Because again, my kid is a very active kid, but um and and like I said, has been moving, but it's it's moving in these ways that help integrate the brain.
16:00
SPEAKER_00: That's right.
16:01
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:01
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:02
SPEAKER_00: And I mean, you're you know, you the way you described it, of course, these kids a lot of times have a lot of strengths and they appear to have it all together in some ways, but then in other ways they could be immature.
16:17
SPEAKER_00: And so when you have that disconnect, often it affects their confidence and their willingness to take on new things.
16:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:25
SPEAKER_00: Because they're so, you know, talented or advanced in many ways.
16:29
SPEAKER_00: Right.
16:30
SPEAKER_00: And then when you have this underdevelopment or immaturity, it just starts to work on them a bit.
16:36
SPEAKER_00: Um and we usually see that, you know, when they start school.
16:39
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:39
SPEAKER_00: Because there's naturally many different brains in a classroom.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: Oh, for sure.
16:46
SPEAKER_00: And so it's you'll see, you know, all different types that are like super active, but maybe don't raise their hand.
16:54
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:54
SPEAKER_00: Um, or you have kids that are super fidgety and are calling out all the time.
16:58
SPEAKER_00: You know, so there's lots of ways that we can see the imbalance.
17:03
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah.
17:04
SPEAKER_00: And that's and again, all of us can create more ease, more balance, um, more equilibrium so that we can be our best.
17:12
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
17:13
SPEAKER_00: And as adults, we kind of figure that out.
17:15
SPEAKER_00: Right.
17:15
SPEAKER_00: Right?
17:15
SPEAKER_00: Like we figure out ways that help us reset, rebalance.
17:19
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then everything seems a little bit more manageable.
17:24
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
17:24
SPEAKER_00: But for kids, it's just what's on the inside, the root causes, which you kind of talked about, the root causes are what we're interested in.
17:33
SPEAKER_00: Because we cannot see them.
17:34
SPEAKER_00: No.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: No.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: We look at the visual system a lot.
17:37
SPEAKER_00: Right.
17:37
SPEAKER_00: Because how kids and all of us take in information through our visual system can affect our equilibrium, it can affect our processing, can uh uh, you know, social cues, lots of things that are happening through our visual system.
17:50
SPEAKER_00: And so we really look into that and we give them practice um with with just the all of their senses.
17:57
SPEAKER_00: Right.
17:57
SPEAKER_00: And helping organize that so that they can communicate, so that they can be in the world, so that they can have friends and they can separate from mom.
18:06
SPEAKER_00: You know, all of that.
18:07
SPEAKER_00: Right.
18:08
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, great points.
18:10
SPEAKER_01: Um I know.
18:11
SPEAKER_01: And um what was the other thing I was gonna say about um it was just on the tip of my tongue.
18:17
SPEAKER_01: Um but well, and to kind of paint Grant's picture again a little bit, um, like I said, we um were with infants and toddlers.
18:26
SPEAKER_01: Um around seven months he started to babble and then it started to kind of go away.
18:31
SPEAKER_01: At the time that when at that at sorry, at seven months old, we had found out he had a peanut allergy and started the OIT treatment at the same time.
18:39
SPEAKER_01: Again, I don't believe association equals correlation.
18:42
SPEAKER_01: I think you know, and um, but the um just orally, clearly a lot was going on for him, um, given the allergy and the treatment.
18:51
SPEAKER_01: And again, the other reality is, you know, there's that's a no-retreat, but and there's no way to know that there's uh and anyways, I'm not.
18:58
SPEAKER_01: There's just there's a lot going on for him at that age.
19:00
SPEAKER_01: Right.
19:01
SPEAKER_01: And um, so we eventually got connected with infants and toddlers closer to around 14 months.
19:06
SPEAKER_01: Um, because he only had one word, one to five.
19:10
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if that he had one to five.
19:12
SPEAKER_01: I think if it was yeah, anyways, and then by two and a half, um, that's when we get you get tested.
19:17
SPEAKER_01: Um, and that's when we found out they had a developmental delay.
19:20
SPEAKER_01: We did um the rec program with the county, um, and he then did pre-K and now he's in kindergarten.
19:29
SPEAKER_01: And it's definitely been an evolution.
19:31
SPEAKER_01: And last year, um, when we tried to put him at my daughter's school, um, we brought we reinstated his IEP and we brought in pals, and we just the IEP team basically realized um that he needed more support, and that's when we brought him back to the county to have more of those in-house supports.
19:48
SPEAKER_01: And at that time, I was just like, you know what?
19:50
SPEAKER_01: Um, I was like, I know he's gonna get a little bit more support in the county, but I was like, screw it.
19:54
SPEAKER_01: Like, I want to, I I want to need to do try to, I'm just gonna try to do everything I can for this kid.
19:59
SPEAKER_01: And you know, so we signed him up for um speech therapy and oh um and OT and even doing some pelvic floor therapy.
20:06
SPEAKER_01: Um, and and it's been a lot, so it's been a lot this year, and um, you know, uh a lot of emotions for, you know, my household, my husband and I, and I know that there's so many parents that feel and this is oh, this was the point that I was gonna say.
20:21
SPEAKER_01: It was like saving me that um when I'm talking to some of my other parents or things like that, I feel like Grant to me is the kid that I feel like he's the poster child of the kid that will fall through the cracks because he even though we haven't sought out formal testing yet, you know, I'm sure at some point we will, um he doesn't have um a a direct diagnosis at this time.
20:47
SPEAKER_01: And he can kind of float along enough to get by, right?
20:51
SPEAKER_01: Like he um his social skills have improved enough that he can kind of be in a social setting and and it works.
20:58
SPEAKER_01: Um he can now detach better, right?
21:01
SPEAKER_01: Um he can be in a classroom because he definitely likes routine and is a rule follower and a people pleaser, but you know, those are all such surface level things that um, you know, last year as I kind of was like starting to see this evolve, it kind of made me a little terrified because I was just like, uh, you know, how am I gonna help this kid succeed?
21:22
SPEAKER_01: You know, I was like, and so anyway, so that's um when in finding out this program, I was just like so kind of especially after doing kind of like the not again, there's all of these modalities are helpful.
21:37
SPEAKER_01: Correct.
21:37
SPEAKER_01: That's you know, I'm not this is not pinpointing one or the versus the other.
21:41
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I think I I just personally felt so relieved because while those things were helpful for him, we were still struggling.
21:49
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
21:49
SPEAKER_01: And that's the point.
21:50
SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, like for instance, when we finished speech, when we got to the end of it, they were like he doesn't um meet the criteria for a language disorder or any real actual language language deficits.
22:04
SPEAKER_01: Um and OT could still recognize uh a fine motor deficit, but again, not strong enough for like a clear.
22:13
SPEAKER_01: So that's what I mean by like he can easily fall through the cracks.
22:16
SPEAKER_01: Because then at that point, I was kind of like, well, what do I do?
22:19
SPEAKER_01: And like there's the school, right?
22:20
SPEAKER_01: The school is still helping, but he's you know, four and five, and like these are such crucial years that I'm like, okay, well, like, do I just sit here and pray that you know he'll catch up on his own, and that's and you know, and it's fine?
22:33
SPEAKER_01: And that can and you know, so it's it was just so terrifying to me.
22:38
SPEAKER_01: Um, so but now kind of fast forward, Grant started Brain Balance in like July, and even then um I was nervous because I was worried about us being able to have the consistency because it's summertime and we had vacations, and I was like basically gone half of August.
22:55
SPEAKER_01: But I'm so glad we did because just like you said, we were able to because I know my kid, he struggles with transition, he's way better this year than he was prior, but he struggles with transitions and and uh on all of that.
23:08
SPEAKER_01: So we were able to at least get him adapted to going and doing all the exercises, and we have so many, and actually just edited another beautiful video that was actually from like August time, and um, where you can hear him like literally saying this is hard, and um, and I bet you it in now when he does that same exercise, yes, not a single problem, you know.
23:33
SPEAKER_01: Um, so anyway, so it was good that even if like we felt like we couldn't nail the consistency the way that we wanted to, we were like, I was like, I think if we can just get him in there, get him used to everything, acclimated.
23:45
SPEAKER_01: So when school starts, we've at least gotten a little something.
23:48
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
23:48
SPEAKER_01: And it is, I mean, and literally since then, um, I mean, yeah, I think the summertime progress was probably a little bit slower for a couple of reasons, but I mean, because it's gonna the kids getting acclimated.
23:58
SPEAKER_01: I'm not gonna expect like nothing is linear, you know?
24:03
SPEAKER_01: No, yes, and um but I just feel like the waves since then, it's just it's it's sometimes even hard to put into words, you know.
24:13
SPEAKER_01: Um there's so many, like I said, and that's what I think is so cool about this program is because I'm seeing like success in several areas, not just language, not just fine motor, or um, in our case, like some potty things here and there, you know what I mean?
24:31
SPEAKER_01: Like um in social, emotional, like you know, one thing that I think is like the coolest thing that was not happening this summer.
24:37
SPEAKER_01: Obviously, he wasn't in school, but he still wasn't really giving us a lot of feedback.
24:41
SPEAKER_01: Is historically for two years, whenever my husband and I asked Graham about, like, hey, how was school?
24:46
SPEAKER_01: What did you do today?
24:47
SPEAKER_01: He would always shut down.
24:48
SPEAKER_01: No, I don't want to talk about it.
24:50
SPEAKER_01: Like, or leave me alone, I need a minute, blah, blah, blah.
24:52
SPEAKER_01: And then he would never voluntarily give information.
24:55
SPEAKER_01: Or the other option is like you would ask him a question because he struggles with QA um and W questions, that if you ask him something, he would respond inappropriately, meaning his answer is not correct related to um the question.
25:11
SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, they're like, oh, my favorite color is blue, you know what I mean?
25:14
SPEAKER_01: Um, and now A, he he voluntarily is telling us about his day.
25:22
SPEAKER_01: What unprompted.
25:23
SPEAKER_01: He's telling us about classmates at school, what he did today.
25:27
SPEAKER_01: The thing this week is like, mom, next week is gonna be October.
25:31
SPEAKER_01: This week is the end of September, so we're gonna flip over the county.
25:34
SPEAKER_01: Like, I was I was like, I know that he knows like what months are and days are, but yeah, just like a marker and time.
25:41
SPEAKER_01: Literally no, and is voluntarily giving me that information, whereas like literally even six months ago, just trying to, and I know that's why his teacher struggled, right?
25:51
SPEAKER_01: His because they're are trying to assess him.
25:53
SPEAKER_01: They're like, like, we know he's smart, but if you to retrieve it is very challenging.
25:58
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
25:59
SPEAKER_01: And it's um it's just been so awesome to see.
26:03
SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's amazing.
26:04
SPEAKER_00: I know.
26:04
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and it's great to hear the transition to school has been been um you know successful because often that can be really a hard time.
26:13
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah.
26:14
SPEAKER_00: You know, leaving summertime, leaving schedules and new people, new um surroundings.
26:21
SPEAKER_00: And I think that you did such a great job getting him there in August, even though there was, you know, some some time away from brain balance.
26:29
SPEAKER_00: Like when he comes back, he can get right back into it because he does like routine.
26:33
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
26:34
SPEAKER_00: And that set him up for following directions, yeah, you know, being with other kids, other adults, other coaches in and you know, multi-step uh communication.
26:44
SPEAKER_00: And then when he got to school, he kind of like already had some confidence built.
26:49
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
26:49
SPEAKER_00: And so that he he did not feel like he was behind or different or whatever it is.
26:55
SPEAKER_00: Like he's taking it on.
26:57
SPEAKER_00: Right.
26:57
SPEAKER_00: And so I do think that part of that was your commitment to getting him there and doing some of the program and just allowing him space and time to get used to a new program.
27:08
SPEAKER_00: And literally, we've seen his brain change in a short amount of time.
27:12
SPEAKER_00: Um, and some of the things that you were talking about, like symptom-based approaches, for sure, they're going to serve the individual.
27:20
SPEAKER_00: It takes, but it takes longer.
27:21
SPEAKER_00: Longer.
27:22
SPEAKER_00: And so the integrative approach, it makes sense because dynamic tasks like school, think about older kids driving.
27:29
SPEAKER_00: There's lots of things, dynamic tasks that the brain seems more than just right.
27:34
SPEAKER_00: Correct.
27:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
27:35
SPEAKER_00: Like think about in a classroom, they have to be using auditory processing.
27:38
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
27:38
SPEAKER_00: They have to use their visual visual system, they have to use the language area of the brain, they have to use motor.
27:43
SPEAKER_00: All of those things together are demanding.
27:46
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
27:47
SPEAKER_00: So at Brain Balance, we're trying to find uh a challenge point and then find another.
27:51
SPEAKER_00: And then find a challenge point and then find another.
27:53
SPEAKER_00: And what that does is it builds stamina.
27:55
SPEAKER_00: So you've seen already Grant having more stamina.
27:59
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:00
SPEAKER_00: And you can't even put that's that's like an intangible.
28:04
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:05
SPEAKER_00: And and to be able to see the ripple effect of that like in your family, in in his reports from school.
28:12
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
28:12
SPEAKER_00: I mean, that's so that's so amazing.
28:14
SPEAKER_00: And but also give yourself credit for getting him there.
28:17
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, and committing, you know.
28:19
SPEAKER_00: I mean, you have and he's he has embraced the routine because you set that up as an expectation and a commitment.
28:27
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:27
SPEAKER_00: Is 100% a joint commitment.
28:29
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
28:30
SPEAKER_00: It is the family and brain balance and my team committed to each individual because that is the only way you make progress.
28:38
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:39
SPEAKER_00: And the nutrition piece, too, added in, right, is this wraparound.
28:43
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:43
SPEAKER_00: And, you know, that's that's what we're interested in.
28:45
SPEAKER_00: And it's great to see and hear, and I've even witnessed it with your little guy being able to hold conversations to be interacting with his other his other bear and balanced friends.
28:58
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, work with many different coaches.
29:00
SPEAKER_01: I'd just say adjusted the coaches because we saw that early on.
29:03
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
29:04
SPEAKER_01: And now it's funny because he's even had um a few new coaches recently that like yeah, he just rolls right with it now.
29:12
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
29:13
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
29:13
SPEAKER_00: And imagine that can be used, that can be, you know, transferred to these are literally lifestyles.
29:19
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
29:20
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
29:20
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
29:20
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know what's funny, I was just thinking of an example of last year with Grant being pre-K, and when they're in the county, they're always talking about um, you know, um obviously we're doing the IP review, and I remember they were asking if we wanted um him to be a bus rider.
29:37
SPEAKER_01: And um we've debated that in our household, but again, back in like the spring, we were like, you know, Grant is has historically um struggled with um self advocacy.
29:47
SPEAKER_01: That was a problem last year because he would kind of like not he was not mute, but he like wouldn't really talk a lot because he didn't have s um confidence in I I don't want to say his speaking, but But I think being able to get his needs met and communicated effectively.
30:04
SPEAKER_01: Um, because I know that for instance he still was struggling with retrieval and you know processing.
30:10
SPEAKER_01: So um, which that meant, you know, I just remember talking through that, we were like, he couldn't just be a regular bus rider.
30:17
SPEAKER_01: He would have uh which he did qualify for um essentially like the assisted, um, which would be the smaller bus and things like that.
30:26
SPEAKER_01: Um even that was nerve-wracking because I was like, well, I know how he does with transitions.
30:29
SPEAKER_01: I was like, even if he qualifies, I was like, I don't know that he's gonna even get on that bus.
30:33
SPEAKER_01: You know, like that's great.
30:35
SPEAKER_01: That's like he would qualify, but because yeah, I mean, because from their standpoint, they were like, we don't trust not trust isn't the wrong word, we don't feel that Grant could be able to like, you know, say, hey, I need to get on my bus, or my bus is blank, you know what I mean?
30:52
SPEAKER_01: Which they were right, they were very right, you know, and it's wild to see the the growth in which he's had to even now, you know.
31:02
SPEAKER_01: Um, and then when you're talking about family, okay, I okay, I didn't just do this just because of you uh coming here today.
31:09
SPEAKER_01: You'll you'll laugh.
31:10
SPEAKER_01: I have a little spot of peppermint right here.
31:13
SPEAKER_01: And maybe that'll have to be one of our future podcasts talking about how like we as more parents and things like that, because um that is kind of the um olfactory sense that you guys integrate and use.
31:24
SPEAKER_01: I mean, uh, and and peppermint has been known to show that.
31:27
SPEAKER_01: So that's like one thing that's a stimulating sense for brain alertness.
31:31
SPEAKER_01: Alertness.
31:32
SPEAKER_01: And um, I was like, you know what?
31:34
SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm gonna do that a little bit.
31:35
SPEAKER_01: And I and I really like it, and I can still kind of like smell it.
31:38
SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, uh, but you're right, it is like you're absolutely right about how, yeah, we knew that we had to commit to this.
31:48
SPEAKER_01: And admittedly, I was even a little nerve-wracked to do it because just committing to the one to two sessions a week that we were doing um at the other program at the beginning of the year was a lot for our family.
32:00
SPEAKER_01: We were also kind of I don't want to say we were in a bad mindset, but we were just we were feeling a little downtrodden.
32:07
SPEAKER_01: So we probably probably how the that all that was painted in our minds a little bit.
32:11
SPEAKER_01: Sure.
32:11
SPEAKER_01: So we're like, how do we go from that to now X number of sessions a week?
32:15
SPEAKER_01: And it's funny because now it feels like it's just part of our lives.
32:19
SPEAKER_01: Like this is part of our lives, like he looks forward to going to it.
32:22
SPEAKER_01: Um and uh, you know, it just it just feels like part of our routine.
32:27
SPEAKER_01: And obviously, I know like that comes from my um perception of it and the way that I've built it into our family, you know, and so he f naturally, you know, was able to acclimate in that way.
32:40
SPEAKER_01: Um so you know, it it's and initially, like I said, those first, you know, yes, we were like traveling and um struggled with little consistency with being able to come, but I think I was so mentally prepared for that slower progress, um, especially for a long program because of what we were used to, but it was kind of like you know, where it's like slow, slow slow, slow, slow, and then it kind of starts to explode.
33:07
SPEAKER_01: And I'm not saying this is I'm you know, I don't know what the data shows for all your kids because every kid is different and it's gonna look different, but for my child, that has been our experience, and it's beautifully correlated with the start of school, and it's just been so beautiful to witness.
33:26
SPEAKER_00: And I think just to add on, you know, I talk to parents a lot, um, people that are interested doing the program, but in general, just parents.
33:35
SPEAKER_00: I'm on the phone with them, I'm you know, meeting, you know, just through the community, and you know, often I'm I'm trying to help them see or just realize that is never a good time, right?
33:48
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot life happens, right?
33:50
SPEAKER_00: But at the same time, if nothing changes, nothing changes.
33:54
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes doing something and like brain balance and maybe pausing or just taking a break for the child too, because sometimes they're doing they're doing so many things.
34:04
SPEAKER_00: And so if they're doing brain balance, it's incorporating so many different parts of them that it brings all of that together for them.
34:14
SPEAKER_00: So of course, there's going to be um some balance, literally, yeah, and some integration.
34:21
SPEAKER_00: And that has many, has many, many effects on your nervous system, yeah, um, communication.
34:27
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, families and parents want to hear um that there is hope, right?
34:35
SPEAKER_00: And all the things that they're doing, they're these kids are carded around so many different places to many symptom-based approaches, or they're given a report or an eval and they're said to do all of these different things.
34:47
SPEAKER_00: Right.
34:48
SPEAKER_00: And it's cobbled together and it it works, but it takes a long time.
34:53
SPEAKER_00: It does take a long time.
34:55
SPEAKER_01: And I think that's part of how we were feeling.
34:58
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
34:58
SPEAKER_00: Right?
34:58
SPEAKER_01: We're like, we're we're going from this to the And then you're like, it's one more thing.
35:02
SPEAKER_00: That's how it felt.
35:03
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and I remember you saying that.
35:04
SPEAKER_00: You were like, uh, you know, we've already done all of these things, and now this is another thing, and I need to come three times a week.
35:11
SPEAKER_00: Like you were very honest about that.
35:13
SPEAKER_00: And as parents, they're like, I can't do one more thing.
35:16
SPEAKER_00: I can't drive, I can't cart my the sibling around, you know, and we understand that.
35:21
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
35:22
SPEAKER_00: And we work with families a lot on scheduling, we're super flexible on that.
35:26
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we're also like, if you know, you're investing in in this, you're investing in your child, and we know if you get them here, they're gonna change their brain.
35:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
35:35
SPEAKER_00: And so we're going to help you every step of the way.
35:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, and we know it's a lot, and we really try to wrap around the family.
35:42
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'm super accessible.
35:45
SPEAKER_00: I I love talking to parents about even if they're stuck, right?
35:49
SPEAKER_00: Like if a child has coming to brain balance and they're all of a sudden plateauing or having a start point, like we're involved in that.
35:56
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
35:56
SPEAKER_00: Or if a behavior starts to pop up because we're making change, yeah, we are right then there with them.
36:03
SPEAKER_00: In fact, if we see behavior, we're we're encouraged by that because it means we're making some change here.
36:08
SPEAKER_00: Right.
36:08
SPEAKER_01: And then we talked about that with France.
36:10
SPEAKER_01: And you guys actually said that from the jump.
36:12
SPEAKER_01: They're like, don't be surprised if like we kind of like that grittiness, right?
36:16
SPEAKER_01: And and we've okay, and I it's not fair.
36:18
SPEAKER_01: I did mention this progress was slow and then shot up.
36:21
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
36:21
SPEAKER_01: If you zoomed in, it would still look like this.
36:24
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
36:24
SPEAKER_01: Do you know what I mean?
36:25
SPEAKER_01: Like that's that's the reality.
36:26
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and of course, like any, it's not linear for sure.
36:30
SPEAKER_00: And development is not linear.
36:32
SPEAKER_00: And but when the trajectory goes off course, um, and that is kind of what we're looking for.
36:37
SPEAKER_00: If these gaps become bigger and more widespread or more global, then we then then things start to catch up to them.
36:47
SPEAKER_00: Um, and often, you know, we'll see teenagers um that maybe have held it together or blend it in or been through the cracks, and then all of a sudden they're they want to drive, they want to be independent, they want to go to college, but they everything is just not super mature, even though they have many gifts to offer, but we need to bring the gaps a little closer.
37:08
SPEAKER_00: We're not going to close every gap.
37:10
SPEAKER_00: No.
37:10
SPEAKER_00: No.
37:10
SPEAKER_00: But we're going to hopefully help them be in more balance, literally, in more equilibrium, so they can be their best.
37:16
SPEAKER_00: Right.
37:17
SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh.
37:18
SPEAKER_01: And now I I was gonna I want to ask you this that I because I brought it to you too, because beginning of the school year, we had the kids' um uh annual doctor's appointments, and I hadn't actually seen my specific pediatrician.
37:31
SPEAKER_01: I mean, we've had our annuals, but you know, sometimes they rotate in the practice, and so I was catching her up on, I was like, we had like a like, okay, here's here's Brock Grant, how much time do you have?
37:41
SPEAKER_01: Right?
37:42
SPEAKER_01: And um catching her up on a lot of things, Grant, right?
37:45
SPEAKER_01: And um, and you already said that in brain balance you don't have to have a diagnosis, right?
37:50
SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, what are your what do you say to parents about that are like, you know, should I be getting my kid tested?
37:59
SPEAKER_01: Like, how do you help parents?
38:00
SPEAKER_01: I mean, again, I I'll speak to what you've you told me because for my kid, that's kind of what made sense for me.
38:07
SPEAKER_01: But um, how do you help kind of parents sort of navigate that world?
38:11
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so we are not um, we're non-medical, we are not gonna we're not diagnosing for sure.
38:18
SPEAKER_02: Right, right.
38:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, what we are what we are meeting these kids with fresh eyes, yeah, whether they have a diagnosis or not.
38:25
SPEAKER_00: If there's a parent who is working with us and we've been with their child a lot and we've seen them in different situations, and they come to me and say, you know what, we need some more information on how this child learns or what their communication is, then I would say, Yes.
38:42
SPEAKER_00: Like here are some of my, you know, some of the people in my network, or here's some people that I can recommend if you would like more information.
38:50
SPEAKER_00: Right.
38:51
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes more information can uh serve the child for getting services.
38:55
SPEAKER_00: Right.
38:56
SPEAKER_01: I was gonna say, like that can exactly directly impact.
38:59
SPEAKER_00: And that's and that's that's okay too.
39:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also sometimes when there's um more information, it can be it can bog down the family.
39:09
SPEAKER_00: Um, but of course, getting more information, some families want that.
39:13
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
39:13
SPEAKER_00: And if they come to me and they have an evaluation but they don't want to share it with me, that's okay.
39:19
SPEAKER_00: Because again, I'm seeing them with fresh eyes and I'm going to see how they're functioning.
39:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
39:24
SPEAKER_00: And in this way, I can figure out how we can help.
39:26
SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
39:27
SPEAKER_00: Um, and same thing, you know, without an eval, a lot of times they're given many different paths, and maybe there's a waiting list.
39:35
SPEAKER_00: Right.
39:35
SPEAKER_00: Maybe there's even a waiting list to get tested.
39:37
SPEAKER_01: No, exactly.
39:38
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
39:38
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, we're we're trying to understand uh how they are today.
39:44
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
39:45
SPEAKER_00: And I want to meet them where they are to take them where I know they can go and where they what their potential is.
39:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
39:52
SPEAKER_00: So, but 100%, we have lots of um neuropsychologists that we work with um and that I read a lot of reports.
40:00
SPEAKER_00: Right.
40:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh, for sure.
40:01
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you guys will still take all of that information.
40:03
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I still provide still give you guys grants life story.
40:06
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, yeah.
40:07
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, that's helpful.
40:08
SPEAKER_01: Helpful in painting the picture.
40:09
SPEAKER_00: And also we work with other providers.
40:11
SPEAKER_00: So if a child has a therapist or another provider, um, then we work with them because in fact, the the therapy or whatever they're doing will work more efficiently.
40:21
SPEAKER_00: Right.
40:21
SPEAKER_01: No, exactly, because you want it to be collaborative, right?
40:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
40:25
SPEAKER_00: And also it's like pouring into a bucket, but if the bucket has holes in it, then the family is like, Well, I'm doing all these things, right?
40:32
SPEAKER_00: So Brain Balance is we're trying to help, you know, solidify the bucket so that when you do add on therapies or services that they work and they stick.
40:41
SPEAKER_00: Right.
40:42
SPEAKER_00: And then everyone has a better chance to have success.
40:45
SPEAKER_00: Behavior, you know, we see a lot of behavior, um, and behavior therapies or you know, just ways to work with behavior.
40:53
SPEAKER_00: We're working in tandem with brain balance because that way we know, okay, a behavior is a symptom.
40:59
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
40:59
SPEAKER_00: What's going on under the surface?
41:01
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
41:01
SPEAKER_00: What's what's the root cause?
41:03
SPEAKER_00: Because behavior isn't just behavior.
41:05
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, exactly.
41:07
SPEAKER_01: Well, and kind of speaking of that, like we're raising kids in a very different world.
41:11
SPEAKER_01: Um, I know you can directly speak to that with your daughter, but you know, with more screen time, higher stress, less outdoor play.
41:18
SPEAKER_01: How are you seeing those things affect development and what can parents do to help?
41:23
SPEAKER_00: Amazing question.
41:25
SPEAKER_00: So one is motor drives cognition.
41:30
SPEAKER_00: The more motor a child has, that what that is, you know, intentional, um, but also unstructured play, that's going to help cognition.
41:41
SPEAKER_00: So we want kids playing and we want them playing outside.
41:46
SPEAKER_00: We want them playing without structure, without even parents intervening, right?
41:51
SPEAKER_00: Um, the more we can do that, the better our children will be um performing.
41:57
SPEAKER_00: Right.
41:58
SPEAKER_00: Um screen time, it's it is it is a challenge, um, especially for kids with neurodiverse um presentations, because a lot of times it's calming for a child um to be on a screen or for behavior, it might be a reward, or it might be a way to work with um non-preferred tasks, things like that.
42:22
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
42:23
SPEAKER_00: So the screen time with limitations is okay.
42:28
SPEAKER_00: Like there's no way a parent is gonna be like, no screens ever.
42:31
SPEAKER_01: That's really we're not here to villainize.
42:34
SPEAKER_00: No, but we need to be intentional about it.
42:37
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
42:37
SPEAKER_00: And we need to be able to help the child know when it can be used and how it's a tool, not a toy.
42:44
SPEAKER_00: Right.
42:45
SPEAKER_00: And that, you know, when we are engaging with a screen, it is changing our brain.
42:51
SPEAKER_00: And we have seen that with indiv with children, with teenagers.
42:55
SPEAKER_03: Right.
42:56
SPEAKER_00: So we need to understand that our children have every potential, they have every opportunity, but we need to be intentional about what we're putting in front of them.
43:07
SPEAKER_00: Right.
43:08
SPEAKER_00: And so that includes nutrition, you know, things like that.
43:12
SPEAKER_00: Like they're, you know, obviously it's in the news a lot, you know, processed foods and things that we're adding in.
43:18
SPEAKER_00: But again, families are busy.
43:19
SPEAKER_00: They're just trying to get these kids nutrients.
43:22
SPEAKER_00: I know, I know.
43:23
SPEAKER_00: It's just as a mom, like you know, it's just fuel, right?
43:27
SPEAKER_00: But and so, and if also they're picky and they are rich, it can be so challenging.
43:32
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so we are trying, you know, we've seen that at Brain Balance.
43:35
SPEAKER_00: So we're trying to help families with the nutrition aspect.
43:38
SPEAKER_00: Right.
43:39
SPEAKER_00: So to go back to your question, yes, our kids' brains have changed, but it doesn't mean it has to stay like that.
43:44
SPEAKER_00: Right.
43:45
SPEAKER_00: And in fact, they're growing up in a digital age and teaching them managing that is how we can serve them best.
43:52
SPEAKER_00: Right.
43:52
SPEAKER_00: And we can also take into account brain health now.
43:56
SPEAKER_00: Right.
43:56
SPEAKER_00: We don't want to wait until there's an issue necessarily.
44:01
SPEAKER_00: Right.
44:01
SPEAKER_00: Like, and that goes for older people as well.
44:03
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah.
44:04
SPEAKER_00: You know, like taking care of our brain is like taking care of your heart.
44:07
SPEAKER_00: And if we are doing that, then of course longevity is involved, but you're enjoying your life more.
44:13
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
44:14
SPEAKER_00: Um, and that is incorp incorp incorporating like all the different things in your, you know, the five domains of brain health.
44:22
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
44:22
SPEAKER_00: It's not just one thing.
44:23
SPEAKER_00: Right.
44:24
SPEAKER_01: I want to be part of the pilot program that you roll out for parents and adults.
44:28
SPEAKER_01: Not, I mean, yeah, yeah, there's the senior idea, right?
44:31
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
44:31
SPEAKER_01: I want to be like the the middle portion, right?
44:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we have an adult program, but actually I've been thinking about that like parent-child, because every time I hear from parents on the phone, either it's one or both parents that are struggling with neurodiverse um conditions or differences.
44:48
SPEAKER_00: And a lot of times they're diagnosed later.
44:52
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then also they've been maybe on medication when they were younger, and they do not want their child to be on medication.
44:58
SPEAKER_00: So it's like we're they're looking at other ways to help.
45:02
SPEAKER_01: Right, because we kind of want to walk the walk and um not just for modeling sake, but realizing like, oh, like just a little peppermint thing.
45:09
SPEAKER_01: I'm like, this isn't just about like helping him.
45:11
SPEAKER_01: I'm like, this is something that, yeah, that can be helpful to all of us.
45:14
SPEAKER_01: I mean, I myself have like been going through again, and the nutrition piece is is definitely an evolving thing, right?
45:20
SPEAKER_01: It's not like a black and white, you just go into perfect nutrition.
45:24
SPEAKER_01: But you know, I found out that I had a thyroid issues, so I've also been slowly trying to, you know, move away from less processed foods in the house in general, moving into a little bit more organic, just you know, doing that as much as we can.
45:37
SPEAKER_01: It's not gonna be perfect, especially for our kids who love just all the little goodies and things, but monitoring that, right?
45:44
SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, and I think the word of the day quite literally is it is balance when it comes to let's say it's it's with nutrition, right?
45:52
SPEAKER_01: And and same with the screen time, because we're you don't you also don't I feel like we don't want parents to know that it's not about an you know, if once we start creating the all or nothing, like oh my god, or same thing with the activity, because I know that there are a lot of parents like, okay, well then I'm gonna throw my kids into, you know, tons of sports and activities.
46:09
SPEAKER_01: Like, you know, it is literally about striking a balance.
46:13
SPEAKER_01: You you know, um, it's it's not serving our children to be running around to crazy activities all day, every day throughout the week and or starving them from you know from no screen time because then you know they are growing up with this digital age, like we have to show them how we can create healthy relationships and boundaries with these things.
46:33
SPEAKER_01: Um they need practice, yeah.
46:36
SPEAKER_00: And also if you have kids that are rigid or they have cognitive inflexibility, once you start something and they it becomes habitual, it's really hard to change.
46:46
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
46:47
SPEAKER_00: Um that's I know this.
46:48
SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I know this.
46:50
SPEAKER_00: Um but think about for adults too.
46:53
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah, right?
46:54
SPEAKER_00: Like if you're changing too many things at once, it's the chances are it's not going to happen.
46:58
SPEAKER_00: So, all or nothing, you're right, it does not work.
47:02
SPEAKER_00: No.
47:02
SPEAKER_00: So, how do we reach steps along the way?
47:05
SPEAKER_00: And again, like my word is intentional.
47:08
SPEAKER_00: How are we being intentional to reach balance?
47:11
SPEAKER_00: Right.
47:12
SPEAKER_00: And we're we're supporting families on in with that for sure.
47:16
SPEAKER_00: Um, but again, they're little people who have what they want, preferred tasks, preferred foods, whatever it is.
47:22
SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
47:23
SPEAKER_00: If they get stuck on that, then it's going to take a while.
47:26
SPEAKER_00: And like part of brain balance, actually, we hear a lot that a child will try something new, try to eat something new.
47:32
SPEAKER_00: Because that and that's part of the brain executive function wise, like cognitive flexibility.
47:37
SPEAKER_00: Oh, the cognitive yes.
47:39
SPEAKER_00: So if we're working on that from the inside out, we could tell the kid if they weren't doing brain balance or if they weren't quite ready, like, oh, just try it.
47:46
SPEAKER_00: Don't worry, just try it.
47:47
SPEAKER_00: You'll like it.
47:48
SPEAKER_00: They're not going to do that.
47:50
SPEAKER_01: Oh, not in any universe.
47:52
SPEAKER_00: You'll just like you'll just be like trying, trying, trying, right?
47:55
SPEAKER_00: And and because they're not ready for that executive function.
47:58
SPEAKER_00: No, no.
47:59
SPEAKER_00: They're they're but they're immature.
48:01
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
48:01
SPEAKER_00: So when we work on the thing that things that are going on under the surface, all of a sudden we will get reports from families, like we were at the restaurant and they tried something new, or they ordered for themselves, or they chose what they wanted that was not always the same thing.
48:18
SPEAKER_00: Like that's huge.
48:19
SPEAKER_00: That's real life transference of what we're doing.
48:22
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
48:22
SPEAKER_00: And, you know, that's that's so great to hear.
48:25
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
48:25
SPEAKER_00: And it's encouraging for families, encouraging for us, because we we see what we see, but then when we get reports like that, is like it's so meaningful.
48:33
SPEAKER_01: I know, I know.
48:34
SPEAKER_01: And well, and I know that we gotta wrap up here too, but um, I forgot um c about about the cognitive flexibility piece too, because I mean, literally, that's one of the the big things that I had mentioned too during his discovery and assessment, because I was like, we and that's I think one of the things that we were struggling with at the beginning of the year when we had wrapped speech in OT, where like we're just feel like like that piece, you know, I I could feel more, but I was just like, we're we're not being able to make movement in all these other areas because of a lot of this inflexibility um and him shutting down, and it was affecting so many things.
49:11
SPEAKER_01: And I even told you, like in in almost like tears, that I was like, it's affecting our families.
49:15
SPEAKER_01: I feel like it's affecting my relationship with my daughter because she sees that basically I feel like I have to give in to my son, even though I we my husband and I never created our family to like let our child rule the roots, but it's kind of like it ends up being easier to give in to him because it just feels like you know, he puts his foot down and that's it.
49:37
SPEAKER_01: And it like, you know, anyway, so um just the loosening of the inflexibility or moving into flexibility, like that's been kind of like the sleeper.
49:49
SPEAKER_01: Like it's kind of because it's kind of just very slowly, quietly happened, and um, and it's like it's kind of like loosened the reins on all the other things that he's doing.
50:00
SPEAKER_01: And you're right about like even the food and those pieces, and it's so it's just anyways.
50:04
SPEAKER_01: I know we gotta wrap because we could sit here and talk forever, but um it's just first of all, I mean, I have to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this opportunity for my son.
50:13
SPEAKER_01: It's just um if you keep following along, you'll see me.
50:16
SPEAKER_01: I actually we're we're posting our next links update because it's funny when I started that I was like, it was so easy to keep track because if things just felt you know further in between.
50:26
SPEAKER_01: And now I can't keep track because there's so many like little nuggets and pieces.
50:29
SPEAKER_01: Um, but it's so as a parent, I the relief that I feel is is is life-changing.
50:38
SPEAKER_01: And I said to my friend, um, I was like, it feels so I feel like I have my son back.
50:43
SPEAKER_01: When I was like, mm-hmm, that sounds bad.
50:45
SPEAKER_01: I never like lost my son, and it's not that I have um the son that I always wanted.
50:51
SPEAKER_01: It's just I get I'm getting a even better version of him.
50:56
SPEAKER_01: And to see him, you there's just this freeness that's coming out of him, and it's just like it just feels unrestricted.
51:04
SPEAKER_01: Do you know?
51:05
SPEAKER_01: And um that's so it just anyways, that's the relief that I feel, the joy that I feel that I'm like, okay, like I for like I'm like now I'm like I feel like he's going to be okay.
51:16
SPEAKER_01: Like I can see, I can see the change happening, and I'm so excited for this process.
51:21
SPEAKER_00: Well, I mean, thank you for trusting us with your son, um, trusting the process um and knowing that he is in good hands and that he, you know, all the time, you know, we know that kids can be held in a box, and if we continue to do that, they can't reach their fullest potential.
51:40
SPEAKER_00: Um, but if you give them opportunities and practice to be in new situations, um, change their brain, you know, take new, try new things, all of that is just bringing them further along.
51:53
SPEAKER_00: And as a parent, like you said, you felt relief or you you somehow found more ease.
51:58
SPEAKER_00: Like that's a greatest gift.
52:00
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
52:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's so wonderful to hear, hear that.
52:04
SPEAKER_00: Um, I see it with my own eyes with Grant, yeah.
52:07
SPEAKER_00: Um, which is he so great, like just seeing him.
52:11
SPEAKER_00: Um, I always say, like, not just survive, but thrive.
52:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
52:14
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
52:15
SPEAKER_00: Like that's huge.
52:16
SPEAKER_01: And I th I I I have to cut myself off, but I was like, sir, that you're so right, because I feel like for the longest time, like or for literally years, we were, especially in the spring, we were surviving.
52:25
SPEAKER_01: We're like, we just need to get we we're just trying to get through.
52:28
SPEAKER_01: And and there's so many parents that I know that are in this program that have been feeling that way, and that, you know, if you're watching, listening, feeling the same way, you know, I guess please reach out, you know.
52:39
SPEAKER_01: Um uh you want to list like the best way for them to get started here?
52:44
SPEAKER_00: Sure, sure.
52:44
SPEAKER_00: Um, so I'm the director.
52:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, we have a a pretty, pretty um uh uh strong uh presence on socials.
52:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so um Brain Balance Baltimore um on Instagram, yep, and then Brain Balance of Greater Baltimore on Facebook.
53:01
SPEAKER_00: Our website is brainbalancebaltimore.com and um I usually answer the phone.
53:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
53:09
SPEAKER_00: You can have a direct line to me.
53:11
SPEAKER_00: Uh if you do have questions about brain balance, ask me.
53:14
SPEAKER_00: Um I know that parents want to do research and that's fine too.
53:17
SPEAKER_00: Do some reading, but I really have perspective on how this program is working firsthand.
53:22
SPEAKER_00: And with my background, I'm able to kind of pull it together and also meet you where you are in the process and as a resource.
53:31
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
53:31
SPEAKER_00: So even if um, you know, even if your child does brain balance or not, like just come to me as a parent parent parent resource or you know, in the community to be supporting kids with neurodevelopmental differences.
53:44
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
53:45
SPEAKER_00: Um, I'm so grateful for you.
53:47
SPEAKER_00: Um, I feel like you really have um helped bring Grant along, but also just help people learn about brain balance and just be in the conversation.
53:57
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
53:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think you're great and you do wonderful things for our community and for moms.
54:02
SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's important that moms feel heard and they feel um included.
54:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
54:08
SPEAKER_00: And because you guys, some of you have been through it.
54:11
SPEAKER_01: Almost everybody if you're a mom, you've been through it.
54:13
SPEAKER_01: You've been through it, it doesn't matter.
54:15
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
54:16
SPEAKER_01: I know.
54:16
SPEAKER_00: So just having having resource, being heard, having people to talk to, yes, a community like, and you're building that.
54:23
SPEAKER_00: So thank you for doing that.
54:25
SPEAKER_00: I I'm really honored to be on this path with you.
54:28
SPEAKER_01: Well, I'm so glad that you're part of our community.
54:32
SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you so much for your time today, Beth.
54:34
SPEAKER_01: And we look forward to having you next time.
54:35
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, see you next time.
54:36
SPEAKER_01: Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Mom Talk Maryland.
54:39
SPEAKER_01: If you loved it, leave a review, share it with a friend, or tag me at the dot ColumbiaMom on Instagram.
54:46
SPEAKER_01: I'd love to hear what you think.
54:47
SPEAKER_01: And don't forget to follow the show so you never miss an episode.
54:50
SPEAKER_01: Until next time, keep showing up, keep supporting local, and keep being the incredible mom, woman, and human that you are.