By: Mike Berkson

An interesting situation occurred this weekend. It was one of those things that you had to laugh at, instead of putting your fist through a wall. I went to the Cubby Bear (Chicago) for a birthday party. The party was on the second floor. So, obviously I had to take the elevator. (Side Bar: The reason this location was chosen was because it was accessible.) The elevator was not a traditional elevator, it was a lift that was converted into an elevator. It was only for people in wheelchairs, not for anyone or anything else. On the way up the ride was fine, a little bit cramped and a little slow, but fine. The party was great, I got to talk with friends and discuss possible venues for Handicap This, all in all a pretty good party. When we were ready to leave, we got in the elevator and one of the staff members pressed the button and turned the key. We were there for a good 30 seconds before we realized that something was wrong. We just thought it was really, really slow. They tried pressing it a few more times, the consensus was that it was frozen. My next thought was the stairs. Unfortunately, the 20 stairs were too narrow and too steep. We did consider having a group of people carrying me down the stairs. What makes this even more difficult is the fact that about 4 years ago, I had back surgery to straightened my spine. In the process they fused 2 titanium rods to my back each one about 18 inches long. This made the situation even more complicated. My safety would have been compromised. Our next option was to call the Fire Department. The staff at the Cubby Bear was more than accommodating. They called people on their day off including the manager, just to help us and they were happy to do it. When the Cubby Bear called the Fire Department and explained the problem, the Fire Department told them that since it was not an “emergency” there was nothing that they could do. The only way that they could come was if I needed to go to the hospital. Needless to say, the whole scenario was beyond comprehension. Luckily, after an hour and a half, the good people at Cubby Bear were able to fix the elevator. Living with Cerebral Palsy, I have had my share of experiences like this, we are no strangers to overcoming adversity. But what would have happened if the elevator did not work?

By John Frisco

To me, Handicap This! means no limitations. Mike epitomizes a severely handicapped young man. Stricken with severe cerebral palsy from birth, Mike has limited use of his body, yet he has successfully challenged those who claimed that “he would not be able to talk or lead a normal life”. Certainly his life is not normal, but Mike embraces and celebrates his life’s challenges and continues to go far beyond his so called “expectations”.

The play’s message is clear: We all have our handicaps; perhaps not as invasive as Mike’s affliction, but we all tend to put limitations on ourselves, thus thwarting our own progress in life. In Handicap This!, Mike shows us that despite the “challenges” we may face, we can go
beyond our personal handicaps and boundlessly live life to its fullest.

This play is a celebration of life and an inspiration to us all! May we all improvise, adapt and overcome!

I hope everybody can come out and experience this incredible production!

See you at the show!

January 21st @ 2pm

January 22nd @ 8pm

January 23rd @ 8pm

Oakton Community College, 1600 Golf Rd.

Studio One

How do you teach a crystal-making project using a Dynavox V?
I sat down with an SLP last week and we began to piece together the elements of a science activity using a Dynavox V that a girl has recently acquired to accommodate her speech. (Note: these ideas could be applied to any AAC - not just a V or VMax). The team of 2 SLP's I am working with on this project are pretty innovative and have used lots of motivating activities and integrated curriculum topics to use as the medium to teach their speech concepts and skills.



No Limits to Learning: Use Fun Activites to Integrate AAC and School Curriculum

The Family Center on Technology and Disability has put up their latest issue for students that are deaf and hard of hearing.

No Limits to Learning: C Print: Technology Research for Deaf and Hard of Hearing on FCTD

The Family Center on Technology and Disability has put up their latest issue for students that are deaf and hard of hearing.

No Limits to Learning: C Print: Technology Research for Deaf and Hard of Hearing on FCTD

I wish I were a Mac User - but I am locked into our Windows PC world in our school districts. As I have been exploring the text to speech options within the iPhone world, I have been getting great tips from readers. The i Speak It app from Zapptek looks promising - if you own a MAC.

No Limits to Learning: i Speak It for Mac and iPhone Text to Speech

I had a late Christmas gift idea shared by a reader that I thought I would add to the gift idea list on my sidebar. If you ever are looking for a gift that has an assistive technology slant to it, check out my sidebar gift list with links.

The wUnderGlow was too fun to pass up. It reminds me of the hotrod cars with the lighting under the running boards - except a wheelchair version and it helps let someone see you coming. It could be very helpful - and I have a first-hand story to prove it!


No Limits to Learning: wUnderGlow LED light: Safety and Fun for Wheelchairs

In my work, I have been seeing an increase in Autism occurances - as has been reported in many studies, like this one from CDC, but I have also seen more incidences of non-verbal children in our schools. I am collabiorating more and more with our SLP's and EI/ECSE Specialists to develop AT supports and strategies. This past fall has been the busiest so far.
I was interested to see a link to an article about a poll by YouGov in the UK, that showed children are reaching the age of 3 without being able to say a word. It also showed that "boys are almost twice as likely to struggle to learn to speak than girls".



No Limits to Learning: Raise in Autism Rates and Non-verbal Rates will Impact AT and SLP Services

After another year winds to a close, I have often been moved deeply. The years, months, days and hours past through my heart and mind like a stamp stuck on paper.
It takes me back to all those moments and times that people’s arrogance and assumptions held me back from what I was trying to do.
Because of my rebelish nature, I was not only able to survive but thrive. I was able to do a lot which people in power, thought was impossible. But it would be very naĂŻve of me not to tell you of the extra effort I have had to spend because of what people in the twentieth century were taught to believe about my disability.
I can’t help but think about these moments going around and around in my head when I reflect about how much time has had to go by. Time that I could have been contributing to a caring world- Time that could have healed all wounds by a simple gesture of acceptance- Time that could have carved out recognition for not just me, but for our whole community.
Instead, I have had to run up over and over again against the electric chair of official stupidity. Of official neglect- And, of voluntarily lowing of self!
I have had to beg time and again, as I have had to explain the obvious to every expert imaginable shape and size.
What I knew was never enough. It had to be done on their terms.
I was labeled and mislabel mentally retarded all because of an IQ test, and people in power who only pretended to know what they were doing.
Fifty-eight years have gone by. Fifty-eight years of sheer hell on earth. Fifty-eight years which I have smiled, grinned, and bared it, and made bearable. For what?
But who will give me my youth back? Who will give me the degree I was so worthy of? And, who will give me the job or recognition I have busted my buns for? Whom, I ask? Whom?
Why do I have to be tide to a stake for someone to gloat over? Why do I have to suffer for someone else’s arrogance? Why did I have to waste my whole life away?

Karen Lynn

Hey guys and gals,
just wanted to throw out some goals and aspirations for the new year.
1) I am going to attempy to write a screen play, based off a few chapters of my current book “The Emotional Struggle”. I’ve got no experience with writing screen plays, but with help of a book called “Story” it should be all that is needed. After that I am going to look into getting a camera and creating it into an indy film, make it the best it can be, and then enter it into some indy film festivals. This has been an idea of mine for a good while now, so I’m interested in how this will play out.
2) I’m gonna start throwing money into my savings acoount, I don’t think it’s ever to late to do that. (Well it might be for some) haha!
3) Be less critical of myself.
4) I wanna meet a great girl, and I won’t settle for anything less than amazing. She has to “Complete” me. that’s a joke.. Don’t freak out, I know no one person is going to complete me, but she had better be pretty darn close to it!
5) I want to be a better public speaking figure, and learn to relax more with a mic in my hand.
6) Give myself the grace I know that I’ve not allowed myself.
7) Be in better shape.
Not care about what people may think of me.
9) Face my fear of dying. (Not sure how that’s going to happen though)
10) Be able to communicate my faith better.
11) Discover what it looks like to have a faith that is not centered around polictics.
12) Learn to quiet my brain, and listen for truth about who I am.
13) Pour myself out, until I’m called home. This is something that is a life long goal.
———————–
Beyond all this I’m working on a second book still, I thought I had a general direction, but I might scrap it all together. Life is crazy, I’m goig to be an uncle, training my new dog NOT to releave himself on my bed or carpet. Please continue to pray for me, our troops, nation and that I might be able to clear my mind and heart.
Love,
-Brandon

by: Elizabeth Antonucci

Handicap This to me means no judgment. There are many situations in our lives where the first thing we do in a new place is judge. Whether you judge yourself or you judge others, the most common reaction in a new situation is judgment. Many people think you can or cannot do something because of the way you look; act, talk, or they stop themselves because of what others might think of them. This show to me helps people look past the outside image and see a person for who they really are. We all have our handicaps; we all have little things about ourselves that we try and hide in order to make ourselves look “normal” so that we can fit in. Mike cannot do that. Mike cannot hide his wheelchair.

I hope everybody can come out and experience this incredible production!

See you at the show!

January 21st @ 2pm

January 22nd @ 8pm

January 23rd @ 8pm

Oakton Community College, 1600 Golf Rd.

Studio One

By Tim Wambach
It means sharing. Sharing one of the most incredible people I know, in Mike Berkson, sharing a creative and talented writer, in Molly Mulcrone, and sharing the most unique relationship that I have ever been apart of. My relationship with Mike.
Since I have met him in 2001 he has never stopped impressing me with his attitude towards life and his sense of humor. That is what Handicap This means to me. It means to have a kick-ass attitude and to have a sense of humor. When you have these tools anything in life is possible.
Our goal with this production is to reach as many people as we possibly can. If you can’t make the shows below and you would like us to bring our message to you we would love to hear from you!
See you at the Show
January 21st 2pm
January 22nd 8pm
January 23rd 8pm
Oakton Community College 1600 Golf Rd.
Studio One

By Mike Berkson
Handicap This means empowerment to me. Living with Cerebral Palsy, too many times I have felt disregarded, chained to my condition. Handicap This gives a voice and a soul to a group of people that I feel is often overlooked and stereotyped. I am excited to share this with both the handicapped community and the able-bodied community. I hope this will open doors, not just for myself, but for others in my situation who have a story to tell. We all should have the opportunity to tell that story. Our audience will get to experience something that they would NEVER be able to experience otherwise. It is rare that the Handicap Community has a platform and a voice. This project builds a bridge between those with physical handicaps and those without.
See you at the show!
January 21st 2pm
January 22nd 8pm
January 23rd 8pm
Oakton Community College 1600 Golf Rd
Studio One

Handicap This Productions is thrilled to announce its world premiere production will be rollin’ out in January of 2010.
We invite you to be a part of this extraordinary theatrical event.
Handicap This!
By Molly Mulcrone
Directed by John Frisco
Choreography by Vanessa Passini
Starring
Mike Berkson & Tim Wambach
With
Kate Tillotson, Elizabeth Antonucci, and Philip Edward Hasso
Premiere Show Dates
Friday, January 22, 2010 at 8pm
Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 8pm
Oakton Community College
Studio One Theatre
1600 Golf Road Des Plaines Illinois 60016
Tickets
$5.00 General Seating
Wheelchairs Free Admission!
Stay tuned for more details!

Rockin’ Conception Rolls To Life

By Molly Mulcrone
In the early morning hours of April 18, 2008, there was a 5.2 earthquake that shook Chicagoland. Later that day, I received the first of many phone calls from Tim Wambach that rocked my little world. Mike and Tim had an idea…
“Mike and I want to take our educational outreach talks and turn them into a two-man show that we can take on the road. Mike was thinking it would be kinda like John Leguizamo’s Freak, only with two guys.”
“And on wheels,” I said. “Literally.”
“Yes!” exclaimed Tim.
This is the day Handicap This Productions was conceived. Our mission is to further the cause of the Keep On Keeping On Foundation with educational and entertaining performance art that raises awareness about people born with severe physical handicaps and inspires individuals to achieve their own goals and dreams.
Our flagship project is the self-titled production, Handicap This!, wherein a series of vignettes have been strung together to highlight the incredible relationship between Mike Berkson and Tim Wambach. Mike and Tim are natural entertainers, thus the stage is the best medium to bring their poignant story to life and allow Mike to fulfill one of his many dreams – “to make the crowd go wild!”
Through a collage of moments, messages, and humor, we invite our audiences to see MIKE, not just his wheelchair. We hope our production will allow able-bodied people to see the likenesses between themselves and handicapped people, and it will inspire our audiences to pursue their own dreams, regardless of what obstacles they encounter. Most of all, we’d like to break through the fear that causes people to avert their eyes when they see a handicapped individual. Our goal is to educate the naïve, combat the spread of ignorance, and resurrect the timeless humor-through-adversity that political correctness has surpressed in our society.
Mike Berkson is always the first to make an unabashed joke or seemingly indecent remark about his handicap in a brilliant non-deprecating manner. His brazen attitude has inspired the tone of this docudramedy. What better way to disarm our resistance to what is different and learn to accept ourselves and each other than through the magic of humor?
Inspired by the work of the Keep On Keeping On Foundation, Handicap This Productions embodies the spirit of its mission. While KOKO helps a family expand the doorways in their home to allow for wheelchair access throughout their house, we are expanding Mike’s life doorway so that he can more easily access his dreams. We hope HTP will set the stage for others born with physical handicaps to showcase their talents, see their dreams come to fruition, and inspire them to keep on keeping on.

Dear Fans,

THANK YOU for your incredible support of Handicap This Productions! We are thrilled to have the opportunity to share our mission with you.

Just before Mike’s 8th grade graduation, his graduating class’ t-shirts with all the kids names were handed out to all the 8th graders. Like any kid, as soon as Mike got his t-shirt he looked for his name on it…and looked again…and again. It wasn’t there. They forgot his name.

Simple oversights like this are what Mike and other handicapped individuals are unfortunately still facing in our able-bodied world today. Our goal is to change that one mind at a time.

To celebrate the debut of our production, Handicap This! and support our mission, we invite you to join us in rolling out the red carpet for our Creative Inspiration, Mike Berkson, by making our Handicap This logo (below) your profile picture on Facebook, Myspace, etc. this weekend, January 22 – 24, 2010, and tagging Mike, and/or anyone else you know and love with a handicap.

The message behind our logo is simple:

“It’s not what you think you cannot do, it’s what you know you can do.”
– Mike Berkson

We’d be honored if you’d lend us your support this weekend.

Rollin’ Regards,

Molly Mulcrone & Tim Wambach

DREAM Adaptive gives recreation opportunities to people with disabilities














DREAM Adaptive Recreation volunteer Bob Zahller, center, helps guide Phillip Sotello into a turn while descending Big Mountain under Chair Six at Whitefish Mountain Resort as Ryan McCoy follows closely behind. - Lido Vizzutti/Flathead Beacon

By Myers Reece, 01-12-10
WHITEFISH MOUNTAIN RESORT – The therapy is in the snow. It’s on the mountains, in the base lodge and on the bus rides.

Once a week during winter, high school students with disabilities head to Whitefish Mountain Resort to ski, train for the Special Olympics and, above all, have a lot of fun. For many of them, it’s unlike any other experience of their lives.

Their ticket to the mountain is DREAM Adaptive Recreation Inc., an organization established in 1985 to give disabled children and adults access to recreational opportunities in the Flathead Valley. DREAM stands for “Disabled Recreation and Environmental Access Movement.”

“There’s a huge amount of emotional therapy involved in being able to finally go out and finally access these things,” said Bruce Gibson, DREAM’s program director.

Twenty-five years ago, a small group of Flathead residents set out to expand accessibility to both recreational locations and activities for people with special needs. This was five years before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Among the earliest leaders of this forward-thinking group were Dottie Maitland, Larry Dominick, Dennis Jones and Jane Lopp. They collaborated with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies to create Glacier National Park’s Trail of the Cedars, a hiking trail that is conducive to disabled access, with a paved portion and a boardwalk.

In addition, they worked on accessibility surveys, along with projects at Foys Lake and Woodland Park, Lopp said. And they created perhaps their most defining legacy, the ski program at Whitefish Mountain Resort. Lopp is pleased to see Gibson continuing and expanding upon DREAM’s vision.

“I’m so glad Bruce is doing all he’s doing,” Lopp said.

The kids who traveled up to Whitefish Mountain Resort last week attend Glacier and Flathead high schools. They represent only a percentage of the total population that DREAM serves. The organization works with roughly 200 people with disabilities each year, Gibson said, about two-thirds of whom are kids.

The nonprofit assists people of many different disabilities, both physical and cognitive. The list includes cerebral palsy, autism, muscle degeneration, Down syndrome, amputees, paraplegics and others. Gibson is the only full-time staff member. The rest are volunteers.

“We have people that can work with about anyone,” Gibson said. “It’s pretty much across the board.”

DREAM Adaptive differs somewhat from the Bozeman-based Eagle Mount program, mostly in the area of professional therapy. Eagle Mount is more therapy based, while DREAM is more recreation based, Gibson said. But Gibson points out: “Therapy comes from getting out and skiing.”

“They’re structured a little bit differently, but for the most part they’re doing the same thing,” Gibson said.

The nonprofit also started a summer program in 2009 with water skiing, tubing and kayaking at Echo Lake. The program will continue, and perhaps expand, in future summers, Gibson said.

The “adaptive” skiing movement started in Colorado in the late 1970s, Gibson said. It has grown exponentially since then. There are adaptive programs in countries such as New Zealand and France, as well as in other states, but Gibson said “almost everything adaptive comes out of Colorado.” DREAM’s program was modeled after one in Winter Park, Colo.

DREAM Adaptive doesn’t charge for any of its services. It relies on community donations, grants and a large fundraiser held each year on the Friday before Valentine’s Day. The event, scheduled for Feb. 12 at the Hilton Garden Inn this year, features live big band music, dancing, dinner and auctions – both live and silent.

Also, the organization negotiates a yearly agreement with Whitefish Mountain Resort. It receives an unlimited amount of lower chairlift tickets for its participants and a fixed amount for the higher lifts. Volunteers who don’t have season passes get free tickets. When their volunteer time is done each day, they are free to use the rest of the day to ski.

The resort also provides DREAM with senior ski instructors and storage space. The required equipment list for skiers with disabilities is fairly large, including both bi and mono sit-skis, outriggers, gadgets that can either help spread legs or keep skis together, and more.

“Sometimes we just invent something based on individual needs,” Gibson said.

Volunteers must be intermediate skiers or better. Beyond that, they need no prior experience, Gibson said. After signing up, they take a training session. Then they are paired with skiers, with the advanced volunteers taking on more difficult tasks like guiding sit-skiers.

Gibson said his organization also seeks “off-snow” volunteers. These volunteers help with tasks such as grant writing and preparing for fundraisers. Donations are always needed as well, he said.

Last week was Chuck Cassidy’s first day as a ski volunteer, though he has followed the DREAM program for years. His son, Mark, has been skiing since 2004 and was one of the more accomplished skiers on the mountain on Jan. 7, if not the most enthusiastic. The gregarious 18-year-old Cassidy, a senior at Glacier High who has a learning disability, begins preparing for ski days a week ahead of time, his father said.

Cassidy, who saw many different school systems in his travels with the Navy, said the Kalispell school district has the best recreational program for kids with disabilities that he has seen. The district’s collaboration with DREAM is just one example, he said. There are also opportunities for activities such as softball, bocce, track and basketball.

“It’s really an awesome program,” Cassidy said. “The valley should be proud.”

Of the 13 high school students who skied last week, 12 were from Glacier and one was from Flathead, said Jodie McGough, who is the special education instructor at Glacier. A few of the regulars didn’t make the trip because of the cold.

The students ski with DREAM eight days per year to train for the Special Olympics, said Jenny Griswold, who teaches at Glacier and runs the Special Olympics program there.

“A lot of our kids never even have a chance to go fast in their lives,” Griswold said. “That’s why we’re up here when it’s 10 below.”

She added: “DREAM is the only way we have access to this.”

For more information on DREAM Adaptive Recreation Inc., and how to contribute, call (406) 862-1817, e-mail at dreamadaptive@yahoo.comor mail to P.O. Box 4084, Whitefish, MT 59937.

Monica J. Foster
BellaOnline's Disabilities Editor

Yoga, an ancient Indian practice which involves moving the body and training the mind to achieve balance and well-being, can be beneficial for individuals with disabilities or chronic health conditions through both physical postures, meditative visualizations and breathwork. It is an Eastern form of relaxation and exercise that has become increasingly popular in various forms here in the West.

If you are not comfortable with yoga, explore other mind and body-linked practices such as meditation or Tai Chi. The most important thing is to begin connecting your mind and body in whatever way works best for you and your disability's challenges.

As for yoga, each pose can be modified or adapted to meet the needs of the student. Yoga postures can be performed while seated in a chair or wheelchair. Look up yoga studios and practitioners in your area, as well as call your rehabilitation centers to see if they incorporate yoga in their work. You might be surprised what's out there for you.

Having mentioned the benefits of yoga practice, it should be noted that yoga is used to complement an individual's already established medical care, therapy program and exercise regime. Yoga should not be a replacement for any of these things and a doctor should be consulted before pursuing a yoga practice.

The overall health perks that can be gained include:

•Digestive system - Bending and stretching poses help move and stimulate the digestive system

•Cardiovascular and cardiopulmonary systems - Specific types of yoga can be a good form of aerobic exercise that increases one's heart rate. The practice of pranayama helps expand lung capacity and heart strength.

•Lymphatic system - This is a primary component of an individual's immune system. It relies on muscle activity and body movement for circulation.

Physical activity and stretching develops strong muscles that continually encourage lymph movement. Regular practice stimulates the lungs, diaphragm, and thorax.

•Skeletal system and muscular systems - Various postures encourage the individual to keep his or her body in proper alignment. Regular yoga practice strengthens the muscles and increases flexibility.

There are also various developmental benefits as well. They may include:

•Developmental milestones being are reached.

•Enhanced motor skills.

•Increased body awareness and orientation.

•Sharper focus and concentration.

•Encouragement of learning, creativity and imagination.

A welcome advantage to yoga practice is that it does not require any fancy equipment. Yoga can be practiced indoors, outdoors on the grass, or even on sand at the beach. Typically, a yoga mat or rug is used. Latex-free and eco-friendly mats are also available for folks like myself who have spina bifida and are more sensitive to latex. Yoga props such as blocks and straps aid in practicing postures safely, as well as help the individual go deeper into a pose. An eye pillow and a light blanket can be used during deep relaxation.

Your development as a self-aware individual with a disability and the growth of your caregiver (both professional and personal) are intertwined on a very deep level. Mind-body work such as yoga promotes the best outcomes for everyone involved. Yoga practice emphasizes the role of both the individual with a disability or chronic illness and the caregiver or loved one in the healing process. Also, it enhances your bond and mission to working together for one purpose -- your overall well-being.

Yoga creates an inner capacity for survival, grace, and acceptance, no matter the circumstance of your disability or chronic illness. Whether you are new to your disability as an injured veteran, born with your disability or are a parent wanting to establish a deeper relationship with your child who has special needs, yoga goes beyond the body to the heart and spirit's connections to each other forming the whole person. The practice, when kept constant, builds discipline, stamina, focus and patience in those who take on this mode of mind-body connection.

Overcoming Cerebral Palsy

By Justine van der Leun
Gregg Mozgala, a 31-year-old actor, used to feel inhibited by his cerebral palsy, a neurological condition that occurs when a child’s brain is damaged before the age of two and afflicts a million Americans — most often in the form of poor coordination, weak muscles, and compromised posture. But with a load of determination and the help of an unconventional choreographer, Mozgala is now set to star in an hour-long dance piece in New York City. “I have felt things that I felt were completely closed off to me for the last 30 years,” Mozgala told The New York Times. “The amount of sensation that comes through the work has been totally unexpected and is really
quite wonderful.” While there is no cure for cerebral palsy, Mozgala’s success suggests that a change in approach to the condition can translate into a change in the lives and capabilities of sufferers. Mozgala’s journey began in 2008 when he met choreographer Tamar Rogoff After seeing Mozgala play the lead in “Romeo and Juliet,” produced by Theater Breaking Through Barriers, a group composed of disabled and nondisabled actors, Rogoff was inspired to create a dance piece for him. At first, both Mozgala and Rogoff imagined a 10-minute performance: Mozgala, who then walked on his toes with his upper body thrown back, assumed he could not
manage much more, and Rogoff figured she would create some basic choreography for him. But as they began to work together, her imagination and his capacities began to expand.

Rogoff, who knew little about cerebral palsy, taught Mozgala techniques to release muscular tension. She helped him locate areas of his body over which he had previously exercised no control. In agonizing and illuminating sessions, they worked together to increase his range of movement, employing dance and stretching techniques, and finding his true physical limits. Soon enough, Mozgala was able to stand up straight, to place both feet on the floor, as well as to feel
his Achilles tendon, which he had never before done. He called these revelations
“eureka moments” in the New York Times interview. “There are pre-existing structures in the brain that are very receptive to music, rhythm, and moving to music, which is why at a rock concert, everyone is swaying,” explained Mindy L. Aisen, MD, medical director of The Cerebral Palsy International Research Foundation. “The innate pleasure we get from music acted as a reinforcement for getting [Mozgala’s] body re-engaged and for forging new pathways in his brain.”Mozgala had been to physical therapists for over a decade, but his dance training
was different: While before, the therapists had moved his body for him, now he learned how to move his own body. Rogoff identified some of the physical patterns he had been stuck in and gave him specific instructions on how to overcome them, both in the studio and out. His daily life has changed: His balance and strength are so improved that he rarely falls; his gait is steadier,
and he is subject to fewer stares on the street. Most important, he no longer feels
mentally constrained by cerebral palsy. As he told the Times: “Everybody told me
there was nothing I could do,” he said. “That’s just what you hear, from the time
you’re five to adulthood. Tamar gave me an option.” According to Aisen, Mozgala’s story supports an open-minded, patientcentered approach to Cerebral Palsy and other neurological impairments. CPIRF is considering funding a dance therapy program, and at their Washington, D.C. Center, they have begun to use robotics and fun, motivational virtual games to help children use afflicted muscles. “Just as musicians have to practice to hone a motor skill, a brain that’s never had a chance to develop in areas needs the opportunity,” says Aisen. “We think we
can help anyone with cerebral palsy reshape their nervous system in a way.
It’s not a cure, but it is going towards a cure.”

smcmanis@sacbee.com
Published Sunday, Dec. 27, 2009


To see Kim Wagaman on a yoga mat – her supple spine stretched, her limbs angled with apparent aplomb – is to witness a body perfectly aligned and in harmony with itself.

She's a yoga instructor, after all, so such flexibility is a given, right?

Not in her case. Wagaman, 34, who grew up in Carmichael and teaches classes at the Yoga Solution and elsewhere in Sacramento, once was so restricted by scoliosis that she spent most of her teenage years in a neck-high brace.

The curvature made her spine look like a winding country road, veering right in the upper thoracic region, swerving left in the lumbar area. She also had a smaller curve high in her neck and was showing the beginnings of kyphosis, a rounding of the shoulders.

"I made a conscious effort to hide the back of my body," Wagaman recalls. "I'd enter a room at a party and position myself with my back to the wall. There was all this insecurity and denial. And there's this drive to fix the issue."

In Wagaman's case, that drive put her on an unusual path to confronting the condition. Her parents already had ruled out spinal-fusion surgery as too invasive.

So as a junior in high school, Wagaman chose to send the cumbersome "Milwaukee" brace, which she had worn 23 hours a day, to the back of her closet and look for more promising alternatives.

For her, the better way turned out to be yoga. In her early 20s, Wagaman started practicing poses and movements with Jennifer Sadugar, founder of the Yoga Solution in east Sacramento. That led Wagaman to study under Palo Alto-based yoga master Elise Miller, the leading practitioner of yoga for people with scoliosis.

Over time, Wagaman found that tweaks to standard yoga poses – a change of hand positioning, a more pronounced shoulder twist, a deepening of breath – not only eased pain but strengthened muscles around the spine and led to better structural alignment.

The weight bearing down on her left leg no longer is heavier than on her right side. One hip no longer is higher. Wagaman has trained the right side of her rib cage to return to a standard position.

Her spinal curve hasn't gone away, of course, but Wagaman firmly believes her adherence to yoga has delayed further complications and has taken away whatever bodily limitations she had.

Now, with a 500-hour yoga teaching certificate, Wagaman offers Yoga for Scoliosis workshops. (The next four-week series starts Jan. 10 at the Yoga Solution.) A big part of the classes involves mastering variations on classic yoga poses, such as the downward-facing dog, the triangle and the puppy pose. But there also is an emotional component.

"A lot of us have the concept from our society and culture that we're deformed, not right as we are," she says. "We try to work through that. You have to accept that your practice is going to be different than others' in terms of poses and expressions.

"As your awareness becomes more finely tuned, you begin to sense where you are in space, feel more keenly what your body is doing."

Sacramentan Mary Lau, 54, who has had severe scoliosis since high school and suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, says taking Wagaman's classes over the past year has helped both conditions. She says the 51-degree curve in her back has improved by 8 degrees in a recent measurement.

"It really makes a difference," says Lau, a retired scientist with the state Environmental Protection Agency. "I have an S-shaped curve that pinches one of the nerves in the lumbar spine. So a lot of those stretching poses, like the puppy pose, will help my pain. Doing that for a few minutes will give me relief and put pressure off the nerve."

What might surprise some students, Wagaman says, is how subtle changes in the poses can ease pain.

Take the standard puppy pose, a spine-lengthening movement in which one begins on all fours with arms extended to the front and moves the buttocks toward the heels while dropping the forehead toward the mat.

"For scoliosis, I'll have people walk their hands over to the left and then draw the hips back and drop the right side down a little bit and breathe into the left side," Wagaman says.

The standard triangle pose differs more significantly. After spreading the legs, those with right thoracic scoliosis will steady their left arm on a chair and, instead of reaching up with their right arm to stretch, will bring their hand to the rib cage.

"You'll try to draw the ribs in toward the body," Wagaman says.

A downward-facing dog pose has the most subtle change. When arms are extended in mid-pose, you "swivel the right palm out to draw that side of the scapula (shoulder blade) in," Wagaman says. "It's sort of an 'aha' thing. Students with scoliosis will feel a lot more comfortable that way."

Comfort and healing, of course, are precisely what Wagaman's scoliosis patients seek.

"This yoga is the best form of pain management I've tried," Lau says.

YOGA FOR SCOLIOSIS

What: Instructor Kim Wagaman will lead a four-week Sunday series on Yoga for Scoliosis

When: 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Jan. 10 to Feb. 7 (no class Jan. 17)

Where: The Yoga Solution, 887 57th St., Sacramento

Cost: $70 by Dec. 30, $80 thereafter

Information: (916) 383-7933

For information on other classes Wagaman teaches: www.yogaquest.wordpress.com.

By Melinda Sacks


for the Mercury News

Unlike his peers, though, he can't say most of what is on his mind. When he tries, what comes out are moans and grunts, unintelligible to all but close family members and caregivers.

The tall, handsome young man loves gospel music, cell phones, Taco Bell and knit polo shirts that show off his broad shoulders. But the inability to speak is a frustrating fact of life for Hills and his mom, Evelyn Glasper. Having a conversation is a lot of work — still, they both try.

"He'll go and get my purse and it is his way of saying, 'Let's go out!'"Ĺ " says Glasper, a single mother who is on disability for chronic back pain and depression. "People underestimate how much he understands and how much he can communicate. It's just that sometimes I am the only one who can understand him. And it is really frustrating for him."

Born with cerebral palsy, Hills struggles with the most basic tasks. An in-home caregiver must be with him at all times, helping with everything from getting dressed to taking a shower. He can walk, but has problems with balance, so a helping hand often is necessary.

The cozy living room of the family home in East Palo Alto is a virtual photo gallery of Hills and other family members, many of whom live in Evelyn Glasper's home state, Louisiana. Over the mantel is a framed painting of a man stepping off a cliff, into the air above what might be an ocean.

"That image is about blind faith," Evelyn says. "Knowing God is there."

Going to church is one of Hills' favorite outings, she says. He loves to get dressed up and is so fond of it that they go to their own church on Saturdays and with friends to another church on Sundays.

"We've been friends since he was very small," says Jennifer Jackson, Hills' daily caregiver, a neighbor and friend who is often at the house.

Brandon's affection for her is obvious as he gives her a kiss on the cheek and sits by her side as she talks.

"Brandon's 24 and his mom is over 60, so it is important we get a means for him to communicate with other people," Jackson says. "It is every mother's fear that they will leave their children. The more we get Brandon ready to be independent in the world, the more secure his mom would feel. We want to be sure he has the ability to live a good quality of life."

What would make life easier for Hills and his mother is a speech-generating electronic communication device that would allow him to point to scenes and symbols that represent what he wants to say. Donations in increments of $50 will go toward its $3,285 purchase price.

A sturdy tricycle customized for Hills' special needs ($1,369) would help him have more mobility. And gift cards ($25 each) for clothes or music would be much appreciated.

Hills doesn't sit around feeling sorry for himself. He approaches each day with enthusiasm and a grin.

When it is time to leave for his "school" — an adult care center in Menlo Park where he goes weekdays — he's is all smiles, grabbing his navy backpack and heading to the car.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Jo Wadham


Baby Reflex is based on the idea that applying pressure to different areas on the foot can help the body heal itself.

Reflexology, an alternative therapy based on the belief that certain parts of the foot correspond to different parts of the body, has been practised in India, Egypt and China since ancient times. Now a new course designed for babies, Baby Reflex, aims to give parents techniques for dealing with childhood problems such as colic and teething pain.Reflexologists maintain that by applying pressure to different areas on the foot, they can help the body heal itself by unblocking energy pathways.
Sceptics may wonder how pressing on a part of their foot can help their sinus problems, but while they may not be able to prove that it works, practitioners and many of their clients insist that reflexology has helped them, either in terms of relaxation or by alleviating a specific condition. In a paper published in the journal Neuroscience Letters last year, Japanese researchers said that reflexology has a physical effect on the body. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, the researchers found that applying pressure to the zones of the foot relating to the eyes, shoulder and small intestine resulted in the stimulation of the corresponding areas of the brain. The researchers also looked at previous neurological studies carried out in relation to acupuncture. “Those results indicated that reflexology had some effects that were not simply sensory stimulation. Our results support that claim,” they said.

Jenny Lee is a chartered physiotherapist and reflexologist who spent more than 15 years working with UK doctors and children with asthma. One study, funded by Prince Charles’s Foundation for Integrated Medicine, monitored 47 asthmatic children who were given a weekly session of reflexology. “Not only was their asthma reduced, but we found some interesting side effects,” Lee says. “One was that their sleep improved. Their morning peak-flow reading [lung function test] was miles higher than usual. We also found that the children started joining in with their family’s interests and were nicer to their parents; they were bonding much more with their family.”

Spurred on by these results, Lee launched Baby Reflex in 2006. There are now Baby Reflex therapists working in Australia, Ireland, Spain, France, Turkey, Japan and the UAE.Lee says one of the advantages of reflexology over other alternative treatments such as acupuncture is that it is not painful. “Reflexology is something babies enjoy and is entirely pleasurable. It has a wonderful effect on babies. It calms and relaxes them. It’s not an �either/or’ with massage; they are great complementary treatments.”

According to Lee, Baby Reflex not only helps parents bond with their children, but it can also help with childhood issues such as colic, reflux and ear congestion. It also boosts the immune system. Shirley Ali trained with Lee and is now teaching Baby Reflex to small classes at The Club in Abu Dhabi. Ali is a trained aromatherapist, beauty therapist, masseuse and Reiki master and has been practising reflexology in the UK and in the UAE for more than 20 years.

Each course of classes lasts three weeks and is suitable for babies aged one month to two years. “The idea is to make it bite-sized,” Ali says, “because when you are a new mother you can’t take in as much information, and it’s not fair to keep the baby there too long.”Parents learn the reflexology techniques by practising on each other’s feet before trying the movements on their babies. “Baby reflexology works in the same way as reflexology for adults, but you have to take into account the size of the baby’s foot and the pressure you can apply,” Ali says.

Jane Miller, a Briton who has lived in Abu Dhabi for three years, has just finished a Baby Reflex course with Ali and has been using her new skills on her 10-week-old baby, Alice. Miller enrolled in the course in the hope that reflexology might help Alice’s colic, but says she knew at the very least that Alice would benefit from the relaxation aspect of the sessions. “Having experienced reflexology and knowing how lovely and relaxing it was, I wanted to do the same for Alice,” Miller says. She continues to use reflexology on Alice now that the course has finished, but there are some practical challenges. “Her feet are so small and she constantly pulls them away from me. She has tiny feet and I feel very clumsy doing it.”

Despite this, Miller thinks the reflexology may have had an effect. “She is definitely much more settled now and the colic is better. Whether this is coincidence because she is simply maturing, I don’t know, but I enjoy doing it and it’s another tool in the box.”In the first week of Ali’s course, parents are taught how to use reflexology to assist their baby’s feeding and digestion. Ali holds up diagrams of a baby’s feet with the relevant zones marked on them. Ali says one of the most helpful areas of the foot for parents to become familiar with is the calming zone just under the pad of the big toe. “Just use the knuckle of your little finger to apply a small amount of pressure, brushing down this area,” she says. Parents are also taught how to manipulate the areas relating to reflux and colic relief.

In week two, Ali explains how to help babies sleep or calm down. As well as the big toe calming zone, parents are taught the relax stroke down the inner arch of the foot from toe to heel. The final week covers general well-being. Parents learn the strokes for relieving teething pain, sinus pain, blocked ears and even insect stings. “The thing about baby reflexology is that it is portable, much more so than baby massage where you need to lie your baby down in the warmth,” Ali says. “You can do it while they are sitting in the trolley at the supermarket. If the baby is agitated or crying, you can just take their shoe off and press on the area relating to calming.”

The treatment time is brief. Ali recommends limiting each session to five minutes and not doing more than three sessions in 24 hours. Laura Dempsey, another of Ali’s students, agrees that the ease with which you can do reflexology is appealing. She has just returned from a trip home to the UK with her 15-week-old son, Hugo. “It was really useful in the plane,” says Dempsey, who lives in Abu Dhabi with her husband and two other children, aged three and two. “I did the calming one on the flight and he didn’t cry too much. It’s better than resorting to chemical medication.”
Dempsey, like Miller, was drawn to the course partly as a result of her positive experiences with reflexology treatments. “I had reflexology with Shirley when I was pregnant with Hugo,” she says. “I had a bad back, but the reflexology cleared it for the rest of my pregnancy. Reflexology is good for making you feel in balance. I came out feeling less heavy and more aligned.”She decided to try it on her baby. “I thought if I enjoy it, maybe he will, and maybe there is something in it. It’s a nice social time, too, to meet other mums with kids of similar ages and similar problems.”

Lee hopes to launch a new course for toddlers soon. “Once they are more mobile, we work on their hands,” she says. “We focus on different parts of the body using different nursery rhymes.” The apparent benefits of reflexology on young children continue to be shown. One Baby Reflex therapist in Ireland has noted improvements in children with cerebral palsy who have weekly reflexology sessions, and has started working with physiotherapists to develop this. As Lee says: “The research is only the beginning.”

For more information visit the www.babyreflex.co.uk or e-mail infoshirleypurly@hotmail.com.

This is well worth watching make sure you have your speakers on

Shalom everyone,
I hope that you all are well today. Nebraska is crazy, this morning while I was eating with my Dad. We both saw snow flurries. Now as I look out my office window, the sun is out. This is some serious bi-polar weather. But it’s okay.
Eventually, I will be recording some video blogs. Just to make things a bit more personal, being the artist that I am. They must be quality. The past several days I’ve recieved a handful of emails from mothers that have a child with Cerebral Palsy. It’s been an honor to share my experiences with my condition, and at the same time, be there to offer hope.
It’s been two years since The Emotional Struggle was first released to the general public. Honestly, it still feels like yesterday. And it also feels like I’ve only just started to scratch the tip of the iceburge. More and more teens are flocking to it. More bands are starting to read it. And the midst of everything, I’m on the second chapter of my new book. The writing process has be some what nerve wracking.
I’m well aware that I’m very critical of myself of myself. So I’m doing what I did with my first book, I’m letting it all out, holding nothing back. Sharing my experiences in life and being a single male. So far it’s been very healing, I’ve felt a lot of release in writing these pages. But it’s just the start of what I think will be a wonderful work of art.
Please keep buying my first book, give it as a gift to anyone you feel might gain something from reading it!
-Brandon

Patients who have undergone a single-level lumbar microdiskectomy for lumbar disk herniation experienced significant improvement in physical function following an intensive, progressive physical therapist guided exercise and education program, according to a research report published in the November issue of Physical Therapy (PTJ), the scientific journal of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).

Low back pain continues to be the most prevalent musculoskeletal problem, and one cause is lumbar disk herniation accompanied by sciatica - with many cases resulting in lumbar diskectomy. Up to 35 percent of patients continue to have pain and impaired function after surgery, which may be related to the type of postoperative care that they receive.

"An important goal of physical therapy interventions is to resolve functional deficits associated with low back pain," said physical therapist and lead researcher Kornelia Kulig, PT, PhD, associate professor of clinical physical therapy in the Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. "There is strong evidence that intensive exercise is effective in restoring functional status in patients who have undergone lumbar diskectomy. The exercise intervention in our study consisted of an intensive, graded strength and endurance training program targeting the trunk and lower-extremity musculature."

In this study, 98 participants who had undergone a single-level microdiskectomy were randomly allocated to receive education only or exercise and education. The education-only group received one session of back care education 4-6 weeks after surgery. The education and exercise group received one back care education session followed by a 12-week USC Spine Exercise Program initiated 2-3 days after the education session. The exercise program consisted of back extensor strength (force-generating capacity) and endurance training as well as mat and upright therapeutic exercises. The back extensor strength and endurance training portion was designed to load the back extensor muscles in a graded manner by varying the time and angle at which the trunk was held against gravity, using a variable-angle Roman chair.

The goal of the program was for participants to be able to maintain a horizontal body position for 180 seconds. The purpose of the mat and upright therapeutic exercise portion of the program was to progressively and dynamically develop strength, endurance, and control of movement by the trunk and lower-extremity musculature.

Testing on all outcome measures began 4-6 weeks after surgery, prior to intervention, and was repeated for comparison after the 12-week program. Participants showed improvement in their ability to engage in activities of daily living as well as performance on the Repeated Sit-to-Stand Test, the 50-Foot Walk Test, and the 5-Minute Walk Test. In addition, some participants opted out of their allocated intervention group to pursue physical therapy care outside of the study, but agreed to remain in the study. This allowed researchers to include a third group. The three-group analysis still showed greater improvement in activities of daily living scores, 5-minute walk distance, and 50-foot walk time in the exercise and education group.

"These results suggest greater effectiveness of the current exercise program in reducing disability and improving walking performance than that expected from usual physical therapy," remarked Kulig. "An intensive 12-week strength and endurance training program of the trunk and lower-extremity musculature is safe and results in a greater reduction in disability and a greater increase in walking performance immediately following the intervention."

This study was funded by a grant from the Foundation for Physical Therapy.

Source: Jennifer Rondon
American Physical Therapy Association

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) is a potentially effective form of intervention for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy, but more research is needed, according to a new systematic review published in the November issue of Physical Therapy (PTJ), the scientific journal of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). The review, which analyzed 21 intervention studies and 2 systematic reviews, concluded that further research should focus on the frequency, duration, and type of constraint used to treat the affected limb. Similar gains may be achieved when both arms are used together during therapy, but there have not as yet been sufficient studies that compare these two types of physical therapy. Moreover, the review concluded that there is insufficient research on the impact of CIMT on a developing child's undamaged brain regions and that more investigation is needed.

Hemiplegic cerebral palsy affects one arm and leg on the same side of the body. CIMT forces the use of the affected side, specifically the upper extremity, by gently restraining the unaffected side in a mitt, sling, or cast. The patient then practices moving the affected arm for varying durations of time and intensity. Previous studies showed support for the use of CIMT to improve the frequency of use of the affected arm for children with hemiplegia. In most studies, positive effects were demonstrated 6 to 8 months after intervention.

"Although previous studies reveal a marked increase in function of the affected limb, there is a strong need for more rigorous studies to determine what constitutes an adequate dose of CIMT for pediatric patients with hemiplegia," said physical therapist Linda Fetters, PT, PhD, FAPTA, the holder of the Sykes Family Chair in Pediatric Physical Therapy, Health and Development in the Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, and a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California.

This systematic review specifically focused on research involving children younger than 18 years of age, as the central nervous system in these young children is still in the early stages of development. One of the theories behind the success of CIMT in children is that the developing brain has the capacity to reorganize learning.

"What we don't yet know is the impact of prolonged restraint on a child's developing nervous system," said first author Hsiang-han Huang, MS, OT, a ScD student in the Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training at Boston University. "Depending on the stage of development during which CIMT is applied, its potential impact may differ."


Physical therapists are highly-educated, licensed health care professionals who can help patients reduce pain and improve or restore mobility -- in many cases without expensive surgery or the side effects of prescription medications. APTA represents approximately 76,000 physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, and students of physical therapy nationwide. Its purpose is to improve the health and quality of life of individuals through the advancement of physical therapist practice, education, and research. In most states, patients can make an appointment directly with a physical therapist, without a physician referral. Learn more about conditions physical therapists can treat and find a physical therapist in your area at www.moveforwardpt.com.

A BLIND boy whose life has been transformed by an Edinburgh school will have a Christmas card he designed delivered to the world's most famous people.

Nine-year-old Ben Wilson lost his sight and was severely brain damaged after a 16-hour fit as a six-month-old baby.

Over the years his parents Jenny and Neil wondered what quality of life he would have, but said the past three months at the city's Royal Blind School had turned his fortunes around.

The pinnacle of this so far was when he won a Christmas card competition run by Edinburgh South MP Nigel Griffiths, who will send it to the likes of US president Barack Obama, former leader Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela.

Ben, who lives at the Newington school during the week and returns home to north Tyneside at weekends, may have the potential to gain some independence thanks to the work of the school.

Jenny, 39, said: "We tried for a good while to get him into the school, and I have to say the amazing reputation it has is dead right. Even though he has only been there for a few months, the difference is there to be seen."

Doctors said when Mrs Wilson awoke randomly eight years ago she might well have prevented the cot death of Ben.

She woke at 5am and carried him downstairs, and then the seizure happened.

"Call it mother's instinct if you will," she added. "I knew something was wrong.

"In hospital we were basically told his brain was like a scrambled egg, and anything he was able to do was a bonus. But since he's been in Edinburgh he has learned so much. He can help me with washing dishes. He is in a wheelchair but one day we hope he can get a powered one which would give him some more independence."

Although the benefits for his wellbeing of being at the school are clear, Mrs Wilson added that it could at times be difficult for her and her accountant husband, 43.

"We knew he had to go there," she said. "He was getting very frustrated with life and this has helped. He is calmer and happier, every night there is something to do at the school which is something I couldn't do as a mother of two other children.

"But it can be hard, when we speak to him or the school and hear what he has been doing we sometimes think we would have liked to have done that with him, or seen him do it."

Mr Griffiths, who met and congratulated Ben on Saturday, said: "The school is among the best of its kind in the world, and that is said by people from around the world. Whenever I go there I am asked deeper, more challenging questions by the pupils than I get from those at George Watson's or Heriot's."

"The work they do is terrific, and the result of Ben's design going to 6,000 people around the world who are on my Christmas card list, including Gordon Brown and Barack Obama, is testament to what can be achieved."

30 Nov 2009

Pioneering research undertaken at the University of Sheffield has revealed that linguistic observations can help doctors differentiate between two of the most common causes of blackouts.

The news comes within National Epilepsy Month, which aims to raise awareness about epilepsy and promote tolerance and overall understanding of the condition.

The sociolinguistic study at the University, breaks completely new ground. Led by Markus Reuber, senior clinical lecturer and honorary consultant in the Academic Neurology Unit at the University of Sheffield, this is the first time conversation analysis has been shown to be capable of making a contribution to the differential diagnosis of superficially similar disorders.

The correct treatment of seizure disorders like epilepsy crucially depends on getting the diagnosis right. The three commonest causes of blackouts (epilepsy, fainting and non-epileptic attack disorder) require very different treatments. Whilst it is relatively easy to distinguish between epilepsy and fainting, it is very difficult to differentiate between epilepsy and non-epileptic attacks (NEA). Prior to this study, misdiagnosis frequencies of between 5 per cent and 50 per cent have been reported.

Epileptic seizures occur due to self-limited activity of neurons in the brain, characterised by recurrent epileptic seizures, while NEA are episodes of loss of control not associated with electrical discharges in the brain. Instead, NEA occur in response to distressing situations, sensations, emotions, thoughts or memories when alternative coping mechanisms are inadequate or have been overwhelmed. The treatment of choice for epilepsy involves antiepileptic drugs, while the first line treatment of NEA would be psychotherapy.

Researchers at the University independently analysed twenty first 30-minute doctor-patient encounters and focused on how patients with epilepsy and NEA talked to their doctor about their seizures, rather than what symptoms they mentioned. In these patients, the correct diagnosis had been proven by the simultaneous video and brainwave recording of a typical seizure. The study concentrated on aspects of the consultation which might otherwise be considered redundant by the doctor, such as the patient's willingness to volunteer information about their seizure experience, evidence of hesitation and reformulations of the information they were sharing with the doctor. These features proved very different between patients with epilepsy and NEA.

The findings showed that the patients with epilepsy tend to volunteer detailed first person accounts of seizures. In contrast, patients with NEA tend to resist focusing on individual seizure episodes and only provided seizure descriptions after repeated prompting by the doctor.

As a result, Markus Reuber and his team were able to correctly distinguish non-epileptic from epileptic seizures in 17 out of 20 cases, just by analysing the linguistic content of the transcript. It is now hoped that the groundbreaking research will allow patients to be more accurately diagnosed, as prior to this study, only 40 per cent of the patients investigated carried the correct diagnosis and received appropriate treatment.

Markus Reuber, senior clinical lecturer and honorary consultant in the Academic Neurology Unit at the University of Sheffield, said: "Neurologists see patients with epilepsy and non-epileptic attacks every week. The differentiation of epileptic and non-epileptic attacks is one of the most challenging tasks in the neurology outpatient clinic.

"This work does not only help neurologists with this difficult problem but also enables them to understand patients and their seizure experiences much better. I apply the insights I have gained from this research in my daily practice."

Dr Chiara M. Monzoni, linguist and post-doctoral research associate from the Academic Neurology Unit at the University of Sheffield, said: "Doctor-patient interaction has always been investigated through conversation analysis in order to understand how activities like decision making, diagnosis delivery or advice of treatment are actualized in interaction, in order for doctors to improve their daily practice.

"This study instead demonstrates that conversation analysis can help doctors in diagnostic processes which might be particularly challenging. It could be applied also to other difficult conditions as: anxiety/depression, headache/migraines, pain and amnesia so is particularly groundbreaking."

Source
University of Sheffield
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Article URL: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/172397.php

Monday, November 30th, 2009 | 12:56 am

Canwest News Service

Some call it murderball, but to 15-year-old Nathan Bragg, it's a chance to showcase his athleticism while playing a full-contact sport in his wheelchair.

"For me, one of the things I absolutely love about [wheelchair] rugby is the contact," Bragg said. "I've never had the opportunity to do that before I started playing."

"The hits are pretty loud, usually quite a loud clang of metal. I've gone over a few times, but I just get up afterwards."

Still Bragg, who has cerebral palsy, said it's not as dangerous as it seems. His teammates, some of whom are quadriplegic, try to convince Bragg's mother Sheena of the sport's safety by asking, "What's the worst that can happen, I break my neck?"

Bragg started playing wheelchair rugby two years ago after being introduced to the sport at the BC Wheelchair Sports Association's junior sports camp.

Each summer, the association runs one-week day camps — some in partnership with the Easter Seals — in the Lower Mainland, Squamish, the Okanagan Valley and on Vancouver Island.

Children get to try their hand at tennis, curling, rugby, track and field, dodgeball, sledge hockey, floor hockey and basketball.

The Vancouver Sun Children's Fund provides 30 per cent of the camps' budget every year, which helps buy new equipment, rent facilities and subsidize transportation to get the youth to camp and back.

"It's really critical. Without that funding we wouldn't be able to ship chairs around the province, rent the facility and pay for the transportation," said program manager Kevin Bowie.

"[Sports] gives [children] a well-round, well-balanced lifestyle. We really try to give them all the same opportunities that an able-bodied child has," he said.

"They get to play with kids who have different disabilities, so they become a little bit more self-aware and a little bit more self-confident."

There was special inspiration for camp participants this summer with visits from Paralympic hopefuls like Darryl Neighbour, a member of Canada's national curling team.

As for Bragg, it wasn't until a wheelchair basketball team played at his school four years ago that he realized he could be playing competitive sports and winning trophies just like the other children in his class. So he joined the camp.

"Sports are my big passion," he said. "I could name every single team in every major sports league since I was nine years old, but I could never play any actual sports."

After developing his own athletic abilities over the past four years, Bragg is looking to take a leadership role at camp next summer.

"There's some kids I see now and I think, 'That guy is just like me when I was 10 or 11,'" Bragg said. "I could see . . . that he would get frustrated at the same things that I would get frustrated at and I thought I should give back and help other people like me."

When he's not smashing and crashing into his rugby teammates, Bragg spends his time on the basketball court doing circles around other athletes.

Bragg, who lives in Maple Ridge, is on the B.C. Provincial Junior Team and is focused on snagging a spot in the Canada Games being held in Halifax in 2011. And maybe even future Paralympics.

rtebrake@vancouversun.com

They can be life-threatening at times, and they can certainly affect the quality of the patient’s life.

There are many neurological conditions and physiotherapy can help many of them.
Alzheimer’s disease takes away the declining years of many older people.
It is surprising to note that it can occur in people 40 years old or younger.
ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a disease that robs the brain and spinal cord of the ability to move.

Both of these are neurological diseases that can be helped by physiotherapy.
MS, another of the neurological conditions that affects the brain and spinal cord, can lead to a long, slow decline.

Parkinson’s disease is another of the neurological conditions of the brain.
This one can cause shaking and loss of coordination, and problems moving and walking.
Physiotherapy offers some relief to these patients.

Guillain Barre Syndrome is one of the types of neurological conditions that affect the brain and spinal cord too.

It is a case of the person’s own immune system attacking outside these areas.
It can be severe enough to require emergency hospitalization. Physiotherapy offers help with regaining strength and adapting to life with the disease.

Neurological conditions that are autoimmune diseases are difficult to treat.
Myasthenia Gravis is one such illness. It causes muscular weakness because of a lack of communication between nerves and muscles.

Like other neurological conditions, it can be very debilitating. A great amount of physiotherapy is needed to help Myasthenia Gravis patients to live with their neurological conditions.

This includes strength training, training in the use of supportive devices, and help with common tasks.

One problem physiotherapists face when working with MG patients is that too much exercise will make their condition worse and not better. Many of the patients with neurological conditions cannot carry on daily functions such as caring for themselves and their homes.

It is not uncommon for these people to be unable to work. They may even have trouble walking or getting up and down stairs at all. Difficulty swallowing or breathing; dizziness, poor balance and falls, and a total lack of endurance plague many of these patients who have neurological conditions. Medications or surgeries can help with some of their problems, but many problems are ones they will have to abide.

Physiotherapy can offer solutions that other branches of medicine cannot.
Exercises, as in most physiotherapy, include strengthening and stretching exercises.
In whatever way is possible, patients with neurological conditions need to get aerobic exercise.

Physiotherapists may be able to make a plan so that this is possible.
Part of this plan for patients with neurological conditions would include balance training and coordination training. With these two skills in place, the patient will have a more advanced ability to do aerobic and other exercises. Aquatic exercise is also used.

Patients with neurological conditions must live with many problems of lack of movement and function.

Physiotherapy can help them to overcome some of these problems.It can make their lives easier and more pleasant, besides.

Hey Guys,

A late happy ThanksGiving to you all, it’s been awhile. My ThanksGiving was bitter sweet at best, the food was great. I had to huge plates of food. And then my sister was helping me walk down the stairs, and my body started to get really stiff. I tried to calm down and relax. But as I made my way down, I walked as quickly as I could to a chair and that’s when a painful back spasm gripped my back.
It was tough, and it hurt so bad. Luckily I didn’t have to go to the ER. I’m okay, just really sore today. Just wanted to give you all an update. The writing is going well, slow but very well. Please keep me in your prayers.
-Brandon

by Alternative.Health

Kathy James

The Feldenkrais Method® is unusual, unusually deep, subtle, and powerful. It’s a revolutionary approach to understanding how we function both physically and mentally, as well as providing tools for our improvement. So for example, if you are someone who experiences pain and have been told to exercise it is a step but it may not be enough. Our tendency to move in the same ways, guided by the same postural habits, sensory cues and mental images are strong. What an individual needs to learn is how they are moving and how their way of moving may relate to their pain or problem. Feldenkrais Practitioners are trained movement specialists, who help people move and live with greater comfort, flexibility and ease.

Before being introduced to Feldenkrais in 1975, I had spent about twenty-five years getting ready for it. I started with dancing— tap, jazz, ballet, whatever. I danced through my entire childhood, compelled by the sheer pleasure I experienced through movement. I didn’t think much about the importance of movement for health or well-being when I was young; I just knew that it made me feel good and gave me a sense of confidence.

In college I became interested in science, but continued to dance off and on. I yearned to find a way to combine the two, somehow. Then I took this workshop consisting of simple but unusual movement sequences that seemed so trivial—yet after each class I felt great! I still remember one of the classes, just turning our heads around to look behind us and then back to the front, repeating it several times. We then turned our heads while moving our eyes in the opposite direction, still very gently, repeating each movement. After a series of these strange variations, we were asked to repeat the original movement: I was shocked to discover that my range of movement had doubled with almost no effort, just be paying attention to my movement in new ways. This was my introduction to The Feldenkrais Method®.

After completing my degree in Zoology, I continued dancing, while looking for ways to integrate my two passions—scientific inquiry, and movement. When I heard about a training program with Moshe Feldenkrais, I knew that I had to do it. The four-year program began in Amherst, Massachusetts, in the summer of 1980, and culminated in Tel Aviv, Israel, where Moshe Feldenkrais lived.

That was almost thirty years ago. Today, most people have still not heard of the Feldenkrais Method®, but many folks have tried it, and have been helped by it. The Feldenkrais Method® consists of two basic forms—one on one individual sessions, called “Functional Integration®,” and group movement classes known as “Awareness Through Movement®.”

In Awareness Through Movement® classes, the Feldenkrais practitioner verbally guides people through a sequence of gentle movements. Many of these movements focus on simple daily actions such as reaching, looking behind yourself, breathing, sitting, improving balance, bending down, walking, or more complicated patterns such as yoga postures. Regardless of the specific movement, the point is always to move gently, and work at your own level.

Functional Integration® is the one-to-one, hands-on session in which the Feldenkrais practitioner and client work together to increase the client’s movement awareness and capacity, in supportive and non-invasive ways. Usually, the practitioner works with the client (fully clothed) on a low table, using gentle touch and verbal direction to guide the movement sequences that encourage new awareness and learning. The result is improved pain-free movement and improved performance in almost any area—be it sitting, walking, running, playing tennis, playing piano, gardening—whatever involves movement.

Moshe Feldenkrais was a true innovator, developing thousands of movement lessons that produce impressive changes. Worldwide there are more than 6,000 Feldenkrais Practitioners, using movement awareness to help people with all sorts of challenges, ranging from back, neck, shoulder, knee, hand or foot pain, to neurological conditions such as cerebral palsy; head injuries from accidents or strokes; chronic conditions such as chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia; to musicians and athletes who wish to improve their performance. Some practitioners have even applied their work to animals with impressive results. My favorite quote from Moshe Feldenkrais sums up our approach nicely: “To make the impossible possible, the possible easy, and the easy elegant.”

Kathy James is a Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner, in private practice in Petaluma.

Email: kathytjames@att.net

By Michelle Diament
November 25, 2009
For three decades Gregg Mozgala struggled to walk with cerebral palsy forcing his body up on its toes and wavering from side to side. But at 31, that’s all changing thanks to a choreographer.

Mozgala, an actor, has been working with Tamar Rogoff for just eight months, but is slowly gaining use of muscles and tendons that had been off-limits all his life. In intensive sessions, the two work on one area of the body at a time focusing on tension-release. Unlike physical therapists he’d seen in the past, Mozgala says Rogoff has given him the key to access his own body.

The result is that Mozgala can now walk more smoothly and doesn’t fall like he used to. And it proves what scientists have come to believe about the brain — that it’s constantly changing and able to grow.

The pair’s success is also yielding a four-person hour-long dance premiering in December in New York City, much more than the 10-minute presentation the two envisioned at first, reports The New York Times.

Gabby doing physical therapy on Wii Fit