integrative, whole-child approach to healing our children

Blog post #2

1/20/11

Remember the song that taught us the bones that make up the skeleton and how they were all connected?  

The toe bone's connected to the foot bone, the foot bone's connected to the ankle bone, the ankle bone's connected to the leg bone, now shake dem skeleton bones! 

"Dem Bones:" http://www.songsforteaching.com/folk/dembones.php is a terrific reminder that we are the sum of our parts, that all our systems are connected to make us the amazing beings we are: circulatory, digestive, endocrine, immune, lymphatic, muscular, nervous, reproductive, respiratory, skeletal, urinary. I also add our emotional, social and energetic systems to the pot as well. Stir them up, and the final product is ... us. 

Over the years, I've grown concerned with how our differently-abled children are seen as 'parts' and not as a 'whole.'   Their challenges are neatly filed into categories, based on what system(s) seem to be having issues.  Is a meltdown truly due to a sensory over-responsive reaction, or could it be due to a digestive issue?  Maybe the child is hungry or thirsty or tired?  Maybe hormones are unbalanced due to an overload of chemicals in the body?  Maybe someone in the family passed away and the child is grieving?  Maybe the fluorescent lighting is difficult on the child's eyes, or it's flickering, or making that annoying humming sound that eventually wants to make you blow your stack?   Maybe there's bad chemistry between the child and his/her teacher (seen it too many times)?

So many maybes.

Are our children best served by this one-system-at-a-time approach, or do other approaches exist?

If I was granted one wish, I'd wish for a healthcare system filled with practitioners who were trained in a plethera of healing modalities ... from traditional to complementary to alternative.  Where these practitioners could tune into their inner voice and connect with the hearts of their patients.  Where they know how to scan a patient's energy to find blockages and clear them.  Where they were as well-trained on herbal remedies, vitamins and supplements and clean food choices as they are on pharmaceuticals.  Where they treat the person, and not the symptoms.

This is an integrative approach to healing our children: connecting teams of people who work together to heal the whole-person ... connecting East and West techniques ... re-connecting a child's pieces so he/she can be whole again.

In my practice, I rely on my intuition to tell me what's going on with a child.  I could be hired to help a child whose mouth is so sensitive he/she cannot eat a healthful, varied diet ... but I intuit that emotional issues could be more of a problem, or maybe an undiagnosed learning style difference that's holding them back.  I never know what I'm going to find when I open the pandora's box, known as the 'whole child."

So here, in this blog as well as on my facebook page, I intend to share out-of-the-box strategies on how to help our children with sensory processing and other challenges.  I'm sure I'll raise some eyebrows, but you might find some of these tricks helpful.

Until next time, I bid you fare-well.

Smiles,
Ida Zelaya
sensory street(tm), inc.
www.sensorystreet.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sensory-Street-Inc/167715775514

(c) 2011 sensory street, inc. all rights reserved.

welcome to the word on sensory street (tm)

Blog post #1

12/18/10

Welcome to the word on sensory street (tm), my blog.

 

Before I begin, I want to thank Kathleen Morris of SI Focus Magazine (www.sifocus.com) for inspiring me to share my thoughts with the world via this blog. I also want to express my appreciation for the mentors and friends in my circle who have illuminated my path so brightly:  Lindsey Biel, Lori Fankhanel, Mary Sue Williams, Sherry Shellenberger, Diana Henry, Paula Aquilla, Carol Kranowitz, Kari Kindem, Meg Lupin, Weston Schmier, Sue Brown, Nancy Susel ... the list is so long. 

A special shout out to Jacob, my amazing said preteen and to Jim, my totally supportive husband.

Here goes ...

There comes a time when we awaken to a greater purpose, one that helps us see beyond our own challenges and guides us to extend our hand to help others who also struggle.    

For me, that time came 6 years ago when my son was five, when he started occupational therapy.  His sensory modulation issues were very mild:  under-responsive to tactile, vestibular and proprioceptive input.  He was our little crashing helicopter. 

When he started OT, I was compelled to share what I learned with other parents and started a local support group.  To reach farther, I created an online support group and then a facebook page, both now with international membership.  From this support role, grew sensory street, inc. my consulting and education company, which was formed in 2006.  Since then, I’ve had the privilege to raise awareness of sensory challenges to people in schools, non-profit organizations, parent support groups, radio appearances, sensory conferences and much more.

My son’s sensory under-responsiveness is easy to piece together:  I attribute it to his being a large baby who needed to come into this world via c-section, and having a mom who couldn’t lift him for a while, and who also fell into a post partum depression making it difficult to play and bond. So, my little one didn’t get the key sensory stimulation for his systems to develop typically.   Even as we healed, I reached out to other parents to show that healing is possible for them, too.

This blog isn’t about me and my journey.  And it’s not specifically about Sensory Processing Disorders.  Through this blog, I hope to illuminate a path of healing paved with limitless possibilities, from traditional to complementary ... for our children, their families, and everyone in their circles.   

My sincerest wish is to help everyone live a healthy and peaceful life. 

Until next time, I bid you fare-well.

Smiles,

Ida Zelaya

sensory street(tm), inc.

www.sensorystreet.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sensory-Street-Inc/167715775514

(c) 2011 sensory street, inc. all rights reserved.