Brain Therapy.com Updates

Mom Helping First Hospital Visit First Brain Score

The teachers did not attend the last day of the Baby Clinic.  It was time to “cut the cord” and let the students go completely on their own.  They didn’t need us.  We poked our heads in once or twice for coffee, and it was as though they had never needed us.  Babies were calmer and quieter.  Moms were smiling.  The collective average Brain Score jumped more than 3 whole points.   The work WORKS! 

We spent the morning giving final follow-ups to the after program kids we had been seeing all week, as well as a few new cases that popped up.  After all morning treatments were finished, the students were gathered for a graduation ceremony.  Every student and translator had all dedicated a huge chunk of time and worked so hard.  We were very proud of everyone. 

CONGRATULATIONS STUDENTS!

After a night or two of struggling, the parents are starting to sleep better and breath easier as all of the children improve from their starting point.  The students, initially unsure if they would get the hang of the technique, are now begining to fly solo, only occasionally asking for assistance.  For the most part, we are just traveling from table to table lending a hand and checking in with the children we have assisted with earlier in the week.

Stridor Baby Mom Helping First Hospital Visit Several times before we left for the trip, we let our imaginations run wild and dreamed of the possibility of being allowed into a hospital maternity ward to measure a Brain Scores and offer treatment if needed or desired by the mother.  Then Dr. Barry would say, “Let’s just focus on what we know we need to do.  God holds the plan.”   The plan, apparently, was for us to follow our OB/GYN student into the nearest  hospital and offer help where needed or desired. 

The first baby the two doctors treated had been born less than a day before.  The first few hours of life had been a fussy time for baby number one, and as the crying began Krissy and Mike noticed a distinct sound during the inhalation, strider breathing.  They have treated babies with that condition in their practice and indentified it immediately.  Before we left the ward, Krissy and Mike did a follow up treatment with him, knowing that often it takes more than one session to resolve symptoms. 

We moved all around the ward treating every baby we could.  Some mothers declined, another was a bit reticent about letting us continue once she heard her little one cry.  Any parent can sympathize with that.  Here we were, a group of strangers from out of town, reaching for babies when the moms are just barely over their anesthesia.  We knew there would be some confusion but we pressed on because we believe deeply in this work.

“short” day today.  After ending the teaching part of the seminar, the treatment of several children with asthma was demonstrated.  These children will have several sessions while the team is in Culiacan and if they respond anything like kids back home, their conditions will be drastically improved by the end of our visit.

We were graciously invited by an associate of the Estrellaguia associationfor a Mexican feast at the fabulous and La Chuparosa Enamorada ( www.lachuparosa.com) restaurant .  Affectionately called Conchita by her collegues,  her husband is a part owner in this amazing place.  Shortly after arriving and being awestruck by the incredible layout and decor, the food began to arrive.  Never before had any of us experienced such amazing, fresh and creative Mexican fare before.  Not only is this place an unforgetable experience for the palate, it is also a feast for the eyes.  From the napkin holders, to the paint and tile murals on the walls of the numerous buildings, all the way up the beams of the wooden pavillion, The Humming Bird in Love is a reason to visit Mexico all by itself.

Arching Baby Baby Day OneThe first day of taking our new students into the treatment environment was thrilling and a tad hectic. We walked them through calculating Brain Score, guided them through general unwinding and finding and following strain patterns. Moms were well prepared by the EstrellaGiua staff who did an amazing job finding, scheduling, and organizing the families for the sessions.

Pictures are coming.

The third day of the Baby Clinic brings with it a new layer of the onion.  Most of the babies have begun to detox, an important phase of the healing process.   While detox is good news for the therapeutic team, the moms are looking forward to a quiet night’s sleep soon.  Now that the students are on their 6th day of immersion training, the teachers have switched focus temporarily to educate the moms about the fascial healing process, the importance of follow up therapy and how to release strain gently at home after each vaccination.

After the Baby Clinic concluded, it was on to phase two of the day:  baby Maria, the asthma children and some new guests as well.  Estrellaguia invited a neuro surgeon to the seminar that has worked on one of their clients.  Unable to attend the entire program, she came to observe the Baby Clinic and consult with Dr. Barry about two of her patients with cranial stenosis.  They arrived with us on day three and were treated by members of the team and some of the students.  Their releases were intense and active unwindings which was a challenge for the moms to observe even though their brain surgeon was there in support of the treatment method.  We are hopeful that they will both continue with therapy while we are here and with the students after we have returned home.   The other children have now had several sessions and are doing better and better each day.

The final phase of the day was the visit to the maternity ward at the local hospital. Hospital Materno-Infantil de Culican, Sinoloa is the oldest public hospital in Culiacan.  The “halls” are out doors with lovely archways leading to a courtyard.  Patients line the benches in the beautiful Mexican sunlight as they wait for their appointments.  We walked through with wide eyes, having no idea what we would find.  Our greatest hope was that we might get the chance to see Dr. Barry and our OB/GYN physician escort treat one or two babies a day or so old in rooms with two moms each.  What we found was a two sided maternity ward with rustic charm and soaring ceilings, 4-6 beds on each side of the room.  To our surprise, several of the moms approved of us working with their babies, at least initially!  The doctors took on the first newborn, inviting the rest of us to work 2 at a time after that each time a mother agreed.  Several children would not latch, some had distorted head shapes, one had strider breathing.  All were less than 24 hours old. 

The work on such small onions was truly amazing.  We checked Brain Scores, the highest was a 4.  At such an early age, there was little crying and only gentle unwinding.  One baby with that was unable to latch had a distorted head shape and severely crossed eyes had the most difficulty with treatment.  Mom asked us to stop so we told her that if she changed her mind someone would be back.  Before we left that day, all of the babies latched.  A visiting grandmother was moved to tears as she watched her new grandchild nurse for the first time.  The next morning, our OB/GYN escort went back to check on the status of our little clients to find that all were much improved, still nursing and the once reticent mother was excited and asking for more treatment as her son’s head was a nearly perfect shape, eyes uncrossed and he continued to nurse like a champ!

Could life get any better than this?

Baby Day 2 ChristineBaby Day 2 MikeBaby Day 2 KrissyDay 2 has been incredible. Most of the returning parents have reports of significant improvement in their children. Some are experiencing predictable detox which involves mild exacerbation of symptoms. Of these, some have been fussy at night or spitting up a little more than usual. Most have seen negative symptoms begin to fade and positive changes develop.

One of the children that was in for the first time today was born at 6 months gestation. He was on a ventilator in neonatal intensive care for a very long time. Today, his upper palate still holds the shape and strain of  the ventilator tube that helped him stay alive.  As a result, he has a very difficult time with the suck/swallow reflex, as well as an extremely tight cranio-sacral system.  This precious child is one example of why the Brain Score was devloped.  Had he been treated at birth, there is no telling to what degree things could be different for him today.  Now that he is here, we feel certain his life will get easier.

We did actually have a perfect baby today. A credit to the accuracy of the brain score to predict the level of difficulty a child will have, the child came in the door with a 150 second cranial cycle, was in perfect syncronization between cranium and sacrum, and had absolutely no issues…no colic, reflux, sleep problems, fussiness…..NOTHING. His brain score was the highest possible, 8. Perfect Brain Score = perfect function!

In the ‘after hours’ we are still following up with the asthma children and the little girl with club foot (Maria H). Every one of the asthma kids has had a dramatic change in either breathing, behavior or both after about 5 sessions. Little Maria H, though we really make her mad when we work on her, slept 12 straight hours last night…the first time that has ever happenend in her 3 1/2 yrs of life. Her feet and legs are visibly more relaxed and Mom and Dad are hoping we will stay for another year!

The students are doing an amazing job.  Their professional experience with newborns (most are OB?GYN, pediatricans, neo-natoologists) has been a tremendous benefit to the entire project.  The moms that are coming in are comforted by the presence of the physician students, even when their babies are crying and flipping upside down in the air. 

The most exciting piece of news from today’s session is that the doctor who originally invited us to come and teach Barry’s work here has asked us to come in to the local public hospital nursery Thursday, Friday and Saturday to work with the newborns….the babies that, as of this posting, have yet to be born.  Only in the private hospitals here do new moms have the luxury of a several-day stay post-partum.  We may even be there during a birth or two. 

The true mission of this trip is not just to teach this amazing work around the globe and gain clinical data on how it helps prevent common structural conditions in children previously only treated with medication or surgery.  It is to introduce to the world the concept of the Brain Score, an evaluation tool which can determine the function of the central nervous system at birth.  Ideally, the Brain Score would be calculated as soon after birth as possible.  As of yet, no one who knows how to do the Brain Score has been invited into the hospital setting.  Come Thursday, the four of us may have this opportunity after the 60+ kids, 5 asthma children and a few others.

There is too much exhiliration to be tired.

Barry’s Lecture_0002

The first day of the Seminar was surreal.  The teaching team could often be found pinching themselves to make sure that it was all really happening.  Dr. Barry was in the zone and gave what he felt was the best lecture of his life as all of the attendees listened through their headphones to the simultaneous translator.  Some in the audience were just there for the opening lecture, though most were there for the full seminar. 

Many demonstrations  were given.  The learning would soon begin!