Some History...

We welcomed Phoenix into our family on November 24, 2007. I was 37 weeks pregnant at the time, but our little boy came into this world weighing 3 lb. 14 oz. Come to find out later it was due to a blood clotting disorder I didn't know that I had at the time. Phoenix scored low on his Apgars, was groaning, and did not cry (he never has cried to this day). He was sent to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee where he spent his first three weeks of life surrounded by loving nurses, visitors, and family. Doctors there found that Phoenix had been experiencing minor seizures, which went away after a few months time.

As Phoenix grew, we noticed that he didn't meet the normal developmental milestones that he should have. There were times where we would say, "can he see?", "can he feel pain?", "can he hear?", "can he talk?", etc. Phoenix was involved in the Birth to Three program from the age of 3 months to 3 years. At the age of 3 he started Early Childhood Education.

Due to his developmental and social delays, we had him evaluated at age three to see if there was anything that the neuropsychologist could tell us. After extensive testing, and 4 long visits later, they informed us that Phoenix had Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified, which is to say Phoenix diagnosis falls on the low end of the Autism Spectrum.

As parents, we wanted to do everything that we could for our little man. We implemented a gluten-free and caisen-free diet, which has helped tremendously. At age four Phoenix is acedemically developed every bit of his four year age; however in other areas of developement Phoenix is still at a 2.5 year old level or below. Trying to be an informed parent, we searched the internet looking for a way to help Phoenix. This is when we stumbled upon a site for Brain Balance Centers which uses a natural, non-drug approach to normalizing brain and body functions. We are fortunate to have a center in Mequon, about 40 minutes away from our home. After talking to parents who have sent their children to Brain Balance with positive success, we started taking Phoenix as of 11/28/2011. This blog is Phoenix's Journey towards an improved way of life.

How It All Started...

A few months ago, I was researching Autism and options to help Phoenix with his PDD-NOS and came across a website for Brain Balance: Achievement Centers. As I looked at the site, I noticed that there were seminars in the area that gave an overview of the program. On a Wednesday night, my mother and I went to meet Dr. Jeremy Fritz and hear a lecture on what Brain Balance is all about and what the program entails. My mother and I were very impressed. It made complete sense... Through research they understand that the underlying cause of many of the disorders is a functional imbalance of brain activity between the right and left sides of the brain. After much discussion and reading the book Disconnected Kids by Dr. Melillo (the founder of Brain Balance) we scheduled an appointment to have Phoenix evaluated to see if he was a good candidate for the program. A week later, we met with Dr. Fritz who went threw the evaluation results. Being very cautious I recieved a list of parents that have taken their children to Brain Balance and asked them about their children, their experience, and what thoughts they may have. It was AMAZING! They had success with their children. There was one parent I talked to that her son was nonverbal and within the first 4 weeks he started to talk. There was a parent as well that her son had sensory issues and was not calm at all and within weeks he was calmer. The mothers I talked to, including one I met in the waiting room today, said that the time and expense were worth the success their children have had with Brain Balance. A few days later, I called and signed Phoenix up for this new program. I can't wait to see the little or big successes that Phoenix will have. http://www.brainbalancecenters.com/

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Week 11

It has been a great week! Although Phoenix has been sucking and chewing his shirts like crazy, we did purchase a flat chewy car that hopefully will prevent him from ruining his shirts so quickly. This week also, as compared to last week, Phoenix has been fine washing his hands again. Must have been a short phase. This week we also went on a trip to Ohio for 4 days to see my grandfather in his rehab facility and visit my grandmother as well as my aunt and cousins. Phoenix did amazing!!! We couldn't have asked for a better experience. It is so wonderful to see how far he's come. Phoenix was well behaved, calm, and obedient when being in new places he's never been before and visiting people he didn't remember. He never touched anything, but just explored his surroundings. In the 8 hour car ride there and back he didn't complain once. He just played with his LeapPad, listened to music, or watched the cars go by. Also this week Phoenix has been talking A LOT! He has been very vocal and initiating speech, repeating us more and more, singing more songs, and growing his vocabulary by an increasing number of words. Until next time...
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4 comments:

  1. Dennie LouFebruary 22, 2012 at 8:38 AM

    I can not say enough about how wonderful Phoenix was on our trip! I could not be a more proud grandmother! I love every minute I spend with him and how he is finally communicating and engaging socially. I LOVE the sound of his little voice which at one time we wondered would ever be there!

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  2. scolieMarch 2, 2012 at 3:27 PM

    Hi...I just came across your blog through the Brain Balance website, and I would love to have someone to chat with about this. I have two boys (10 & 12) that will probably go through the program this summer, but my husband and I are feeling so overwhelmed by the time committment and investment, and we just don't know if it's the right thing. Would you be willing to email me?? If so, then I'm at scolie@charter.net. Thanks so much! ~Jolie U.

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    1. Dennie LouMarch 6, 2012 at 12:45 PM

      Hi Jolie, I am Phoenix grandmother and just saw your post. Not sure if my daughter has responded to your request, she has been working the last three nights. I will call her and make sure she gets in touch with you. I know she will say that the time and money committment are worth every dollar spent. I have been there for every bit of Phoenix adventure and can tell you that the progress he has made is remarkable! Denise

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    2. scolieMarch 12, 2012 at 1:53 PM

      Hi Denise...thanks for getting back to me. I still have not heard back from your daughter. We did end up scheduling an assessment for both boys though. Hopefully my husband will be able to see the potential benefits of the program. Crossing my fingers!
      Jolie

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