| Body brushing.... what IS it? |
| (August 14, 2000) (editor's note: I admit, I was somewhat skeptical about 'body brushing' when I first heard about it. Perhaps the single greatest obstacle to my skepticism was the fact that the PARENTS of kids who underwent the procedure were the ones who were advocating its effectiveness! In both having Moebius syndrome and working with children affected with physical disabilities, I knew I was 'coming into' this topic from a vantage point of at least some (alleged!) education - now finishing my 4th and 5th teaching credentials. I work with occupational therapists who are trained in 'sensory integration' - its' creator, Jean Ayres, is from the LA area where I teach. In talking with Steve Clarke at the conference, I realized that his knowledge base went down a road entirely foreign from mine - that of looking at reflexes which develop (and disappear) during 'typical' fetal development within the womb. While I've learned about reflexes typically exhibited in newborns, I never heard about reflexes as described by Steve. Steve's presence at Sturbridge (plus the reality that his techniques have worked, as measured by the parents who followed his directions!) is indicative that there some aspects of treatment for Moebius that may not be 'mainstream' but yet have great significance for all concerned. My ONLY concern is that this technique be made available to ALL people with Moebius that can benefit from it - we may need to look at how we, as a Foundation, can accomplish this goal. I would hate to see this treatment or any other one become the domain ONLY of the elite who have insurance or ability to pay ... ) Steve writes: "Hi Sandy, Just to let you know that I have now managed to set up the dates for appointments in the USA. I will be seeing people between the 4th - 9th October. The first venue will be in or around the New York area, and to that end Julie is contacting interested families in order to find a suitable venue. As I said at the conference, I will be visiting different areas of the country on each 2 monthly visit so that no-one has to make very long journeys every time. If you would like to inform people on your list of my next visit so that if they were not at the conference, and would like to be screened, then this can be arranged by Emailing Julie at [email protected] For those, I suggest that enough time is allocated so that if the screening is seen as positive, then there would be time for a Diagnostic Assessment to follow. This would save time and expense on having to travel twice for the diagnostic session. Changing the subject completely, It was great to meet all of these wonderful people at the conference, and I think that this could be the start of a special relationship between the Moebius Syndrome sufferers in the US and the Bodybrushing Treatment. I am looking forward to working with you all, and hopefully playing a small part of bringing the Moebius Support groups world-wide into one integrated and unified organization, to globally increase the awareness of the general public and the medical/educational professions of the condition and its impact on the individual, their families and friends. Looking forward to meeting again with you soon, Steve" ############################################### MORE BODYBRUSHING RESOURCES... OFFICIAL Bodybrushing website Bodybrushing reports (to Moebius1.org) HOME |