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The Importance of Nature

8/30/2017

When I say the word 'nature,' what do you think of?

I think of Colorado, Arizona, and Utah which were my stomping grounds every year with my family from the time I was 6 months old and later, I had the honor of living in Colorado for a time and was a junky fisherwoman.

For me, nature cleanses my soul and helps me to remember that I am as much a part of my planet as my planet is a part of me. We are of the Earth. We are 70% water and our planet is equal to that in its water measurement as well.

The Earth was made for us to enjoy, live off of, fish off of, eat off of, and become ourselves again.

With all of this technology, the stress of our jobs, etc. we become so far removed from our very selves and nature has a way of helping us feel whole again.

Just a 20 minute hike in the woods being surrounded by trees, oxygen, birds, etc. can help us swing back to being whole again.

For children, nature is a healer. Here are 5 reasons to get your kids OUTSIDE!!

1. It helps improve their resilience to stress. Now a days, our kids seem to have more stress than ever with the increasing demands of school, sports, etc.

2. It helps to decrease symptoms of ADHD and depression.

3. It helps to increase creativity and cognitive function.

4. Being outside increases physical activity which in turn, helps to prevent obesity.

5. It helps develop their respect and responsibility for our planet.

As of today, we only have one Earth and it was given to us to love, respect, take care of, and enjoy. Its good, y'all, so enjoy it with your kids.

Get outside!!!

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The dragonfly approach

8/20/2017

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I have been working my tail off at the clinic for the last 20 years but especially the last 6 months and now, finally, all of the pieces that I feel are absolutely necessary to treat the whole child are in place.

Now, the book that I have written has been turned into the publisher and I want all of y'all to say some big prayers as this book NEEDS to be published. It is God driven and written from what I call 'the trifecta of understanding.' What this means is I live with special needs of my own, I bore two children with special needs of their own that I successfully treated, and I have worked with special needs for 25 years as an OT. I believe I have earned the honor of writing a book given this type of cellularly felt knowledge of understanding. Wouldn't you agree?

'The Dragonfly Approach' is what I myself deem the absolute justice you can do for each of your pediatric kids because it is based on knowledge, understanding, and treatment of the whole child, not his/her parts. It is a wholistic, healthy, spiritual, feelings, and OT treatment type approach.

'The Approach' includes:

-Testing and recognizing the presence of retained reflexes. This is the most important piece of the puzzle and must be addressed or your child will have no foundation to work off of! I am floored at the number of therapists that are not looking at this at all and they wonder why some of the goals that everyone has set for the child are not being met and everyone is so dang frustrated.

-Treating these retained reflexes with exercises and cold laser with harmonic frequency practice. If you don't know what this is, look it up on line. This type of treatment acts as the needles of acupuncture but works twice as fast. It also utilizes cell energy, regeneration, the meridians, and acupoints of the human body. I also give daily exercises for home to each of my families to help integrate these retained reflexes faster so we can work on higher centers in the brain.

-Nutrition is imperative for a healthy gut and a healthy body and brain. If you are putting processed, poisoned foods into your body and the bodies of your kids, stop right now because you are damaging them and yourselves. I am now an advocate of Juice Plus+ and all of the research and hard work they are putting into the importance of plant based whole foods that is our body's fuel and if you want your body to work for you, you better take care of it. Did you know that 70% of the bodies immune system resides in the intestines? Leaky gut is real and when I don't eat properly, my leaky gut kicks my tail.

-Sensory integration issues are the direct result of retained reflexes. This type of sensory integrating therapy needs to go hand in hand with intense retained reflex integrating exercises. I do both at the same time.

-Get your kids a DEVELOPMENTAL eye exam if they are struggling with reading or school in general. This is different from a regular eye doctor. Your child has to have good eye development if he/she is to be able to do well in school.

-Aquatic therapy is a piece that I feel is imperative for certain types of children. The hydrostatic pressure is like a big water hug and feels so good to those sweet children. Now, not all clinics can provide this and if this is so, get your child into a pool and just play! It'll do them good.

-Hippotherapy is my latest and greatest medium that I have had the honor and privilege to add to 'The Approach.' The movement of the horse is rhythmic when it is walking. This rhythm is key in aiding the reorganization of the brain-body maps located in our brains. There is a whole bunch of literature and teaching on rhythmic movement therapy and the cool thing about the horse is, its doing it with just the ease of walking around a corral. There are a ton more benefits of horse assisted therapy and can be easily Googled and read about.

-Therapeutic Listening is a program that I love and use with just about every child on caseload. This therapy utilizes the vestibular system located in the ear and through modified music, can do wonderful things to the brain and its organization or re-organization. Vital Links is my go to program.

-Brain Beat is a program that utilizes the visual system, the motor system, the auditory system, and our inner timing. This program helps with timing, sequencing, and attention by helping the synapsis of the brain run in a more organized and fluid way.

-Biofeedback is one of the most awesome thing I use right now. I actually had a child who is so 'busy' and has never been able to feel what a calm state is until he worked on biofeedback. I got tearful when he looked at me and said, "I have never felt like this before, Ms. Sharon . . . never this calm." Holy cow!

-Yoga is one of the most powerful tools for getting in tune with our bodies. My OT kids absolutely love their yoga classes that I teach each Saturday morning and during their OT sessions. There are loads of benefits to yoga. I have also added a meditation and centering piece so these sweet kids can enter into a self-induced stated of calm. When was the last time you or your kids were calm? Sleeping doesn't count.

-Essential oils are Mother Nature's gift to us. For years I thought they were hooey, but boy was I wrong. I am a wholesaler for the Plant Therapy company and these folks do not have a pyramid scheme to support so their prices are incredibly affordable and their oils are 100% pure and wonderful.

Now, folks, I realize that not every clinic you are attending can offer all of these things and I'm not saying that my approach is the end all of approaches, but I can say that I am seeing things in these kids that are incredible. I have families in tears thanking me for bringing their child out of themselves and into a world that is easier for them to be a part of because of the skills they are accomplishing.

I have a huge beef with docs throwing meds at these tiny kids before the root of the problem is discovered. That's wrong y'all. Throwing pills at a little kid is like putting a band-aid on a pussy, oozing, bloody sore and expecting it to get well. It ain't gonna happen.

In my opinion, the marrying of Western and Eastern medicine is a necessary and vital thing for our human race. Pills are not always the answer but the natural ways of Eastern medicine can compliment the Western beliefs and pills should only be used as THE VERY LAST RESORT.

I realize the benefits of penicillin, antibiotics, depression meds, certain cancer drugs, etc. but getting to the root of certain issues can not only save a child, or yourself for that matter, a lot of added side affects from that pill that can sometimes outweigh the very need of those pills in the first place. Wouldn't you agree?

Before we run to pills, lets take the Eastern philosophy and practice into consideration first. Lets look at what the child's birth looked like. Were they born by C-section? Did the mom get a virus at a critical time of pregnancy? Was their undiagnosed diabetes, etc.? These things can cause retained reflexes which are located in the most primitive area of our brain called the brain stem.

If we start our investigation of each child at the brain stem level and not at the top more complex of the brain for the answers, loads of information can be learned and help start a good strong foundation of recovery.

I pray that my book gets published as I feel 150% sure every parent with or without kids with special needs will learn and feel empowered to ask the questions that need to be asked of every healthcare worker on your team. Trust yourselves parents for you are driven by 'intuitive neurons' and they are whispering to you when you feel something isn't quite right either about your child or anything else in your world for that matter.

Love y'all!!

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Say no to soy!

8/4/2017

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Children and Soy:
(An article taken from shirley-wellness-cafe.com)

A word of caution considering all of soy's health benefits, it is tempting for new and expectant mothers to see soy-based infant formula as a "miracle food" and to stock their pantries sky-high with the stuff. Well, hold on there mama. That most vulnerable member of the population, an infant unable to breastfeed, stands at great risk of developing a serious thyroid disorder due to a diet based entirely on soy formula. That disorder is hypothyroidism, or an under-active thyroid and it is a common cause of fatigue, depression, obesity, constipation, extreme sensitivity to cold and a number of other symptoms, most so common that the disorder can go undiagnosed for years.

The Deadly Influence of Infant Soy Formula Elaine Hollingsworth - "By far the worst calls are from women whose children have been fed soy formula. They tell me heartbreaking stories about baby girls who show signs of early maturation, such as underarm odor, breast development, body hair and even menstruation as early as two, three and four years of age! The risk appears to be greatest in girls who ingest soy formula for nine months or more. In baby boys, 12 months of soy feeding can lead to gross effects by the age of 11 or 12. Breasts can appear and testicles do not develop. Several women have rung asking what to do for these pathetic boys, who refuse to participate in sports, fearing shower-room ridicule, and who will be dependent upon thyroid drugs for life."

"I can't help, and I don't think anyone can. Nature did not intend infants to be fed hormones, and life-threatening consequences occur when they are. Of course, these horrible problems do not occur with every soy-fed baby, but is it worth taking such a chance? Your child will not thank you, and you may never have grandchildren. Drinking soy milk during pregnancy can cause a failure to produce breast milk, which can lead to feeding the baby soy formula. By far the worst cases of soy damage are reported to us by women who have drunk soy milk while pregnant, and then fed their babies soy formula. This is a deadly combination. These women cannot restrain their tears when describing the dreadful health problems their children have." They keep repeating to me, "I didn't know, I just didn't know, the doctor told me to drink it for my bones and give him soy formula."

Premature, early puberty related to soy products Elaine Hollingsworth, director of the Hippocrates Health Center of Australia and author of Take Control of Your Health and Escape the Sickness Industry, writes about the terrible effects of soy products on children:
"I am not exaggerating when I say that HUNDREDS of people have rung me during the past year to tell me about dreadful health problems that started after taking up the soy habit. Serious thyroid malfunctioning is one of the most common complaints. This is not surprising, since it has been known for years that isoflavones in soy can depress thyroid function, causing autoimmune thyroid disease and even cancer. It is a medically recognised fact that our body absorbs significant amounts of what we put on our skin. With Certified Organic food rapidly becoming the nutrition of choice by the health conscious amongst us, why would you accept any less."

Soy and Diabetes in Children"A few reports from the late 1970s and early 1980s suggested that a soy-based diet impaired infants' immune functions. About 15% of infants in the US, or roughly 750,000 children, consume soy-based formula each year." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences May 21, 2002;99:7616-7621
Dr. Mercola - "Soy formula is one of the worst foods that you could feed your child. Not only does it have profoundly adverse hormonal effects as discussed above, but it also has over 1000% more aluminum than conventional milk based formulas."

Contrary to popular belief that soy is a health food, evidence reveals that soy consumption has been linked to numerous disorders, including infertility, increased cancer and infantile leukemia, Type1 diabetes, and precocious puberty in children have been fed soy formula. (early maturation, such as breast development and menstruation as early as 6 years of age). Scientists have known for years that the isoflavones in soy products can depress thyroid function and cause goiters in otherwise healthy children and adults. A combined research team of Cornell University Medical College and Long Island Community Hospital medical experts have found that children who develop Type1 diabetes are twice as likely to have been fed soy formulas as those fed all other foods This confirms concerns based on animal studies raised in the 1980's and 1990s by Health Canada researcher Dr Fraser Scott and led to the American Academy of Pediatrics issuing their warning to pediatricians against any use of soy based formulas.

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The Importance of Nature

The dragonfly approach

Say no to soy!

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