Re: HORSE THERAPY

[Guest guest]

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPERIENCES WITH HORSE THERAPY ON YOUR AUTISTIC CHILDREN?

THANKS!!

lORI

[Guest guest]

Lori-

Sedona goes to horse therapy and she is a lot more verbal than she was. She

brushes, leads, and feeds the horse. Then she rides it, plays the ring

game(ot), Names the shapes on the fence, says go to go and whoa to stop. The

one that we go to also has chickens so we gather eggs. She loves it and says

Horse now too.

-- Re: [ ] HORSE THERAPY

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPERIENCES WITH HORSE THERAPY ON YOUR AUTISTIC CHILDREN?

THANKS!!

lORI

[Guest guest]

Lori-

Our son is not autistic, however, we were encouraged by his neurologist to

get into hippotherapy for his muscle tone. Evan has very low tone and at

2.5 still cannot walk or crawl. I have called around the area to see where

we might take him, however, the two ranches locally would not start him

until he was closer to 3.5. In talking with the one ranch owner, she has an

autistic son and that's why she started this not-for-profit riding program.

She had so many positive results with him physically, behavior wise and

speech. To me it seems like a great way to get therapy for the kids and

still have a wonderful learning experience from it. I believe in the

archives, this topic came up before. You might check it out to get more

input.

Best wishes,

Lynn

[Guest guest]

At what age would horsetherapy be appropriate to begin?

[Guest guest]

> At what age would horsetherapy be appropriate to begin?

Hi ,

Usually it is about 2 years of age here in Georgia. I've talked to a

few people who do it and they all seem to think that was the age to

start.

Alison

[Guest guest]

We started Lindsey's hippotherapy at age two.

Jennie

[Guest guest]

Although my son didn't have " formal " horse therapy, he did go for

lessons (he is obsessed with horses!) We started him at 3 years of age.

It really helped facilitate his language and helped with balance and his

sensory issues. He's been riding for 2 years!

Ilene, NJ

<http://us.adserver./l?M=194081.3897168.5135684.1261774/D=egrou

pmail/S=:HM/A=1706996/rand=332168113>

[Guest guest]

My daughter has been going to Hippo therapy for 2 years. She starts with

brushing the horse(OT) then, watering and feeding (OT) then she gets to

collect eggs from the ducks (OT) then she rides on the horse and gives

commands STOP and GO (SP) then she names the pictures on the fence CIRCLE

SQUARE STAR RED BLUE YELLOW(SP) then she plays a ring color game (SP)(OT)

then she gets to play with the goats and a swim in the pool for a reward.

Before she started here she would ride in a ring at a local stable but wasn

t much fun. Once she started here we brought her picture system with farm

things on it and now she can name all the pictures and do most of the things

-- RE: [ ] Re: Horse Therapy

Although my son didn't have " formal " horse therapy, he did go for

lessons (he is obsessed with horses!) We started him at 3 years of age.

It really helped facilitate his language and helped with balance and his

sensory issues. He's been riding for 2 years!

Ilene, NJ

<http://us.adserver./l?M=194081.3897168.5135684.1261774/D=egrou

pmail/S=:HM/A=1706996/rand=332168113>

[Guest guest]

> At what age would horsetherapy be appropriate to begin?

We started Hippotherapy at age 2, but each center sets their own

starting age requirements, so it's best to call each of them and

inquire to their policy. Here's info. on Hippotherapy:

Find a NARHA Member Center

Use the map to locate the nearest Hippotherapy Center nearest you.

http://narha.org/centers/findcenter.asp

What is Hippotherapy?

A great explanation as to what Hippotherapy is...

http://narha.org/sec_aha/default.asp

Jill - 's Mom

[Guest guest]

Thanks for that Jill, there's a center near me. I'm signing Jordan up

immediately. : - )

~K

[ ] Re: Horse Therapy

> At what age would horsetherapy be appropriate to begin?

We started Hippotherapy at age 2, but each center sets their own

starting age requirements, so it's best to call each of them and

inquire to their policy. Here's info. on Hippotherapy:

Find a NARHA Member Center

Use the map to locate the nearest Hippotherapy Center nearest you.

http://narha.org/centers/findcenter.asp

What is Hippotherapy?

A great explanation as to what Hippotherapy is...

http://narha.org/sec_aha/default.asp

Jill - 's Mom

[Guest guest]

Hi all!

Again, hippotherapy (horse therapy) is great as a part of a

multisensory approach, and again -we had a horse and pony before we

moved so I'm fully aware of the benefits of hippotherapy -as well as

the fact that there are other therapies that are just as wonderful, if not more

so,

to incorporate. But hippotherapy is clearly not the therapy

of " choice " for a child with a communication impairment. As much as

I love EFAs and have found them to help -the therapy of choice for a

child with a communication impairment is traditional speech therapy -

followed by occupational therapy (and in my opinion then EFAs) And

if you want to quote from sites how one therapy or another

encourages speech -then you will clearly see that works the same for

all multisensory approaches from dolphin and dog therapy -to music

and oxygen therapy! I fully and strongly believe in alternative

therapies -I don't however condone doing them alone. A

multisensory approach means just that (more than one) and is best for most

children with any type of

communication impairment -or learning disability. Try hippotherapy -

we did -again had it in our backyard.

In my opinion hippotherapy is OK -but don't go crazy if you don't or can't

include it. Here is just a partial list of alternative therapies.

(if I even tried to list all of the traditional ones -including those

that are backed by research (outside of alternative therapies for

dyspraxia which are researched to work such as PUFA (EFA)

supplementation and carn-aware) such as Fast For Word -this post

would be way too long. Stick to the basics first -then explore and

add more from there...and don't forget good old swimming and karate

classes too!)

Dolphin therapy

" An eight-year-old British boy who suffered brain damage at birth

has spoken for the first time after swimming with dolphins in

Florida. "

http://www.dolphinlovers.com/dolphin-speech.php

(or for that matter)

Animal Facilited Therapy (with the garden variety puppy dog)

" - Encouraging Patient to Describe Objects, Formulate Short Phrases

or Sentences Within Context of New Commands to Animal; Conversing

about the Animal. "

http://www.northeastrehab.com/Programs/AFT/speech.htm

Music therapy

" Music Therapy is particularly effective in the development and

remediation of speech "

http://www.autism.org/music.html

Aquatic Therapy

" he Aquatic Therapy program of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta®

provides an alternative environment for occupational, physical and

speech therapy that enhances physical improvements through the

properties of water.

Aquatic Therapy differs from land-based therapy as it allows

patients to:

move independently more easily

assume an upright posture earlier

practice higher levels of fine and gross motor skills

slow down movement to accommodate equilibrium reactions

take greater risks with higher level activities

experience decreased hypersensitivity to touch

increase motivation and self-confidence "

http://www.choa.org/rehabilitation/aquatic.shtml

Vision Therapy

" All of his other therapies have benefited from vision therapy as

well His progress in speech therapy has sky rocketed! He was

basically non-verbal a year ago, and now uses speech to communicate.

He makes eye contact while communicating with no trouble -- before

now, eye contact was fleeting. "

http://www.visionhelp.com/autism.htm

Cranial Sacral Therapy

" Cranial Sacral Therapy has been used on everything from autism to

broken bones. Anecdotal evidence shows that some children with motor

coordination impairments (including apraxia and dyspraxia) have

shown to benefit from CST. "

http://www.speech-express.com/alternative-therapy/cranial-sacral-

therapy.html

Therapeutic Listening Therapy

What You Might See While Using Therapeutic Listening Program

Modulation/Self-Regulation

Improvement in sleep/wake cycles

Reduction of sensory defensive behaviors

A smoothing out of mood variance and arousal state

Improvement in toilet training, especially over the age of 5 years

old

Increased regularity of hunger and thirst cycles

Improved focus and attention

Postural Tone/Postural Attention

Establishment of body midline

Ability to sustain active posture on stable and dynamic surfaces

Improved cocontraction around shoulders and hips

Active use of rotation in movement patterns

Motor Control

Use of bilateral motor patterns

Emergence of praxis

Improved articulation

Improved fine motor skill

Spatial-Temporal Organization

Improved timing of motor execution

Improved timing of social interactions

Discrimination of dimensionality and directionality of spatial

concepts

Improved ability to maneuver through space

Improved handwriting and visual motor skill

Communication

Greater range of non-verbal communication

Non-verbal communication matches communicative intent

Greater emotional expressiveness

http://www.kidspeech.com/sslistening.html

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy

"

Many parents who are trying the HBO with their children with brain

damage are showing remarkable results. We are getting reports from

parents all over the world that their children are experiencing

improvement in the areas of speech, reduced spasticity, vision and

hearing improvements, behavior improvements, Autistic behaviors

reduced, and the reduction or stopping of seizures. Children of all

ages, even adults are showing the same improvements. It is not

working for all children and we have heard of a few cases in which

the children showed no improvements. The children with the milder

impairments seem to be showing the most improvements. There are

studies in Canada and the United States going on right now to

establish whether or not HBO improves children with brain damage.

The preliminary results are very encouraging! "

http://www.netnet.net/mums/hbolistAL-FL.htm

Diet Therapy

" Identifying eating and drinking difficulties.

Dumble M, Tuson W. ham Community Team, Optimum Health Services

NHS Trust, London, UK. Speech Lang Ther Pract Winter 1998: p4-6,

quiz 6

In 1994, ham speech and language therapy service was asked to

survey all adults with learning disabilities for eating and drinking

difficulties. "

http://www.speechmag.com/subjectindex.html

" Acquisition of speech is particularly affected in peroxisomal

patients, even more so than can be expected from their reduced

sensorial abilities. On the other hand, in the less severe cases,

understanding seems to be relatively preserved in relation to

hearing and speech. Due to their reduced communication

possibilities, autism is quite common in the patients that live

longer. "

http://www.momtahan.com/mmartinez/

September 21-25, 2002

Columbus® Congress

Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Evolution and Human Health

09.35 – 10.00Dr. R. Katz, O3RI, Bethesda, MD, U.S.A.

The concept of Columbus® egg trial in children with

neurodevelopmental speech disorders.

How can fat be healthy ?

It is well known that saturated fats are bad for us and

polyunsaturated fats good, what is less well known is that of the

two types of polyunsaturated fats, omega-6 (w6) and omega-3 (w3), we

eat plenty of w6 and not enough of w3, when in fact they should

balance. Columbus Eggs contain twice as much polyunsaturated fats

as standard eggs and have an exact balance of w6 and w3.

Scientific trials have shown that one can eat as many as two or

three Columbus Eggs a day without increasing one's cholesterol level

whilst actually reducing the amount of fat circulating in one's

blood.

There is more good news - Columbus are not only healthier eggs,

their light taste and texture is absolutely delicious - a discovery

in itself.

http://www.belovo.com/mini-symposium.htm

Official Statement from The First Scientific Conference Dedicated to

the Therapy of Verbal Apraxia/Dyspraxia! You may want to explore the

archives of our grouplist.

The First Scientific Conference on Therapy for Verbal

Apraxia/Dyspraxia

Post conference Statement

The First Scientific Conference on Therapy for Verbal

Apraxia/Dyspraxia, held on July 23-24, 2001 at the Headquarters

Plaza Hotel, town, New Jersey under the auspices of the Cherab

Foundation (http://www.apraxia.cc/), focused on " Essential Fatty

Acids (EFAs) and Verbal Apraxia: A New Potential Therapeutic

Intervention. " A panel of scientific experts discussed the evidence

presented at the conference in the form of professional anecdotal

case reports on improvement of verbal communication ability with EFA

supplementation in this population. The panel unanimously agreed

that the existing scientific evidence justifies planning and

implementing a comprehensive clinical trial to convincingly validate

this new potential therapeutic intervention.

The panel discussed various clinical research alternatives including

the following:

A controlled case series trial using currently available

standardized speech assessment measures or developing new clinical

assessment profiles for baseline and post-EFA testing

A randomized, placebo-controlled multicenter clinical trial of EFA

and placebo supplementation to be undertaken as soon as possible.

For example, if a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial

would be undertaken, all diagnosed verbal apraxic children,

including those with hypotonia and sensory integration disorder, who

have not been supplemented with EFAs, would be eligible for

randomization. The panel suggested that all randomized children

would be supplemented with EFA or placebo in addition to appropriate

speech therapy. This took into consideration the potential

cooperative or possibly synergistic effect of the combined therapies

in the treatment group. The length of the trial is proposed to be 3

months. Improvement in verbal communication skills, or the lack

thereof using an assessment protocol as described above, would be

the major therapeutic outcome measured, and plasma, as well as

erythrocyte membrane EFA levels would be monitored periodically. The

two groups would consist of about 20-30 age-matched subjects. ProEFA

would be the therapeutic supplement used in the trial based on

preliminary successes attained.

In addition the panel noted the potential availability of

electrophysiological measuring instruments that could serve as

assessment tools of developmental-behavioral characteristics of a

verbal apraxic child, and recommended the exploration of such

techniques. While the panel refrained from discussing the etiology

and pathophysiology of verbal apraxia, it also expressed great

interest in what appears to be a presence of verbal apraxia in a

percentage of children on the autistic spectrum and a possible

association in other disorders and syndromes, such as: hypotonia,

sensory integration disorder, dysarthria, attention deficit

hyperactivity disorder, Kabuki Syndrome and cerebral palsy. The

panel recommended further exploration of these phenomena.

Although no final decision was reached on the nature of the clinical

trial/trials to be undertaken, the workshop ended with a commitment

from all members to continue debating this issue in close

collaboration with the organizers, and to reach a decision within

the shortest timeframe possible.

The organizers thank all panel members for their tireless dedication

and enthusiastic participation in the Workshop's deliberations, and

thank all parents who contributed to the success of the workshop, by

requesting the professionals supervising and treating their children

to complete a professional anecdotal case report questionnaire on

the outcomes of EFA supplementation. This workshop could not have

taken place without their assistance.

The organizers also wish to acknowledge with thanks the assistance

of many dedicated parents in helping with the logistic aspects of

the workshop.

Last but not least, the organizers are thankful to the Cherab

Foundation's president, Ms.