Re: High Tone versus Low Tone

[Guest guest]

It could be me –but I'd take the opinion of my child's

neurodevelopmental medical doctors over the opinion of my child's

dance teacher. I mean- other than the dance teacher having a child

with some type of CP related issue she can only give you an opinion.

And based on what signs in your daughter? (well we know how some

dance teachers are... is it because your daughter can't stand on her

toes on one foot and stick the other foot over her head with her

" toes pointed and leg straight " and hold that while she's spinned

around?)

You know she has a diagnosis of hypotonia and you are getting

appropriate therapy for that. But I can tell this really does bother

you –so what signs do you notice if any that would make one suspect

hypertonia in her legs? Below I have your last message –and then an

archive on this from a parent that was answered by developmental

pediatrician Dr. Larry Laveman. The way I believe this came up is

because a few years ago –some MDs would give the diagnosis of CP to

secure services just like today some give the diagnosis of autism or

PDD to secure services whether the child actually has that diagnosis

or not. But for CP from what I was told if a child has hypotonia in

the body and hypertonia in the extremities that would be a form of CP-

but it could be so mild that a parent wouldn't even notice it unless

it was pointed out –so on the other hand some MDs didn't give the

diagnosis of CP in some cases as they know it can upset the parent –

and CP is not degenerative- it is what it is.

(those cases would be when it was very mild)

So the question is – will the diagnosis of CP make any difference in

what you are already doing? Would anyone know if you didn't tell

them? Probably not since neurodevelopmental medical doctors didn't

know. To add stretching appears to be a good idea –but it's a good

idea for anyone who's exercising. Probably even more so if not

exercising! http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stretching/SM00043

The fact that your child is in a dance class tells me that she's at

least somewhat coordinated and active. I may not know whether she

has hypertonia with her hypotonia or not - but based on the fact

you've only been told this by her dance teacher and not any of the

professionals if I was a betting 'man' I'd say no. But I do know one

thing –your daughter has a mom that is one in a million. It sounds

like you always go above and beyond to fight for your child and for

all of our children that's what they need. Question the diagnosis-

question the therapy –question the progress…because it's our child-

and while we only get what's appropriate by the school system -well

we only get that if we fight for that too –we all want what is best.

None of us has the chance to do things over –so do things in the

present so that when you look back down the road you can say with a clear

mind no matter what " I did my best " I know you can say this.

~~~~~~~~first a clip of your last message so people know what I'm

talking about in regards to the dance teacher- and then the message

about this from a parent answered by developmental MD Dr. Larry

Laveman:

, I am pretty certain that my child had/has (we've been working

on it!) hypotonia in her body. No professional has ever mentioned

hypertonia to me. However . . .her dance teacher said to me that she

noticed that my daughter " had hypertonia in her legs. " She went on to

say that she knew about this because her son has some kind of CP

related issue.

Because no doctor (including our neuro) had ever mentioned this -- I

just let it go. But, when I saw this post about CP from the other

mom, I began to worry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>My 3 year-old son was diagnosed with what the doctor called at the

time

> " hypotonia " (and " hypertonia " ) at 1 year old. He's been receiving

various

>therapies since. He has low tone in the upper body and some high

tone in

>his

>legs/arms. He was 5 weeks premature and only 4lbs. 10oz. He has

recently

>been diagnosed with Apraxia.

>My question is: what is the difference between " hypotonia " and

Cerebral

>Palsy? My neurologist has told us that hypotonia (and hypertonia,

which is

>tightness in the muscles) is just another name for Cerebral Palsy

(which

>has

>varying degrees from mild to severe). He said that Cerebral Palsy is

a

>muscle disorder that is neurologically based. He now refers to my

son as

>having " mild Cerebral Palsy " and interchanges the term with

hypotonia.

>Thanks,

>Michele

Hi Michele:

The term " cerebral palsy " , " cerebral paralysis " , etc. are historic

terms that describe a nonprogressive disorder of motor control

(movement,etc.) of prenatal origen (from before birth). It is vaguely

defined and covers a lot of different causes for the problem. Most

children with this problem have high tone (hypertonia) which is also

called spasticity. Children born prematurely, like your child, are at

higher risk for CP than the general population. Not all motor tone

abnormalities are CP, nor do all children with CP have similar

problems with tone.

As CVA is associated with problems of motor control of the mouth and

pharynx (the back of your throat), it is logical that some children

with CP will have problems in this area of motor control as well.

The other reason that your doctor may be using the CP term is for

enhanced reimbursement from your insurer - they are more willing to

pay for a " hard " diagnosis like CP than a " soft " diagnosis of apraxia.

Larry Laveman, MD

Consultant, CHERAB

=====

[Guest guest]

Em,

I personally think that you have your daughter on a wonderful program.... It's

my 'dream' program for a youngster with hypotonia....

Go gettm' girl!

Janice

[sPAM][ ] " High Tone " versus " Low Tone "

OK, I officially have two of our doctors rolling their eyes at me today! Oh

well. . .

This started with someone else's child receiving a CP diagnosis. This reminded

me that a

dance teacher had told me that my daughter had " tone " in her legs. I thought

she was

clearly wrong, as the neuro had said my daughter had hypotonia (very mild).

However,

said today that you could have hypotonia in the trunk and hypertonia in

the legs.

I spoke with the neuro, who said he only had hypotonia reflected in his file

on my

daughter. I then spoke twice with our pediatrician. He said that if there were

a

" significant issue " he would have spoken to me about it. He said it is

possible that she

could have a minor issue with it that he could have missed during regular

check-ups.

He allowed me to go through all the physical activities we work on with her,

and said he

felt that we were covering our bases. He did suggest that we add stretching to

her

routine, which he said would help with hypertonia if it were an issue. He

offered to put us

in touch with a physical therapist to suggest appropriate exercises (and do

another

evaluation if we wanted). However, overall he was very encouraging, and

basically said

that if there is an issue it is very mild, and said he felt daily stretching

would take care of

it. (We already do running, weight bearing exercises, and horseback riding.)

We did a PT eval a while ago, and we given some exercise suggestions, but

never really

did PT. We started hippotherapy, but she did so well at it, they removed her

from the

class and put her in a sports riding class. Have most of your children done

PT? As I

understand it, my insurance isn't going to cover this -- but we'll do it

anyway if it is the

right thing to do. Opinions?

[Guest guest]

That is so true....

Em.... if your child is capable of taking dance classes.... she is an absolute

rock star as far as dyspraxia goes. She would be the first young girl on the

boards I have seen to survive the first class! Most dyspraxic kids have a

terrible time copying their bodies and need sensory input (ie. touch) to

position themselves correctly. I have heard a few tough stories of dyspraxic

girls taking dance and bawling hysterically after one class NEVER to return!

Dance classes are often so competitive and driven.....

Keep doing what you are doing and keep your daughter as happy and full of

self-esteem as you can.

Janice

[sPAM][ ] Re: " High Tone " versus " Low Tone "

It could be me -but I'd take the opinion of my child's

neurodevelopmental medical doctors over the opinion of my child's

dance teacher. I mean- other than the dance teacher having a child

with some type of CP related issue she can only give you an opinion.

And based on what signs in your daughter? (well we know how some

dance teachers are... is it because your daughter can't stand on her

toes on one foot and stick the other foot over her head with her

" toes pointed and leg straight " and hold that while she's spinned

around?)

You know she has a diagnosis of hypotonia and you are getting

appropriate therapy for that. But I can tell this really does bother

you -so what signs do you notice if any that would make one suspect

hypertonia in her legs? Below I have your last message -and then an

archive on this from a parent that was answered by developmental

pediatrician Dr. Larry Laveman. The way I believe this came up is

because a few years ago -some MDs would give the diagnosis of CP to

secure services just like today some give the diagnosis of autism or

PDD to secure services whether the child actually has that diagnosis

or not. But for CP from what I was told if a child has hypotonia in

the body and hypertonia in the extremities that would be a form of CP-

but it could be so mild that a parent wouldn't even notice it unless

it was pointed out -so on the other hand some MDs didn't give the

diagnosis of CP in some cases as they know it can upset the parent -

and CP is not degenerative- it is what it is.

(those cases would be when it was very mild)

So the question is - will the diagnosis of CP make any difference in

what you are already doing? Would anyone know if you didn't tell

them? Probably not since neurodevelopmental medical doctors didn't

know. To add stretching appears to be a good idea -but it's a good

idea for anyone who's exercising. Probably even more so if not

exercising! http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stretching/SM00043

The fact that your child is in a dance class tells me that she's at

least somewhat coordinated and active. I may not know whether she

has hypertonia with her hypotonia or not - but based on the fact

you've only been told this by her dance teacher and not any of the

professionals if I was a betting 'man' I'd say no. But I do know one

thing -your daughter has a mom that is one in a million. It sounds

like you always go above and beyond to fight for your child and for

all of our children that's what they need. Question the diagnosis-

question the therapy -question the progress.because it's our child-

and while we only get what's appropriate by the school system -well

we only get that if we fight for that too -we all want what is best.

None of us has the chance to do things over -so do things in the

present so that when you look back down the road you can say with a clear

mind no matter what " I did my best " I know you can say this.

~~~~~~~~first a clip of your last message so people know what I'm

talking about in regards to the dance teacher- and then the message

about this from a parent answered by developmental MD Dr. Larry

Laveman:

, I am pretty certain that my child had/has (we've been working

on it!) hypotonia in her body. No professional has ever mentioned

hypertonia to me. However . . .her dance teacher said to me that she

noticed that my daughter " had hypertonia in her legs. " She went on to

say that she knew about this because her son has some kind of CP

related issue.

Because no doctor (including our neuro) had ever mentioned this -- I

just let it go. But, when I saw this post about CP from the other

mom, I began to worry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>My 3 year-old son was diagnosed with what the doctor called at the

time

> " hypotonia " (and " hypertonia " ) at 1 year old. He's been receiving

various

>therapies since. He has low tone in the upper body and some high

tone in

>his

>legs/arms. He was 5 weeks premature and only 4lbs. 10oz. He has

recently

>been diagnosed with Apraxia.

>My question is: what is the difference between " hypotonia " and

Cerebral

>Palsy? My neurologist has told us that hypotonia (and hypertonia,

which is

>tightness in the muscles) is just another name for Cerebral Palsy

(which

>has

>varying degrees from mild to severe). He said that Cerebral Palsy is

a

>muscle disorder that is neurologically based. He now refers to my

son as

>having " mild Cerebral Palsy " and interchanges the term with

hypotonia.

>Thanks,

>Michele

Hi Michele:

The term " cerebral palsy " , " cerebral paralysis " , etc. are historic

terms that describe a nonprogressive disorder of motor control

(movement,etc.) of prenatal origen (from before birth). It is vaguely

defined and covers a lot of different causes for the problem. Most

children with this problem have high tone (hypertonia) which is also

called spasticity. Children born prematurely, like your child, are at

higher risk for CP than the general population. Not all motor tone

abnormalities are CP, nor do all children with CP have similar

problems with tone.

As CVA is associated with problems of motor control of the mouth and

pharynx (the back of your throat), it is logical that some children

with CP will have problems in this area of motor control as well.

The other reason that your doctor may be using the CP term is for

enhanced reimbursement from your insurer - they are more willing to

pay for a " hard " diagnosis like CP than a " soft " diagnosis of apraxia.

Larry Laveman, MD

Consultant, CHERAB

=====

[Guest guest]

HI there,

yes my son still has PT. he def has dyspraxia of the body and reading lisa's

response I had no idea that hypo and hyper can go together. learn something new

everyday!!! He does have both. he is not flexible and very weak with just

about everything, throwing, hitting, running, even his posture is bent. he

tires very easily. he could do throwing and hitting for awhile or dribble the

basketball or run, or walk great but only for short periods of time. I feel bad

for him because i know others look at him like he's lazy but he truely is tired.

I want to add that he also has some vestibular issues as well. I think its

related to the body too. he never had confidence or trusted his own body. he

HATES high places, he is just beginning to swing on a swing (he's 8) anything

that requires him to take his feet off the ground terrifies him. I think his

body issues contribute to his anxiety, a lot.... He looooves baseball and

basketball but he is always a step behind and thank god it does not borther him

that he is a step behind. he is such a trooper in these sports.

he has a long way to go and i guess i just can't give up. sometimes i feel i

push him too much and yes i get embarrased(i hate to admit that). until he says

no more he and I will endure.

thanks for bringing up this topic I forgot that him that trusting his own body

contributes to soooo much of his behavior as well. Somehow if all else fails we

always have our physical selfs to count on but what if you didn't, that would

certainly not make ME trust the world... my poor guy. he is amazing how my boy

continues on.

thanks for bringing this up and i hope it helps

chris

[ ] " High Tone " versus " Low Tone "

OK, I officially have two of our doctors rolling their eyes at me today! Oh

well. . .

This started with someone else's child receiving a CP diagnosis. This reminded

me that a

dance teacher had told me that my daughter had " tone " in her legs. I thought she

was

clearly wrong, as the neuro had said my daughter had hypotonia (very mild).

However,

said today that you could have hypotonia in the trunk and hypertonia in the

legs.

I spoke with the neuro, who said he only had hypotonia reflected in his file on

my

daughter. I then spoke twice with our pediatrician. He said that if there were a

" significant issue " he would have spoken to me about it. He said it is possible

that she

could have a minor issue with it that he could have missed during regular

check-ups.

He allowed me to go through all the physical activities we work on with her, and

said he

felt that we were covering our bases. He did suggest that we add stretching to

her

routine, which he said would help with hypertonia if it were an issue. He

offered to put us

in touch with a physical therapist to suggest appropriate exercises (and do

another

evaluation if we wanted). However, overall he was very encouraging, and

basically said

that if there is an issue it is very mild, and said he felt daily stretching

would take care of

it. (We already do running, weight bearing exercises, and horseback riding.)

We did a PT eval a while ago, and we given some exercise suggestions, but never

really

did PT. We started hippotherapy, but she did so well at it, they removed her

from the

class and put her in a sports riding class. Have most of your children done PT?

As I

understand it, my insurance isn't going to cover this -- but we'll do it anyway

if it is the

right thing to do. Opinions?

________________________________________________________________________________\

____

Be a better friend, newshound, and

know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now.

http://mobile./;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ

[Guest guest]

, Sorry -- I should clarify. She was evaluated, and put in a class. As it

turned out,

she sat very tall in the saddle and did not " slump " at all, and she turned out

to have

excellent balance. After a couple of lessons in this class, they moved her to a

private

class. After a couple of session there, they suggested that she move out of

hippotherapy

and into the sports riding class. They said that typically they reserved the

hippotherapy

for children working at a lower level (their words, not mine). I did speak up

and tell them

that it is important to me that her tone improve. The PT said that the sports

riding class

would work on all of the issues that needed to be worked on (tone (posture) and

balance)

-- and she would get the additional benefit of learning to direct the horse

(which they

thought would be really good for her self-confidence). I have only been to one

place for

this, so I have no idea if this is " typical " or not. But I could see how she

differed from

another little girl that was in her class. My daughter was able to " sit up " in

the saddle, and

move, even at a trot, without concerns that she would fall off. I revisited the

decision with

them a couple of times -- in the hippotherapy, there were more of the activities

you list.

Her class now is (to my very untrained eye) much like horseback riding lessons.

They were

right on one thing, however -- this has truly helped her self confidence, so

I've let it go.

She is 7 years old, so her age may have influenced their decision as well.

> >

> > OK, I officially have two of our doctors rolling their eyes at me

> today! Oh well. . .

> >

> > This started with someone else's child receiving a CP diagnosis.

> This reminded me that a

> > dance teacher had told me that my daughter had " tone " in her legs.

> I thought she was

> > clearly wrong, as the neuro had said my daughter had hypotonia

> (very mild). However,

> > said today that you could have hypotonia in the trunk and

> hypertonia in the legs.

> >

> > I spoke with the neuro, who said he only had hypotonia reflected in

> his file on my

> > daughter. I then spoke twice with our pediatrician. He said that

> if there were a

> > " significant issue " he would have spoken to me about it. He said

> it is possible that she

> > could have a minor issue with it that he could have missed during

> regular check-ups.

> >

> > He allowed me to go through all the physical activities we work on

> with her, and said he

> > felt that we were covering our bases. He did suggest that we add

> stretching to her

> > routine, which he said would help with hypertonia if it were an

> issue. He offered to put us

> > in touch with a physical therapist to suggest appropriate exercises

> (and do another

> > evaluation if we wanted). However, overall he was very

> encouraging, and basically said

> > that if there is an issue it is very mild, and said he felt daily

> stretching would take care of

> > it. (We already do running, weight bearing exercises, and horseback

> riding.)

> >

> > We did a PT eval a while ago, and we given some exercise

> suggestions, but never really

> > did PT. We started hippotherapy, but she did so well at it, they

> removed her from the

> > class and put her in a sports riding class. Have most of your

> children done PT? As I

> > understand it, my insurance isn't going to cover this -- but we'll

> do it anyway if it is the

> > right thing to do. Opinions?

> >

>

[Guest guest]

and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you taking

time to

respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we are

doing all we can

right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is a time

crunch to " fix "

everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has made

amazing

progress -- but we still have a way to go.

>

> , Sorry -- I should clarify. She was evaluated, and put in a class. As

it turned out,

> she sat very tall in the saddle and did not " slump " at all, and she turned out

to have

> excellent balance. After a couple of lessons in this class, they moved her to

a private

> class. After a couple of session there, they suggested that she move out of

hippotherapy

> and into the sports riding class. They said that typically they reserved the

hippotherapy

> for children working at a lower level (their words, not mine). I did speak up

and tell

them

> that it is important to me that her tone improve. The PT said that the sports

riding class

> would work on all of the issues that needed to be worked on (tone (posture)

and

balance)

> -- and she would get the additional benefit of learning to direct the horse

(which they

> thought would be really good for her self-confidence). I have only been to

one place for

> this, so I have no idea if this is " typical " or not. But I could see how she

differed from

> another little girl that was in her class. My daughter was able to " sit up "

in the saddle,

and

> move, even at a trot, without concerns that she would fall off. I revisited

the decision

with

> them a couple of times -- in the hippotherapy, there were more of the

activities you

list.

> Her class now is (to my very untrained eye) much like horseback riding

lessons. They

were

> right on one thing, however -- this has truly helped her self confidence, so

I've let it go.

> She is 7 years old, so her age may have influenced their decision as well.

[Guest guest]

Em,

If she is working the body everyday... you are doing it.... it IS happening and

she will slowly get stronger. Core body tone takes a long time but just do it

in the most pleasant and funnest of ways so that she will keep it up for years

and years. And there definately is a time crunch with the older kids as the

schoolyard is not a kind place. But you are working the body nicely.... how

about those hands..... they can be an aweful problem.

Janice

Mother of Mark, 13

[sPAM][ ] Re: " High Tone " versus " Low Tone "

and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you taking

time to

respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we are

doing all we can

right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is a time

crunch to " fix "

everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has made

amazing

progress -- but we still have a way to go.

>

> , Sorry -- I should clarify. She was evaluated, and put in a class. As

it turned out,

> she sat very tall in the saddle and did not " slump " at all, and she turned

out to have

> excellent balance. After a couple of lessons in this class, they moved her

to a private

> class. After a couple of session there, they suggested that she move out of

hippotherapy

> and into the sports riding class. They said that typically they reserved the

hippotherapy

> for children working at a lower level (their words, not mine). I did speak

up and tell

them

> that it is important to me that her tone improve. The PT said that the

sports riding class

> would work on all of the issues that needed to be worked on (tone (posture)

and

balance)

> -- and she would get the additional benefit of learning to direct the horse

(which they

> thought would be really good for her self-confidence). I have only been to

one place for

> this, so I have no idea if this is " typical " or not. But I could see how she

differed from

> another little girl that was in her class. My daughter was able to " sit up "

in the saddle,

and

> move, even at a trot, without concerns that she would fall off. I revisited

the decision

with

> them a couple of times -- in the hippotherapy, there were more of the

activities you

list.

> Her class now is (to my very untrained eye) much like horseback riding

lessons. They

were

> right on one thing, however -- this has truly helped her self confidence, so

I've let it go.

> She is 7 years old, so her age may have influenced their decision as well.

[Guest guest]

It sounds like your daughter is a " rock star " as Janice says and that

you ask great questions and have a good doc responding to your

inquiries.

> >

> > , Sorry -- I should clarify. She was evaluated, and put in

a class. As it turned out,

> > she sat very tall in the saddle and did not " slump " at all, and

she turned out to have

> > excellent balance. After a couple of lessons in this class, they

moved her to a private

> > class. After a couple of session there, they suggested that she

move out of

> hippotherapy

> > and into the sports riding class. They said that typically they

reserved the hippotherapy

> > for children working at a lower level (their words, not mine). I

did speak up and tell

> them

> > that it is important to me that her tone improve. The PT said

that the sports riding class

> > would work on all of the issues that needed to be worked on (tone

(posture) and

> balance)

> > -- and she would get the additional benefit of learning to direct

the horse (which they

> > thought would be really good for her self-confidence). I have

only been to one place for

> > this, so I have no idea if this is " typical " or not. But I could

see how she differed from

> > another little girl that was in her class. My daughter was able

to " sit up " in the saddle,

> and

> > move, even at a trot, without concerns that she would fall off.

I revisited the decision

> with

> > them a couple of times -- in the hippotherapy, there were more of

the activities you

> list.

> > Her class now is (to my very untrained eye) much like horseback

riding lessons. They

> were

> > right on one thing, however -- this has truly helped her self

confidence, so I've let it go.

> > She is 7 years old, so her age may have influenced their decision

as well.

>

[Guest guest]

Sounds like she is doing well.. now sit back and relax and smile. )

>

> and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

> encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you

taking time to

> respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we are

doing all we can

> right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is a

time crunch to " fix "

> everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has made

amazing

> progress -- but we still have a way to go.

[Guest guest]

Again, thanks to all who responded! I *had* to smile when my daughter was

referred to as

a rock star! But it did make me realize how far she has come. Although when we

started,

I was sure she had pure apraxia, I now know that she also has some dyspraxia in

her body

too. She loves to dance. Last year, she was crushed because the teacher told

me she

shouldn't take jazz because it simply went too fast for my dear child to keep

up. But she

kept doing ballet and tap, and this this year, she started jazz too (and has

actually been

keeping up!). It is nice to have some activities she can do that aren't

" therapy " because we

do a lot of therapy.

> >

> > and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

> > encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you

taking time

to

> > respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we are

doing all we

can

> > right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is a

time crunch to

" fix "

> > everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has

made

amazing

> > progress -- but we still have a way to go.

>

[Guest guest]

Janice, Sorry I missed your earlier question about fine motor. I am always

looking for

things to work her hands, so if you have ideas, please, please send them our

way!!!! Your

therapy ideas are amazing (I have been using your oral motor ideas for her " L "

and she's

almost got it!! A major, major improvement!!)

We started with OT -- lots of theraputty squishing (and we did that exercise

that

talked about where you pull little beads out of the clay!) to strengthen the

fingers. We also

did a lot of finger isometrics so that each finger was able to move

independently.

We then moved on to handwriting, which was a little difficult. We used an OT

for the

Handwriting without Tears program. There were no tears with that program, but

honestly,

she didn't make a lot of progress with it. I think perhaps she needed more

" basic

training. "

After more " basics, " I worked with her on a program by Dianne Craft (Brain

Integration

Therapy) which basically had her drawing a sideways 8 (to cross the midline) and

then

writing each letter of the alphabet on this " lazy 8. " It took about 10-15

minutes a day and

we did it for about 12 weeks. At the end, I still thought her handwriting

needed work, but

we needed a break, so we stopped. A month or so after that, with no further

anything, her

handwriting suddenly improved. I think maybe all the work just needed some time

to

click.

Now she takes piano lessons. Practicing really works her fingers, and again,

she doesn't

think of it as therapy because so many of her little friends take piano as well.

Having a girl

with fine motor issues is a double-edged sword (in my opinion). I honestly

believe

teachers expect more from the girls (better handwriting, better coloring, etc.).

I have

some boys of my own, so I can say that has been our case anyway. On the other

side, my

daughter enjoys fine motor activities more than her brothers. So, I can get her

to work on

Perler beads (those little beads you put on a plastic form and iron), or do

Shrinky Dinks

(which involve tracing, coloring, cutting), or string tiny beads for necklaces.

When she was

a little younger, she loved the " Chicken Socks " books by Klutz -- each book was

kind of a

do-it-yourself activity, involving cutting, tying, etc.

I am also looking for new ideas! Please send them my way!!!

> > >

> > > and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

> > > encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you

taking

time

> to

> > > respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we

are doing all

we

> can

> > > right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is

a time crunch

to

> " fix "

> > > everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has

made

> amazing

> > > progress -- but we still have a way to go.

> >

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Let me tell you.... that dance is therapy! WOW! If she can do dance, I would

not consider her to have many motor planning issues in the gross motor area

anymore! Congrats! You beat it! She is a Rock Star!

That is the key.... to slowly transfer from therapy to skill sets and Normal

skill building like other kids.

Again..... how are her hands. That is the toughest and the last to truly be

identified..... the hands..... would be a shame for us to miss it if she

struggles with her hands.

Janice

[sPAM][ ] Re: " High Tone " versus " Low Tone "

Again, thanks to all who responded! I *had* to smile when my daughter was

referred to as

a rock star! But it did make me realize how far she has come. Although when we

started,

I was sure she had pure apraxia, I now know that she also has some dyspraxia

in her body

too. She loves to dance. Last year, she was crushed because the teacher told

me she

shouldn't take jazz because it simply went too fast for my dear child to keep

up. But she

kept doing ballet and tap, and this this year, she started jazz too (and has

actually been

keeping up!). It is nice to have some activities she can do that aren't

" therapy " because we

do a lot of therapy.

> >

> > and Janice -- Thank you both for your suggestions and kind words of

> > encouragement! I really needed support yesterday, and so appreciate you

taking time

to

> > respond to me. After objectively assessing our situation, I do feel we are

doing all we

can

> > right now. I think as your child gets older, you start to feel there is a

time crunch to

" fix "

> > everything before it is too late! Don't get me wrong -- my daughter has

made

amazing

> > progress -- but we still have a way to go.

>