Grace
mother of 4 year old Jessica with Aicardi Syndrome
I came across Judy Cheng of Move To Learn Therapy in searching for a physiotherapist who uses the Feldenkrais Method with children.
My daughter Jessica could sit rigidly and stand rigidly but buckles at the knee when moved. She lacks the movement to reach with her arms, turn her body or apply pressure on her arms. She will not lay flat on her stomach. We put lots of time and effort into exercises but they didn’t move her forward and gave all of us stress and frustration.
During and after Jessica’s introductory sessions with Judy, she was comfortable being moved out of her safe zones and lay on her stomach, which she disliked. She is moving her body with more intent whether it be her legs or hands.
I was surprised by how receptive she was during her therapy sessions with Judy and the fact that those same movements and developments would continue at home. This therapy fills in the blanks for learning that none of the other therapies had done for Jessica’s brain.
After 10 therapy sessions, Jessica said, “I do it” and wanted to feed herself, trying to hold the spoon or holding it with my help. Her reach is strong and she’s less frustrated with activities that must have stressed her or scared her in the past like showering, playing hand over hand and such. She is also having reduced gas in her stomach for the first time in her life and I can’t attribute that to anything else.
This therapy has filled in the missing pieces of what she was needing that I never knew could be answered.
