Behind on Milestones? Why Chiropractic Can Help
Understanding Milestones and Brain Development
Parents in Viridian and North Arlington, I know how much you want the very best for your baby. I believe you are the person who knows your child the best and has the best rapport with your infant in order to both notice the tiniest details and give them what they need more than any other expert. I’ve been working with parents for 18 + years, and have learned that almost every parent would do anything to relieve suffering, and to maximize the trajectory of their child’s growth and development. The first 1000 days (including womb time, so about the first 2 years) is the absolute best time to grow your baby’s brain.
Our medical system and the educational system are REACTIVE.. By the time neurodevelopmental issues are noticed, diagnosed, and treatment has started, we have often missed crucial windows in brain development. Noticing the developmental milestones (when were they hit, in what order did they progress, and did they do it completely, ie. to both sides,) and your child’s preferences during the earliest stages of life are a window to their brain development.
This is a huge paradigm shift… Instead of waiting until a problem is diagnosable and seeking treatment, we stay laser focused on the function and neurology of our infants and help them thrive from the time they are born. We work to create freedom in your infant’s body and cranium so that their little bodies can do everything with comfort : turn their head all the way in each direction, roll to each side, lie on their tummy, etc. This freedom from interference allows proper information to get through to build the brain healthy and whole from the get go. We love to teach parents skills to work through the struggles we know come in a more complex infant, but we will also teach you what to look for in normal development and how to take appropriate action BEFORE your child becomes stuck… either in their body or in a stage of development.
There is no such thing as a bad baby. Their cries, their struggles, their restrictions show us exactly the information we need to help them with where they are stuck in their bodies or development.
Why are these two so related? As my mentor, Dr. Amy Spoelstra says, it would be creepy if a baby came out fully developed, walking and talking! Brains develop like a flower, from the bottom up, from back to front, from right to left, like a flower. Babies are born with primitive tools, their infant reflexes, that help them get food, attach to their caregivers, and be safe. As the baby moves through his or her development, the next most sophisticated set of tools, movement and touch, begin to develop. Gaining head control, floor or tummy time not only builds a strong core and good body skills, it literally sends 80% of the sensory information that feeds the brain! Not the 5 senses, but proprioception a “super sense” that we will learn more ABOUT. (Two cool things about proprioception - when that system is working well, it makes for great athletes because 1. you can sense your body’s position in space AND 2. it is the best way to drown out pain signals.) If your child hates tummy time and won’t be put down for a single minute without screaming, I’ve got you. There are ways to do this body and brain building WITHOUT the fussing.
Ready to learn more about how to get (or keep!) your infant’s development on track? Call or text 612 280-6596 for a complimentary phone consult.
