Focus Recap - Part II - Brain Gym with Mari Miyoshi

Brain Gym

Mari Miyoshi stumbled upon Brain Gym by accident. She had finished school and was working in a  sensory integration clinic. A supervisor taught her a 5 minute warm-up. When she added this to her weekly routine with her students, she noticed a huge improvement. Mari was surprised that 5 minutes a week can have this large an impact. She took a Brain Gym course and was hooked. Less overwhelmed. More able to do the challenging things that made up her life. Mari is not just an instructor of Brain Gym, but also a client. She uses Brain Gym techniques to ease the stresses of day to day life.

Brain Gym is a series of movements performed in an intentional way which optimizes brain function. The movements are very simple. They are part of normal development. Brain Gym is used to fill in gaps that may have occurred during development. We may be very functional, but still have challenges and stresses. The techniques taught in Brain Gym increases integrative learning and can help us feel less stress in our daily lives.

Mari gave us a brief overview and a hands on experience of High Gear & Low Gear.

To experience this from the comfort of your home: Write your name on a piece of paper.

That required minimal effort, right? That’s high gear. When we’re able to do things without applying ourselves. Now switch the pen to your non dominant hand. Write your name. A little more stress right? Low gear is where we require more effort and attention. If we did any challenging task repetitively, it would become much easier. Lots of people are afraid to get into low gear. They’d prefer to stay with the tried and true – even if it takes longer, requires more effort, etc. because they know what to do. The goal here would be to make low gear a safer place to be. Life does require effort, but does not have to be scary.

Water is the first exercise in brain gym:

Water enhances:

• Electro-chemical activity in Central Nervous System

• Processing speed

• Stress release

• Increases the level of oxygen in the blood 

Mari did a cool experiment and showed us how water transmits electricity.  She explained that the synapse between neurons have water (and various other minerals) and that messages travel faster when we are adequately hydrated.

Mari had us singing ABC's, playing with dolls, doing figure eights, the cross crawl, tugging at our ears and much more.

Among other great info Mari shared: 

Neurologically, for safety purposes, your body is drawn to changing colors. Watching tv or playing video games sometimes leaves kids (and adults) with a dazed look.  That’s a real physical phenomena. it’s physically challenging to look away. There’s adrenaline running through telling the body not to turn away. Your child is not ignoring you when you tell her to get away from the computer, her body is telling her otherwise.

In a stressful situation, our eyes naturally track the horizon. Sometimes we see a child with a reading difficulty frequently scanning the room, not focusing on the book in his hands. While this is generally assumed to be an attention disorder, it most likely means his body his experiencing stress.

Mari suggested doing brain gym during transitions such as recess, bus rides, etc. Doing these exercises helps us switch gears. She says we should do each exercise for about 30 – 60 seconds. Mari recommends getting comfortable with Brain Gym before teaching it to our families. She thought a week of regular practice should have us fit to share the process with our children.

A select section of Mari’s handout, including exercises can be seen/downloaded here .

Mari can be reached through her website.

To good health and brains that are fit,

Chana

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Part I of this series - nutrition with Dr. John Azzarelli

Focus Recap - Part 1 - Dr. John

J-WHO's "Focus: what your child needs to succeed" event was a great hit.

Dr. John Azzarelli, CNC  RPH walked us through the life of a child and pointed out different events or substances (beginning in utero!) that could attribute to ADHD. He explained how a healthy digestion creates a strong healthy barrier to the outside world, ultimately protecting our brain function. John said that if our digestive system functions optimally, we are unlikely to encounter issues of hyperactivity, inability to focus and depression. This goes beyond eating good quality food. We need to protect the intestinal tract from toxins and avoid products that would damage the beneficial  flora within.

John  gave some examples of what to look out for, what to avoid and potential pitfalls.

During pregnancy:
Use a live probiotic* daily.
Avoid antibiotics, especially in labor. – they kill off all the good bacteria in mom & baby’s digestive tract
Avoid childbirth by surgery.  Essential cultures are transferred to baby in the birth canal

During infancy:
Breastfeed.
Use a live probiotic for yourself (and baby if pregnancy conditions were not optimal).
Avoid antacid medication such as Nexium & Zantac. These medications kill all the acid in a baby’s tummy and acids are our first line of defense. FYI: The rate of reflux is much higher for babies if their moms had  unresolved digestive issues, candida or were medicated during pregnancy and labor.

During childhood:
Become aware of symptoms of allergies and other health concerns. Ensure that there is a healthy digestion & immune system.

John shared lots of great info concerning symptoms, solutions and natural supplements. I will cover them briefly here:

Food allergies most common in focus issues are casein & gluten (dairy & wheat). He generally recommends that people remove those allergens from the diet at first sign of behavioral issues. Fructose can also be an allergen. He told of a child he treated that had severe facial tics. Through blood work, they discovered a fructose intolerance. Fruit was removed from this child’s diet and the facial tics are no more.

Dr. John says that 85% of people are vitamin D deficient. He recommends we all get tested and dose accordingly. The normal range is 20-100, but ideal numbers are at least 50-60.
When purchasing Vitamin D, D3  is the way to go.

Symptoms of potential thyroid issues: cold hands and feet & very red tip of tongue.
John explained the connection  between optimal thyroid function and focus. Adding naturally occurring iodine to the diet (sea salt or sea vegetables) is always beneficial.

Noticing obsessive behavior or anxiety? Most likely the Adrenal Glands are overproducing DHEA. Experiencing nightmares? Most likely there is a high level of dopamine & low levels of serotonin. John would venture that this child is highly creative. Amino acids can help balance this brain chemistry. Add animal proteins to the diet to do that naturally.

Severe allergies have you reaching for Claritin or Sudafed? Reach for Quercetin instead. Quercetin is a bioflavinoid, very beneficial in fighting allergies. Nettle root is anti-inflammatory and Boswellia also has similar benefits to anti-histamine medications.

Trying to conceive? Use Iodine, Raspberry Leaf supplement,  Probiotics & DHEA

Dr. John's message: Herbs & supplements can give us many benefits of medications without the harmful side effects.

Other great supplements for Brain Health:
Sam-e – really great for depression, but don’t use with other meds unless you speak with a professional. Also, if the patients seems to be slightly manic or bi-polar, avoid this supplement.
Phosphatidyl choline - this generally comes in a softgel. Nature's Plus does make a vegicap.
Fish oils
DMAE  - check with a professional if this is right for you
NAC - N-Acetyl-Cysteine-  detoxes the liver, etc, especially from heavy metals such as mercury.

The inside scoop on probiotics:  The digestive tract is one of the most complex eco systems. At any given time, we have some 160 types of bacteria in our gut. The individualized bacteria composition found in each body play a vital role in keeping us healthy. Reinforcing the numbers of the beneficial bacteria becomes an essential daily health objective. Taking a probiotic supplement daily is the best way to ensure that objective.

• Dr. John says “not just any probiotic. It’s essential to use a LIVE probiotic. How to know if it’s live? Purchase probiotics that are delivered in a cooler and kept refrigerated at all times." John recommended the Natren line. Apple Drugs carries “Vital Plex” probiotics, that are also delivered by cooler. When ordering, be sure to specify the refrigerated one.

You can find Dr. John in his store Nature's Apothecary, 1601 Kings Highway. 718-375-7877


To good health and a clear mind
Chana

Coming soon:
Part II of Focus: Brain Gym with Mari Miyoshi

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