`The letters used to jump up and down in front of my eyes. After the therapy, they simply weren't hopping any more." This simple yet startling description comes from a 25-year-old woman who had suffered from a form of dyslexia for years before she finally found help from her massage therapist. New research in Sweden has found that massage combined with co-ordination exercises can bring about great improvements in children who suffer from dyslexia, behavioural and emotional problems and poor concentration. Cranial osteopaths are reporting similar success stories with such children and with others who have been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder. In some cases, the children's quality of life improves significantly, enabling them to feel better about themselves and thus tackle their problems. Complementary therapists in these two fields are now gaining recognition for their work with children in Ireland. Massage therapist Katie Losty has recently returned to Ireland, after six years working in Sweden. "The majority of children who have been found to have dyslexia also have mobility problems. Swedish research has found that many of them skipped the crawling stage of their development," explains Losty. While in Sweden, Losty studied with Ann Chatrine Jonsson at the Axelsons Gymnastic Institute, Stockholm (the oldest and most renowned complementary medicine centre in Sweden). After 20 years working as a remedial teacher, Jonsson initiated a programme of massage and dyslexia training. In this programme, co-ordination exercises are incorporated into a treatment plan for each individual child alongside massage therapy. Now working from the Sandycove Health Clinic in Co Dublin, Losty uses co-ordination exercises such as jumping, eye movements, finger tapping and pen movements. Many of these exercises have already been incorporated into other exercise programmes for children with learning difficulties. However, the unique aspect here is the addition of the massage therapy. "I've been amazed at how young children will settle down for a massage. I use aromatherapy oils in some cases to help them stay calm and I teach them abdominal breathing to keep them grounded," she says. Using techniques she learned in Sweden, Losty works with acupressure points on the body, particularly those under the eyes - which are believed to improve visual acuity. She also includes a facial massage in the treatment. "In Sweden, this combined use of co-ordination exercises - which the children must practice daily at home - and massage is well known in educational circles. Massage is introduced to schoolchildren in Sweden as the peaceful touch. There, they have found that when children learn to massage each other's backs, it has helped to reduce violence and aggression in schools."
Cranial osteopaths will look to the physical body for the roots of most behavioural, emotional and concentration problems. More specifically, they will look at the brain and central nervous system. While osteopathy focuses on the whole body - its joints, spinal vertebrae and muscles - cranial osteopathy focuses on the brain and central nervous system. Cranial osteopaths use a lighter touch with gentle pressure. Enhancing the flow of the so-called cerebro spinal fluid, which passes through the ventricles of the brain and spinal cord, is central to their work.
Sara Hanrahan is a cranial osteopath, based in Dalkey, Co Dublin, who runs a weekly children's clinic. She believes many emotional, behavioural and attention problems are directly linked to a traumatic birth experience. "Basically, your brain is contained within your skull and when you are born, it is completely malleable and therefore vulnerable to compression," she says. "If the skull is compressed or squashed during birth, this leaves the baby with a tremendous restriction to cope with. This can manifest itself as difficulty focusing, poor attention span, restlessness, sleeplessness. Generally, these children are just not happy." Hanrahan points to behaviour such as head-banging, or sleeping wedged into one corner of the cot, as examples of a child trying to resolve tension in the skull. Sometimes when she treats young irritable babies, "these children will give you a look which says thank God somebody knows what to do", she says with a smile. Apart from traumatic birth experiences and the foetal position in the womb, there are other physical factors which can bring about emotional and behavioural problems in children. One of the most noteworthy is a series of bad falls. "For example, if a child repeatedly falls on their bottom when learning to walk, this can jam up the sacrum, which can make the child very irritable," says Hanrahan. In this instance, it is the vital flow of the cerebrospinal fluid which has been hindered. Four or five treatments are usually deemed sufficient to solve such problems.
Cranial osteopath Tom Conba points to the need to look sometimes at other aspects alongside cranial osteopathy for children with behavioural difficulties.
"The problems may be due to the body not being allowed to express itself to its full potential due to a birth trauma. But it can be useful to have the input of a homoeopath or a dietitian as well," he says. When treatment is a success, parents often respond that "he's a completely different child". Osteopath Chris Campbell runs three weekly clinics for children in the Littlejohn Health Clinic, at Walkinstown in Dublin. While treating children is a major part of his work, he says that over the years he has changed his views on what is appropriate for children.
"You can often find a good physiological base and osteopathic explanation for the child's problems, but if there are environmental problems as well, it complicates things hugely. A child's problem has to be seen in the context of the family unit," he points out. Perhaps more controversially, Campbell claims that parents can unconsciously be keeping the child from being healthy "to help serve their own unconscious needs in some way". These conclusions have led him at times to question who does and does not need treatment. For example, young parents who, due to financial or work pressures, have not been able to develop the necessary skills might be directed towards parenting classes.
For this reason, Campbell and his team of osteopaths work alongside counsellors who are available to parents. "If you really want to work with children, you must also treat the environment they are in," he emphasises. One key factor in all of this is cost. The massage and dyslexia training costs £55 for an initial consultation, which becomes £30 to £40 for later sessions and £25 for a massage alone. Cranial osteopathy treatments cost between £15 and £30 per treatment, depending on whether the particular osteopath offers cheaper rates to children or not. While this may be affordable for some families, it is certainly not an option for many. One suspects that it will be quite some time - if ever - before such treatments become available to families through the health services.
Katie Losty can be contacted on tel: 087-6196340.
The Irish Osteopathic Association can be contacted on tel: 01-2695281.
