What Brushing did for us
 
After 7 months Melindas' mother said:-

“She has matured in a way which is so much more balanced – her godmother actually said of Melinda that “she had found her grace”. (she is now able to move much more fluidly).

Last term she actually got 3 A’s, 8 B’s and 2 C’s. All this for the girl who was admitted to the school on the basis that she would need to have 3 learning support lessons a week. I came out of the Parents Meeting absolutely on air – everyone of the teachers had glowing things to say about her progress. There wasn’t a subject that any of the teachers didn’t want her to take at GCSE!

She has progressed even more rapidly than I could have believed possible! Simply amazing!”

April 4 2008

3 months into treatment Melindas' mother said:-

"Last term her school report was full of complaints about her lack of concentration, her lack of application and the fact that she just couldn't focus. Her report actually said 'this girl needs help'.

This term there has been a huge improvement all round - all her grades are A's and B's with only one C (for Classics). She is certainly showing a more mature side to herself ...she is helping more and simply being much more reasonable.

Melinda herself says that she is finding riding easier especially as she can now rember the sequence of what she has to do and when.

October 22 2007
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An Adults Story

Mark recently supplied me with his story of how dyspraxia affected him and how the programme of treatment he embarked on completely changed his life. It very usefully highlights just how insiduous a condition dyspraxia can be if left undiagnosed and untreated. 

Before I was directed to  the David Mulhall Centre by a helpful Counsellor, I had been told by the NHS that there was no cure for dyspraxia, but that it was ‘liveable with’. As an adult, I had no formal diagnosis and was shuttled between my GP and an Adult Dyspraxia Support Group in my attempts to get one.

 I gave up on finding any help, and after trying every kind of fish-oil supplement with no significant improvement, resigned myself to taking anti-depressants for the rest of my life to take away the constant anxiety. They actually made me more clumsy but I didn’t care so much any more.  The side effects were many but there seemed no alternative.

 Once I saw a description of dyspraxia as an adult, I knew that I had had this condition since childhood but had never received any understanding of my difficulties. In spite of these I had made it to university and completed a degree but it was following this, living on my own in London in my first real job that my problems really began.

 I had experienced some bullying at secondary school due to my awkward walk and inability at football, but my academic success allowed me to rise above it.  In my first job things got bad again as I was too slow, my handwriting was terrible and I was permanently disorganised and dishevelled. I failed the professional exams that I worked obsessively hard towards because of my handwriting problems. After this failure I became consumed by addictions.

 It was only my abilities with I.T. that saved me from the sack and a life on the scrap-heap but I still had many difficulties at work with other people who did not appreciate how hard I had to try at the things that came naturally to them. I felt very misunderstood.

My treatment at the David Mulhall Centre  worked miracles. If all that had been promised was that I would finally walk normally, that would still have been beyond my wildest dreams. That happened within the first 3 months. The constant floating anxiety also disappeared, my posture relaxed and I became a much happier person. I was able to cope with my feelings that had in the past overwhelmed me. My crippling hyper-sensitivity was massively reduced. At work, I became so adept at organising and completing my backlog of tasks that my boss had to get used to me asking him what I should do next. I passed the Project Management qualification first time, unlike several other people at my firm.

Today I do not need to take anti-depressants. I am organised, co-ordinated, walk normally and can run faster than I could at 18. I have hope again, can respond to my own feelings and am no longer shut-down, feeling overwhelmingly desolate. It definitely worked for me."

January 2008 

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Tabitha’s Story

Tabitha’s mother first brought her daughter to me in May 2007. She was concerned that Tabitha had trouble at school and had difficulty in applying herself. She was also concerned that she was very easily led and coerced by ‘friends’ into misbehaving. This meant that Tabitha repeatedly came in for the wrong kind of attention from her teachers!

The following is 9 year old Tabitha’s experience of the programme:

June – Her school have noted a very definite change in Tabitha in the last 2 weeks, Whereas she used not to communicate about things she is now able to explain why she is behaving or doing something i.e. because she is scared or embarrased.

July- Her school report says that she is getting better and better. Natasha’s mother has noted that she is generally less eratic in her movements and that she is a lot calmer Tabitha herself reports that she is finding maths much easier. She is now standing up for herself more and is not so easily fooled into doing things that could get her into trouble. For years w ehave  tried to get her to ride a bike and now we have trouble keeping up with her!  She is so much more self confident.

August – We visited the Natural History Museum – when she was asked by a member of staff if she wanted more information, instead of simply replying “I don’t know” which previously would have been her response,  she actually asked some very relevant and  intelligent questions.

September – We have started doing extra maths and she is now capable of engaging and retaining the information – previously she had problems understanding mathematics however hard she tried. Tabitha commented that she finds concentrating in class so much easier and she has now been put up a level in maths. She is so much more aware of how and when others might be using her as the butt of jokes or humour.

October – Since that last appoinmtment there has been improvement after improvement. Everybody at school has remarked at how well Tabitha is doing, her ability to concentrate and how she fairly whizzes through her work. She has received a special award for being so helpful and her headmistress has given her 2 Super Star awards for the most progress shown in the school!

November – We had a Parent’s Meeting and for the very first time we actually talked about her Maths and her English instead of just spending the entire 10 minutes talking about her behaviour and what was needed to improve it. Her teacher who had been teaching her for the last 3 years was so impressed with how much more focused Tabitha had become. In maths she is now top of the middle group with the possibility of moving up to the top group.

December – In her school report one teacher remarked on her 100% improvement. “She is now a pleasure to teach …she has a lot of potential. Previously this same teacher had described Tab' s as a danger to herself and others in her class when swimming.

June  to December 2007

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What Brushing did for us

Adam – Aged 11

At the 1st Review Adam’s mother said:-

“Almost overnight he seemed to settle – he almost seems to be more at ease with himself. He is much more physically affectionate which he never used to be but is fantastic. He has been overreacting to sounds a little bit more than is usual. Everything at school is now going very well though he is now tired by the end of the day as he is putting in the extra effort”.

Adam - “its difficult to explain but… its as if everything in general is a bit easier – my handwriting, my sport  etc.

At the 2nd Review Adam’s mother said:-

Adam’s behaviour had been an area of concern and had been flagged by the school who said that he lacked boundaries  - he struggled with to be age appropriate in his play with others which frequently caused him problems. Two months into the programme and his school teachers are reporting back that they have all noticed an improvement in Aidan’s behaviour.
He used to always have the same friends all the time but he seems to be making new friends now – he has made two new friends recently.

MO (mother) /Adam – November 8 & December 3 2007
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What Brushing did for us

Hannah – Aged 8 

She is far more outgoing . Her eating has also changed - she is not just endlessly hungry.

Hannah says “ School is getting easier, especially maths. Writing is also getting easier. My reading is better, easier and faster than before”.

At the recent parents evening all the teachers said of Hannah “ She contributes enthusiastically and is showing  that she has a brilliant mind”.  Her stamina (previously an issue) has also got a lot better.

NW (mother) November 9 2007
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What Brushing did for us 

Mal - Aged 12

Mal is now much more responsible - he is setting his own routine and actually getting on with it (his homework). It's good to see that sense of maturity and a good understanding of what is required coming in. No way would he have done this before.

He is now reading alot - he is fairly tearing through books! He used to be quiet in class but now he is asking lots of questions, especially in maths!

GK (father) October 26 2007 

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  What Brushing did for us 

Sam  - Age 11

We had been told since the day Sam started school that” something was a problem” but no teacher could actually put their finger on it. Lots of suggestions about why were made including the fact that he was an August baby!

Finally, frustrated with the lack of progress we had Sam privately assessed and we were given the diagnosis of Dyspraxia- grapha motor dyspraxia. Although we appreciated the effects this had on his handwriting, we were unaware of the overall effects dyspraxia would have on his daily life – his general organisational skills, his ability to concentrate or following multiple instructions to name a few, but most importantly - the emotional roller coaster.

While researching Dyspraxia we came across the David Mulhall web site. Reading the information on the screen rang a lot of bells for me and we decided bring Sam to be assessed. As a physiotherapist, I knew a lot of the tests and reflexes David tested. However, I had not realised the impact these “stuck” reflexes had on Sam. As David explained, so many pieces of the puzzle that is dyspraxia made sense – from his swimming stroke through to his distractibility in class.

We began treatment with the brushing technique in February 2006. The response was immediate. In the first month we had an initial extreme reaction in Sam’s behaviour for a few days, which was quite starting. Then once this settled down, progress was immediately apparent. The main changes were in his handwriting and emotional reactions (they became less extreme). Gradually over the months more subtle changes were apparent. We experienced a slight set back for a few days when we first changed the brushing techniques
And a couple of times we had to ease off and slow down the treatment. However, progress was steady. Now 16 months after we started Sam is doing really well his reflexes appropriately in place. And he is developing into them. He is a happy well-adjusted boy emotionally (well) balanced. He still has some concentration and task completion issues. I really do believe these will continue to improve as catches up with his development.

In September Sam starts at senior school. We feel strongly that having followed the Mulhall regime we have given Sam the best start he could have had. My advice to anyone reading this would be definitely give it a try and to follow the regime to the letter (there were times when we did not brush for a couple of days and we definitely saw a slowdown in his progress.

With patience, faith and (a little) endurance you will reap the rewards.

 KR (Mum) August 07

What Brushing did for us 

Wil  - Aged 10

Since starting the treatment eleven months ago, I cannot believe the change in Ed – he is so much more mature. This child is just completely different – at the week-end he just said he had some homework to do and went off and completed it all on his own.

He got really good exam results and he is now in line with the national average.

CL (Mum) June 29th 2007

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What Brushing did for us

If anyone was to ask me what my daughter was like, I would have described her as a shadow of her former self. The sadness was that I had never seen the former bit – but knew that deep down it must exist and then we found it!

Susan is 10 years old. She was diagnosed as being on the minor end of the autistic spectrum when she was 4 years old. She was nicknamed by my 16 month-old daughter as "cry". My memory of her was that she cried and screamed and tantrumed from her early years until she was about 7 or 8 years old. Her whole life seemed to be one big battle. I fought her over getting dressed, teeth cleaning, high chair, car seat and so on. She could not speak apart from random words strung together when she was young, but learned late – but was very simple in her word order, and never picked up any form of good intonation, so always sounded strange. She found it very hard to read and writing was so hard. She subsequently dropped 2 years behind in school, as she could not understand what was being taught and any writing task was almost impossible. She could however read and write by the time she was 8 but at a low level. She was not however a real person. She used to hug a lot as I would hug her. Eye contact was shifty and she couldn’t express anything of how she was feeling. Play dates were impossible. She was unable to play anything but simple games which were too boring for her "friend". Her doll’s house figures or dolls were generally put into rows. This was the limit to her simple games.

The hardest thing to come to terms with was the inability to potty train her. She generally wet herself at home 2 to 4 times a day. She was happy to sit in her wet clothes until I noticed. We could not take her out anyway unless there was a loo and even then she wouldn’t tell me if she needed to go. At school this caused problems – especially as children can be very mean. She strangely did learn her boundaries at school but never learned any control at home until we took her to David Mulhall for treatment when she was nearly 9.

"Susan began to change in ways beyond my farthest dreams. Today there is no shadow. I have my child. She no longer wets herself. She can ride a bike, she can run, clean her teeth, brush her hair, get dressed, cut her nails, blow her nose, go to the loo when she needs to."

She can write beautifully, she reads and speaks with intonation which is normal. She picks up phrases from her peers. She fights with her sister – (yes that’s normal and be thankful for it) she looks at me, she expresses love, she receives love, we have a tantrum-free life and probably a lot more besides.
I am so thankful to David for bringing out the person that we knew existed but we could never find.
SMT (her Mum) October 2005

What Brushing did for us  (AN ADULT'S EXPERIENCE)
Generally I am less tense, more approachable and more cheerful. An ex-colleague noticed the change immediately - "your face looks more open now". Halfway through my treatment I stopped wearing my orthotic blocks, as for the first time in my life I was standing upright and walking freely with an even stride. At the end of the treatment I threw the blocks away, because I was feeling less anxious and less in need of reassurance!

My general coordination and ease of movement has improved considerably, much to the surprise of my tennis partners. As my physical attitude has vastly improved, so my mental attitude has become more open, relaxed, cheerful, and receptive.      

"I feel more able to embrace life wholeheartedly and to respond to each new situation with an open mind and without fear or anxiety..."
DM adult – October 2005