Healing Your Child's Brain: A Proven Approach to Helping Your Child Thrive

Description

Diagnosis is not destiny. Autism. ADHD. Learning difficulties. Epilepsy. Cerebral palsy. Traumatic brain injury. From the moment your child is diagnosed with a special needs condition, you are plunged into a world of doctors, specialists, and therapists. But the most important person on your child's care team is you. In Healing Your Child's Brain, child development experts Matthew and Carol Newell arm parents with the knowledge, confidence, and tools they need to help their special-needs child flourish. The Newells have treated more than 20,000 children and are the parents of two special needs children. They know firsthand, as both parents and practitioners, what works-and what doesn't. Most treatments focus on managing symptoms but don't address underlying neurological issues. This book guides readers through the stages of brain development and how they affect functioning, showing what wellness looks like at each level and how to identify-and tackle-problems. In these pages, parents will learn- .The seven key developmental areas that contribute to how well your child functions in daily life. .How to evaluate your child's capabilities and challenges. .How to create an environment tailored to your unique child, meeting them where they are, rather than where they are "supposed" to be. With insight into how your child's unique brain functions, you can move beyond managing symptoms to establishing a home regimen that fosters neurological growth. It is possible to transform the structure of your child's brain-from the cells themselves to the connections between them. By harnessing the brain's ability to grow and change slowly and steadily over time, your child can and will make progress.

Matthew Newell has dedicated his life to helping children with special needs and brain injuries. As founder of The Family Hope Center in Greater Philadelphia, he has assembled a team of doctors and therapists and developed neurologically based therapy programs for over thousands of families, guiding parents through the process of healing their children. His rate of success with these children is unparalleled in the field. Over the past 35 years, Matthew has lectured and initiated child development programs internationally, working with parents and specialists in more than two dozen countries. He is the recipient of many international awards, including The Founders Award from The International Academy for Child Brain Development, which is the highest honor given by the academy. A native of England, Carol Newell has dedicated her life to helping children, particularly those with special needs. She began her career as a Certified Nursery Nurse in the UK, where she worked with healthy children as well as those with varying degrees of health problems. After becoming fascinated by the advancements made with brain-injured children by the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential, Carol contacted the IAHP about a position. She was accepted into a four-year program that brought her to the United States, where she later became certified in Child Brain Development. Carol ran the Early Development Program for IAHP for 10 years. She has worked in a clinical setting with special needs children for 35 years.

"If you're the parent of a special needs child, please read this book. You will find an empowering and refreshing way of viewing your child's condition. The information presented here will help you to understand what is happening, to get to the root cause of the problem and give you a road map for helping your child to heal." -Linda Baker, MD, CCH, Portland, OR "It is thrilling to see the decades of dedication spearheaded by Matthew and Carol Newell and their diverse team at the Family Hope Center encapsulated in this book. In it, their philosophy, approach, and results in overcoming neurological injuries-even the most severe cases-are made accessible to professionals and families alike . . . This book provides a broad picture of previously unsuspected possibilities in neurological recovery and effective parenting." -Nancy Werner, MD 'This book is so rich in enlightenment and knowledge of how parents or other close relatives can bring hope and development to children and adults suffering from neurological disorders." -Mira Helena Bergkvist, MD, Sonderborg, Denmark "As a medical professional, I've heard countless lectures in neurology and read numerous textbooks for courses. As a parent, I've had conversations with neurologists and neurosurgeons from the best hospitals this area has to offer. None of them can explain the brain like Matthew Newell does . . . The information I've learned from him has changed how I think, how I treat my patients, and how I raise my children. His book will be a game-changer for those who take the time to read it and let it change how they think!" -Dr. Stephanie Ale, DPT, Certified MDT, CSCS, Woodstown, NJ "This is essential reading for anyone who works with someone with any type of brain injury, therapists and parents alike . . . Parents will understand how to help their children and therapists will have the tools to work in a logical and methodical way to reach the potential in every individual they meet. This book should be a staple in every university level education that teaches about brain injuries in both children and adults." -Dr. Joergen Sandell, PhD, Clinical Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden "With this book, Mathew can now share the wealth of knowledge he has accumulated over the years working with countless numbers of children with a wider audience and succeed in his mission to educate others beyond his program. I, for one, am grateful that Mathew has decided to offer us all his insight and experience by writing this book, and I know it will be an incredibly helpful resource for everyone who works with this special group of children." -Dr. Kerry D'Ambrogio, senior practitioner and instructor for BodyTalk