Melissa’s Journey

Melissa

Melissa is one of our clients here at Breakthrough. She is an amazing, determined, and motivated woman who has inspired us since the day we met her. She wanted to share her story here and we thought you may find it inspiring too! We thank Melissa for her contribution and for sharing her unique point…

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What Did You Say? Body Awareness

What is body awareness? I have this discussion all of the time with parents…especially in evaluations when describing observed movement patterns and mobility in the environment. I was recently describing what this term meant to a parent after noticing her hypotonic/“low tone” daughter was stumbling when trying to walk around and navigate the gym environment.…

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What It Means To Have A “Weak Core”

Weak Core

Parents of children with movement difficulties – no matter the diagnosis – are often told by doctors, therapists, and other health professionals that their child has “a weak core”. Okay so they can’t do a sit up or they have weak abdominals…but that’s not really all that goes into a “weak core” or poor posture.…

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5 Benefits of Body Weight Supported Treadmill Training (Even If Your Child “Can’t Walk”)

Child on treadmill

Body Weight Supported Treadmill Training (BWSTT) is a long fancy name for walking on a treadmill with support. “Body weight supported” is usually done with the help of certain types of equipment (i.e Universal exercise unit, gait trainer, etc.) Here specifically, are the things I have seen it help with firsthand. Improved Endurance: Ahhh yes,…

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5 Reasons Why Your Child May Have Balance Issues

We see and hear reports of balance issues a lot…. whether your child has difficulty navigating throughout the community or even just a hard time standing in place by themselves, balance is HUGE for their ability to perform daily tasks independently. There are not only five reasons your child may have poor balance, but here…

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How Does Riding a Bike Help Developmental Skills?

Child Riding Bike

Recently in the clinic I was asking a parent if her daughter has ever ridden an adaptive bicycle. She said she wasn’t sure but that she probably did in school. She then asked, “what kinds of things would that help her with anyway?” “So, I figured I’d answer it for all of you who may…

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Belly Breather VS. Chest Breather and Why It Affects Your Loved One’s Balance:

Breathing Children

So let’s review…We talked recently about the “soda can model” of breathing and how it affects posture. (If you didn’t get a chance to read that and would like more details click here). We discussed how important it is for all of the pressures to balance so that we can function and go about our…

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