In November of 2018 I took Hayden to Brain Balance to have an evaluation. It was an hour long and they tested several different areas such as hearing and vision. Hayden had been struggling for a long time in many areas of his life and I felt that this program was worth looking into. My sister-in-law Amy had done this same program with my nephew Brady and felt it really made a difference. I saw this quote hanging on the wall in the center and loved it. I met with the program director to talk about Hayden's results. They explained that Hayden is very left brain dominant. They told me in certain areas Hayden was functioning on the level of 4 year old instead of a 9 year old. The goal was to strengthen the right side of his brain so that the two sides work together. The program really made sense to me. It was all about getting to the root of certain problems and correcting them. In the past all the recommendations were to just treat different symptoms. The results they found about his vision really resonated with me. Hayden has always struggled with reading and they explained that it was a result of the muscles functioning in his eyes. He lacked the ability for his eyes to track across the page when he was reading and not lose focus getting to the next line. They have a developmental pyramid that they focus on. The first level is Primitive Reflexes which are the foundation of our development. The second is Sensory Motor which effects movement, endurance, and muscle tone. The third level is Body Awareness which is balance, pain tolerance, and building empathy. The fourth level is Processing which is reading, following directions, and ability to learn. The last level is Synchronization which is behavior, academics, social skills, focus, and attention. Kev and I both did a lot of thinking and praying before we made our decision to enroll him in the program. It was a leap of faith on our part.
Hayden started the program on March 18, 2019. It was a huge commitment for all of us! Hayden would be going to the center for one hour sessions three days a week. We enrolled him for 6 months in the program and it was a lot of money. I always tried to look at it this way. We were making an investment in Hayden's future. If he was physically sick with an illness we would be willing to pay whatever amount of money to get him well again. It is just as important to focus on his metal health. The other part of the program was a strict diet of no sugar, dairy, or gluten. There were also at home exercises and limiting his screen time to an hour a day. I think the hardest part for Hayden was the diet. I'm so incredibly proud of Hayden for how well he adjusted to everything! He definitely had to make the most sacrifices of all of us.
His sessions went really well and he usually came out to the car smiling. In October he got to wear his favorite Spiderman costume since it was Halloween. I know he couldn't have made all the progress he has without the hard work and dedication of his coaches that worked with him every week. It was their optimism and encouragement that kept him going. His favorite coach to work with was named Marion. He would always come out smiling and happy after a session with her. I met with a program director every 12 sessions to talk with them about Hayden's progress. They would always ask me what changes I was seeing in behavior at home. It was a good way for me to focus on the positive and realize that we were seeing steady improvement. I noticed that he was getting along better socially and showing more empathy. I was so happy when I heard him apologizing for behavior without being prompted. Kev and I were so excited the first time we saw him sit down to read something without being asked. We noticed that his fluency and comprehension with his reading improved. I also noticed him giving away treats that he got and couldn't eat because of the diet he was on. I met with the center director after six months and we decided that Hayden hadn't met all the goals he needed yet. He had make some amazing progress but still needed some more three times a week sessions. We committed to another two months in the program. During this time Hayden was working extra hard to make more progress. I was praying so hard that he would make the necessary progress to move on in the program. It was such an answer to prayers when I heard he was now ready to move on to the next phase. This means he would now only need to go to once a month sessions for the next year.
We had Hayden's Brain Balance celebration on Friday January 10th! The coaches were all standing and clapping for him as he came into the room. Alyssa presented him with a t-shirt and a memory book. The coaches had each written him messages. The one from Marion said, "Hayden! My man! I am so proud of you! Dude you worked so hard and always did your best! I wish I could be there for your celebration. I loved being your coach and you are my best bud"!
They also included in the memory book all the "brains" Hayden had earned. The coaches would fill one of these out for him after a session. It really helped encourage him along the way. He also really enjoyed reading them again in his book.
They told Hayden he could invite whoever he wanted to the celebration. He invited all the family and also his best friends Mason and Brody. They had everyone take a turn sharing their thoughts about Hayden. Kev has been great at taking the time to work on his at home exercises with him. The other day Hayden was so happy to beat his dad at a push up competition. My Dad also has been really supportive of him. He even took him to one of his sessions. My Dad also doesn't eat sugar. He has always been nice to share his sugar free treats with him. Aunt Amy also has been a great support to him. She always talks to him about the program since she is familiar with it. I got emotional when it was my turn to talk about Hayden. I'm so proud of him and how hard he has worked!
We took a silly picture with everyone.
Hayden got high fives from all the coaches.
We went out afterwards to get some ice cream. I called around and found out that Coldstone makes a vanilla ice cream with no added sugar. The boys had a great time goofing around while eating their ice cream.
We are so happy with all the progress Hayden has made so far! We look forward to seeing him progress even more over this next year!
