Spelterapie - meer as net speel?

 Spelterapie word al vir meer as 50 jaar nagevors en benut deur sielkundiges as deel van hul terapie met kinders.  Vir baie ouers is spelterapie opsigself nog ‘n onbekende veld wat dikwels verwar word met praktyke wat kinders leer hoe om te spel.  Spelterapie behels egter iets heeltemal anders en word erken as ‘n suksesvolle sielkundige intervensie met kinders, wat beoefen word deur ‘n opgeleide spelterapeut of sielkundige.

   

Therapeutic Listening

Jean Ayres se baanbrekerswerk in die veld van sensoriese integrasie het aan die lig gebring hoe belangrik die integrasie van inligting vanaf ons sintuie is vir die organisering van beweging, leer en gedrag. Die primêre fokus van sensoriese integrasie terapie is om sensoriese prosessering te bevorder deur die vestibulêre, proprioseptiewe- en tassintuie om sodoende self gegenereerde, doelgerigte aktiwiteit te fassiliteer.

Onlangse kliniese praktyke demonstreer die effektiwiteit wanneer klank in sensoriese integrasie strategië geïnkorporeer word. Baie kenners stem saam dat die ouditiewe sisteem ‘n kritiese skakel is in die sensoriese integrasie teorie. Therapeutic listening is ‘n innoverende program wat hoë kwaliteit ouditiewe stimulasie gee binne die sensoriese integrasie behandeling.

Baba & Kleuter stimulasie

Nuutste navorsing dui aan dat ouers hulle kleingoed moet besig en aktief hou ten einde te verseker dat die brein en liggaam optimaal ontwikkel en sy volle potensiaal bereik.  As ons mooi daaroor dink..…is dit mos eintlik hoe ons groot geword het.  Kan jy onthou hoe jy as kind ure voor die televisie deurgebring het en die een rekenaarspeletjie na die ander gespeel het?  Ek twyfel!  Die waarskynlikheid is eerder dat jy sal kan onthou hoe jy en jou beste maats fiets gery het oor die naweke, tente met komberse onder groot bome in die agterplaas “gebou” het, by die dorp se swembad baljaar het, water ballonne vir mekaar buite op die gras gegooi het, modder koekies gebak het en paaie en plaasdamme tussen die vrugtebome gebou het vir trekkertjies en trokke.  Die moontlikheid is ook groter dat jy erens ‘n foto van jouself as ‘n baba het waar jy iewers op ‘n kombuisvloer tussen ‘n paar plastiek speelgoed of teelepels en ‘n leë roomysbak gesit en speel as het, as ‘n foto waar jy knus toegedraai in ‘n kombersie in ‘n sit-stoeltjie gesit het.  Ons het almal met hope beweging en aktiwiteit groot geword.  Ongelukkig is dit nie vandag meer altyd die geval nie. 

The knot explained!

The role of trigger points in muscle pain…

Trigger points are felt as small, tender nodules and painful bands in skeletal muscles. These knots are hyperirritable spots. When muscles work in an eccentric fashion, that is a contraction occurs while the muscle lengthens, damage occurs within the muscle cells. The reason why these trigger points develop is because a neurotransmitter, Acetylcholine, is released in excess, which then causes a persistent, localized muscle contraction. This muscle contraction compresses blood capillaries which then reduces blood flow. Lower amounts of oxygen and glucose is then delivered to the muscle and an energy crisis is created. As a result, a number of pain sensitizing substances are released which activate nerve receptors that respond to pain. The muscle is unlikely to relax and thus, a vicious cycle is created.

Protect your hearing

Hearing allows you to interact with the world around you.  Helen Keller said it best:  ‘Loss of vision means losing contact with things, but loss of hearing means losing contact with people.’

There are numerous causes for a hearing loss, such as disease or infection, ototoxic  (ear-damaging) drugs, exposure to noise, tumours, trauma, and the aging process.  Unfortunately we can’t do anything about most of the causes, but we can protect our ears against loud noise.

What’s bugging my bowels?

Functional bowel syndromes:  Functional Dyspepsia/ Irritable Bowel Syndrome / Functional bloating

“Functional bowel syndromes are constellations of upper and / or lower abdominal symptoms unexplained by adequate medical examination. The commonest forms are defined by symptoms patterns and include bowel functional dyspepsia (FD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), functional bloating, functional diarrhea and functional constipation. These symptoms are the focus of much exiting research. The most common theories are based on changes in sensation (hypersensitivity), intestinal motility (muscle movement), intestinal permeability, enzyme or neurotransmitter function or changes in brain function. Some of these changes can occur after an infections illness or severe stress.

Heat injuries in Children

Four factors are believed to reduce a child’s ability to lose heat during exercise in a warm environment:

• Children produce more metabolic heat per unit of mass than adults during exercise at the same workload
• Children have a lower sweating capacity than adults
• Children have a reduced ability to transfer heat from the body core to the body surface
• Children have a greater surface area to weight ratio which facilitates heat gain from the environment during exercise in the heat. Children also acclimatize to heat more slowly than adults do.