Category Archives: development

Does your child need early intervention?

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While working in early intervention, I always trusted the families. I’d even go as far as saying that 99% of the time, they were the ones who truly knew if something didn’t seem right with language, behavior or other developmental milestones. Parents know their child best.

Talking about the needs of your child isn’t always easy when he isn’t sitting strong like other babies his age or she isn’t talking clearly like her friends. But I’ve seen the benefits that early intervention offers. Even if you aren’t certain about skill levels, ask. Even if you are frightened about a diagnosis, ask. Ask your pediatrician or other early intervention services to help you navigate through the questions and evaluations. The early intervention system is there to provide services for children from birth to 3 years of age. Please seek out these professionals and get your questions answered.

Here is an article entitled: Does Your Child Need Early Intervention? It is an overview of what you can expect from the early intervention system.

 

Finding providers for families and children with special needs

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As I have a background in early intervention (children with special needs from birth to 3 years of age) and know how frustrating it is for families to find therapists, dentists, doctors, etc.  I saw the information for this service that links families with providers, sort of like Yelp and wanted to pass on the word.

Lifted from Springwise:

“Service assists parents of autistic children in finding the best care

Love My Provider is positioning itself as the go-to resource for parents of autistic children looking to find recommended and reviewed services.

19 Jun 2014

Spotted by Murray Orange, written by Springwise

While services such as Yelp provide a great resource for those researching a range of services, there’s still plenty of scope for platforms offering a more specialized and focused approach. Behavioral psychologist Sara Gershfeld realized that although families dealing with autism are provided with a list of behavior analysis (ABA) therapists, there is no way to find reviews or recommendations on the therapists suggested. It’s this problem which Love My Provider seeks to solve.

Love My Provider is actually much more than a directory and review site of therapists who work with autistic children; the site also includes reviews for services as diverse as hairdressers or dentists, who are capable and professional in their treatment of autistic children. Noting that parents are often hesitant to leave reviews on services such as Yelp for fear that they could be traced back to their children, Gershfeld has ensured that Love My Provider can accommodate anonymous reviews. In order to clamp down on fraudulent comments however, the service will track IP addresses, and users must create an account in order to browse what other members have said.

Any service can sign up to be included on the database, which is currently made up primarily of providers endorsed by advocacy organization Autism Speaks. Services that receive more than three five-star reviews will be awarded a badge to help them stand out. The plan at the moment is to keep Love My Provider free for members, with the possible addition of advertising, lead generation, or promoted reviews in the future in order to create a sustainable revenue stream. Alternatively, the service could charge care providers a fee for clients referred through the site.

What other niche areas could benefit from a more specialized review and recommendation platform?

Website: www.lovemyprovider.com
Contact: hello@lovemyprovider.com

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The Role of the Shy Hormone in Breastfeeding

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This is taken from Midwifery Today:

“The Role of the Shy Hormone in Breastfeeding

There is no breastfeeding without oxytocin, since the milk ejection reflex is dependent on the release of this hormone. The mechanical effects of oxytocin have been well known for a long time, not only for inducing contractions of specialized breast cells during the milk ejection reflex, but also for inducing uterine contractions during childbirth and orgasm, and for inducing contractions of the prostate and seminal vesicles in the sperm ejection reflex. The behavioral effects of oxytocin are also well understood; it is commonplace today to summarize these effects by using the term “love hormone.”

We have still a lot to learn about oxytocin release. However, we have a sufficient amount of physiological and observational data to conclude that the release of oxytocin is highly dependent on environmental factors. The best way to summarize what we already know is to claim that oxytocin is the “shy hormone”: it behaves like a shy person who does not appear among strangers or observers.

This is the kind of knowledge that is not easily digested where breastfeeding is concerned. I have heard many stories of mothers who required guidance to overcome breastfeeding difficulties. The advice they received almost always focused on the position of the baby when latching on. Common recommendations would be different if it were better understood that many difficulties in breastfeeding are related to the release of the shy hormone. Instead of being guided to find the right postures, the mother might be first advised to stay with only her baby in a small dark room with the door closed and the guarantee that nobody will enter. It is well demonstrated that the shy hormone does not appear in situations associated with a release of adrenaline. This implies that the room must be warm enough to make comfortable skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby possible. I know from experience that such simple suggestions can help break a vicious circle during a critical phase of lactation.

An analogy to breastfeeding is possible with childbirth. In the framework of natural childbirth, I have often heard stories of very long and difficult labors. A common comment is, “We tried everything,” when the meaning of this comment is, “We tried a great diversity of postures, nipple stimulation, massage, acupuncture, a birthing pool, etc.” It is not common to hear that the baby’s father, grandmother and second midwife, for example, had been sent away so that finally the laboring woman was left alone, save for an experienced, silent and low profile midwife.

— Michel Odent
Excerpted from “The Role of the Shy Hormone in Breastfeeding,” Midwifery Today, Issue 101″