Kevin's Healing Journey: Music Therapy

Friday, June 9, 2017

Music Therapy - Spring 2017

Kevin had initially responded really well using his favorite Disney songs during music therapy but about a month ago he started showing some signs that he was bored. I shared some of his favorite pop songs with the therapist and the new music perked Kevin up right away and got his smiles back. At one of his therapy sessions, she did the Katy Perry song Roar. As soon as the session was over and she left the house, Kevin got on the iPad and played the song...which is not easily done with so many songs on the iPad and not organized into any playlists. During another session the therapist was playing the Pharrell Williams song Happy on the piano. She wanted Kevin to sing along by using his Talker to say the word HAPPY in the song. Every time she paused playing the song to give him time to say the word HAPPY on his Talker he said GO instead...as in don't stop, go, play some more. Before this session, she had been working on him saying and carrying out the commands GO/STOP while playing. Some of his favorite pop artists are Katy Perry, Adele, Taylor Swift, Fun., Andy Grammar, Michael Franti, and Eric Church.

Q Chord

Singing the Goodbye Song with the Talker

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My Blog

This blog was created to keep our family and friends updated on Kevin's healing journey. It is also our hope that others may find this blog to give help and hope to other delayed kids.

About Kevin

They told us Kevin would never walk or talk. But with lots of prayers, hard work, and extra hands, he began walking when he was four years old and we continue to have faith and hope as we wait patiently for his speech to develop. Kevin is now eight years old. He is diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy due to a brain-injury he had before birth that was caused by a stroke. In 2006, before Kevin was 2 years old, we found Glenn Doman’s book "What To Do About Your Brain-Injured Child" that had answers to help children with special needs and developmental delays. We began an individualized home treatment program for Kevin immediately and have been dedicated to our program ever since. We spent three years with the Doman family at The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential (IAHP) and now we are with Matthew and Carol Newell at The Family Hope Center (FHC). Twice a year we return to Philadelphia where Kevin receives a neurological evaluation to determine the progress he has made in the last six months. Then they provide us with an individualized, program that puts me in charge to help Kevin develop and reach his fullest potential.

Do You Know a Delayed Child?

The best recommendation we can give to another parent with a special needs or developmentally delayed child (brain-injured, brain-damaged, mentally retarded, mentally deficient, cerebral-palsied, epileptic, autistic, athetoid, hyperactive, attention deficit disordered, developmentally delayed, or down's) is to read Glenn Doman's book What To Do About Your Brain-Injured Child and/or Dr. Coralee Thompson and Dr. Philip Maffetone's book Healthy Brains, Healthy Children. By simply reading these books, you will gain valuable information to help your child which will begin to unlock the potential your child has. And best of all you will learn that there are other options to helping your child that you can do yourself. We would also highly recommend attending the parent course at FHC or IAHP. To read how our journey began and the successful progress Kevin has had refer to the January 2010 blog archive.