"Simple miracles"
Sun.Star Davao, Jan. 12, 2008

On first impression, Mikko Bryant Alinsub seems to be a typical 9-year old boy who loves to watch ‘Jimmy Neutron’, cheers on basketball games, plays with his kid sister Reiven and reads extensively on dinosaurs. In fact, his ultimate dream is to become a palaeontologist someday.

However, there’s something different about Mikko.

At his age, he can not kick a ball, go to school by himself, walk a dog, run with his 2-year old sister, or play and run under the rain.

“We suspected that there was something wrong with Mikko as early as 3 months old because he still couldn’t lift his head. At 6 months, he still couldn’t roll over. On his 8th month, it was confirmed by our doctor, he had delayed motor development”, shares Mikko’s 36-year old mom Lourdes.

Upon hearing the devastating news, Lourdes and husband Roger initially had difficulty in accepting Mikko’s disability. But, later on, they tried their best to react as positively as they could for the sake of their eldest child.

Mikko recounts, “I underwent physical therapy for 3 times a week since I was 8 months old until 8 years old. It was difficult because it took up my playing time. I sometimes cried because I did not want to cooperate. I just wanted to play. One time, I overheard my worried parents talking about looking for a new therapy since they noticed that my development stagnated”.

The Scotson Technique (TST)

Fortunately, Mikko’s parents met Denton and Cathy Siapno. The Siapnos also had a special child, 7-year old Kym, who was born prematurely at 6 months. She is deaf and blind and was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy.

“When Kym turned 4 years old, the thought of her never being able to walk encouraged us to search for a therapy or cure to treat her condition”, reveals Cathy, a registered nurse and entrepreneur.

The Siapnos tirelessly searched for answers through the Internet and chanced upon Neuro-Respiratory Therapy (NRT), now called The Scotson Technique (TST).

TST was developed through more than 13 years of research and practice by Linda Scotson. Like Kym, Linda’s son Doran had Cerebral Palsy. In December 2004, Cathy and Kym went to the United Kingdom to undergo training for NRT at the Institute for Advanced Neuromotor Rehabilitation.

The drug-free technique is a “unique, predictable, deeply restorative rehabilitation therapy for children and young adults with disabilities caused by brain injury such as Cerebral Palsy, Microcephaly, Floppiness; Developmental Delay; Learning Disability; Autism; Vaccine Damage; Epilepsy; Dyspraxia; Head Injury; Stroke; Scoliosis; and Neurological Syndromes (and even spinal injury)”.

It develops the “pattern of recovery by addressing within the micro-circulation of the respiratory system which affects structure, metabolism and motor and cognitive function”.

“TST relies only on the use of face towels which mothers will use in making very light massages on different areas of the body. We thought that this would be a perfect setting for the Filipino family since there has been a steady decline in the number of physical therapists (due to the Nursing trend) and expectedly, the cost per session became higher”, discusses Kym’s dad Denton who is a government employee.

Remarkable progress

“Kym’s very remarkable progress is her breathing and behavior. She used to be very stiff and very hard to manage. Since Cathy started doing TST, Kym’s muscles are more relaxed and we can ‘touch-communicate’ with her”, explains Denton.

In addition, Cathy says that “the greatest help that TST has done to Kym is for almost 3 years now she never had an asthma attack and has never been hospitalized. All her maintenance drug (steroids) has been discontinued and all she takes now is vitamin C.”

She continues, “Kym laughs a lot now. We can already bring her to malls and even on out of town trips which she enjoys. We used to feed her with blended vegetables and fish, now she can chew her food and whenever we feed her she acknowledges if ever she still wants more. And if sleep was a problem before, now she sleeps from 8 to 10 hours or up to 12 hours uninterrupted. Kahit na binabaliktad namin siya (Even if we turn her over) for the therapy, she is still sound asleep”.

The Siapnos were quite impressed with Kym’s improved condition that they invited Linda Scotson and her team to come to Davao so that more children could benefit from TST. Linda sent her senior therapists from the Institute for Advanced Neuromotor Rehabilitation to the city last January 2007. It was the first time ever that the training was conducted in the Philippines.

Empowering parents

Twenty seven parents were trained for five days on the TST. Each child was assessed by Linda and was given individual prescription exercises based on the child’s condition which were carried out daily by the parents at home.

Moreover, each child’s progress was closely monitored and reported back to the institute for possible prescription changes based on the child’s development.

“At first it was difficult, because you really had to learn the exact pressure that you need to apply on your child, which is a very light hand pressure. We suffered from back pains and sleepless nights since we have to wait for Kym to sleep before we do the therapy”, relates Cathy.

But, she describes that when you are doing it everyday, the hand pressures become natural and it is a good avenue of sharing quality time with your child, since you have to do the therapy for 2–3 hours everyday. There is no high-tech equipment or gadget required; all it needs is the parents’ time, love and a little sacrifice.

Simple miracles

“My parents may be tired from work but they still apply Scotson Technique on me to make me better, because they love me, as they always say. Then, true enough after weeks of therapy, I noticed that I can open my left hand; have better balance and straighter body; able to sleep more soundly; and I can walk faster with my walker. I have more confidence in doing things by myself. I am even 2nd honor in my class now”, enthuses Mikko.

Other children who benefited from TST include 5-year old Theo who was diagnosed with autism. For the first time in years, he now has eye contact and can understand what his parents communicate. Moreover, he has uttered his first words.

On the other hand, 6-year old Jomar who has Cerebral Palsy used to hurt himself using his arms and legs. “Now he is more relaxed and has not worn his elbow restrain since. His teachers were very surprised”, discloses Jomar’s mother.

‘We can advance’

Inspired by The Scotson Technique motto, ‘We can advance’, Denton and Cathy hope to make the TST training sustainable and to be able to accommodate more Filipino families in the future. During the British therapists’ first visit, each of the families had to raise P25,000 to cover the training costs. While there are some families who can afford, sadly, most cannot.

Thus, together with the Healing Hands Foundation and the Apo Learning Village, they have come up with several fund-raising projects like “Fun Run and Advance”, raffle and the latest activity, “Breakfast with a Cause”.

Lourdes tells other parents who might be in similar situations not to lose hope. “Each child deserves a chance to undergo treatment. We have to be strong as parents because a little child is counting on us. We should not fail them”, she advises.

Cathy recognizes that “these special children are a blessing, and we should be thankful for we were chosen to be their parents because they are God’s special creation. It maybe tiresome and hard, but we should always have the faith to go on with life. They are entrusted to us because we are the best parents that they can ever have”.

She adds, “Let us trust God. Let us show strength especially in front of our children as they gather theirs from us. Let us always hope that others who do not understand our children may be given guidance to comprehend their situation”.

As Mikko aptly expressed in his speech during the last fund-raising event, “Now, it is clear to me why most of you call us SPECIAL, because we are being loved by parents with special hearts and cared by people with special souls like yours”.

To learn more about The Scotson Technique, visit www.advancecentre.org.uk. You may also call Cathy (Tel. 3056934) or Ana/Sheenah (Tels. 2978417/2981486).

(I would love to receive your comments and suggestions! E-mail me at mom.about.town.dvo@gmail.com. Visit www.mom-about-town.blogspot.com).