Showing posts with label Interactive Metronome. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Interactive Metronome. Show all posts
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Timing Literature Review Source
Improved brain timing is at the heart of most of the big breakthroughs for clients in my practice. I've tried to keep up with the literature, but it is vast and complex. Now Kevin McGrew and Amy Vega have put together a review of theory, diagnosis and treatment research. It is available here in PDF format. There are additional appendices for those who wish to delve deep into the literature. The appendices can be accessed via Kevin McGrew's August 14th blog. In that blog, he gives an interesting introduction to the paper. Check it out.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Finding Words for the First TIme
George is a third grader with special needs. He says just a few words: yes, no, mad - simple words. However, he reads, writes and spells. He is in love with art history and can spell some very long words correctly. His mother was concerned about his fine motor skills and behaviors. He had had OT services in the past. She had purchased a listening therapy, but he had refused to listen to it. George listened to the Early Mozart CD (therapeutic Listening) in my office, and so we decided to try him on it to help with behaviors.
As part of the fine motor therapy, we decided to add into the mix a little Interactive Metronome (IM). The IM was tricky. George became rigid. He had no rhythm of his own, and was reluctant to do hand-over-hand clapping with me. Desperate to engage him, I began to make faces at him in a mirror placed behind the IM unit. He made faces back at me, and then we continued for 200-300 repetitions of IM (about 5-6 minutes).
The next week, we tried it again. But before we had gotten very far, George burst out with a littany of art history names. I looked at his mother who had wide eyes. This was a first. The following week, his mother gave a report. After they had gotten home that day, he pointed to all of the things in the living room and named them. He had never done that before. He was now speaking 2 word sentences. Needless to say, we continued with IM during that session. Before he left, he spoke a 3 word sentence: noun, verb, and adjective. Wow.
I am used to seeing great results from IM and slower but great results from Therapeutic Listening. This one blew me away.
As part of the fine motor therapy, we decided to add into the mix a little Interactive Metronome (IM). The IM was tricky. George became rigid. He had no rhythm of his own, and was reluctant to do hand-over-hand clapping with me. Desperate to engage him, I began to make faces at him in a mirror placed behind the IM unit. He made faces back at me, and then we continued for 200-300 repetitions of IM (about 5-6 minutes).
The next week, we tried it again. But before we had gotten very far, George burst out with a littany of art history names. I looked at his mother who had wide eyes. This was a first. The following week, his mother gave a report. After they had gotten home that day, he pointed to all of the things in the living room and named them. He had never done that before. He was now speaking 2 word sentences. Needless to say, we continued with IM during that session. Before he left, he spoke a 3 word sentence: noun, verb, and adjective. Wow.
I am used to seeing great results from IM and slower but great results from Therapeutic Listening. This one blew me away.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Autism and IM
I found a new case study about IM and autism. Here is the link. The 12 year old girl in this study had 25 sessions of IM over 9 weeks. Her results were very dramatic.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
The Meds Alternative
I see a very sweet 7 year old boy who has autism, OCD and ADHD. Whew, that's a lot. I've spent the better part of a year with him on modulation - and made a lot of progress - relative progress, that is. But then I hit the wall. His OCD and anxiety symptoms were too pronounced for him to attend to therapy. For example, when I tried to teach him to tie his shoes, he created a new OCD ritual around shoe tying.
His parents had him on a low-dose medication and were not certain about what to do next. I suggested going back to his doctor for a new approach. The boy was given an increase in his meds dosage, and finally, he was able to focus. His OCD settled down enough to do the more powerful interventions in my toolkit (IM and sound therapy), and now we are off and running again. We've been making incredible progress with social skills, modulation and play skills. Hooray!
I think that meds are a God-send for certain children. For my small buddy, it's the difference between running in circles much of the day versus significant interaction with adults and peers.
Will he be on them forever? Can't say, of course. I truly hope that he gets a reduction of symptoms with the next round of therapy ... and then maybe meds can be revisited.
His parents had him on a low-dose medication and were not certain about what to do next. I suggested going back to his doctor for a new approach. The boy was given an increase in his meds dosage, and finally, he was able to focus. His OCD settled down enough to do the more powerful interventions in my toolkit (IM and sound therapy), and now we are off and running again. We've been making incredible progress with social skills, modulation and play skills. Hooray!
I think that meds are a God-send for certain children. For my small buddy, it's the difference between running in circles much of the day versus significant interaction with adults and peers.
Will he be on them forever? Can't say, of course. I truly hope that he gets a reduction of symptoms with the next round of therapy ... and then maybe meds can be revisited.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Abuse, Developmental Delay & IM
Here's my 3rd post today. I've been so busy with my new business, I'm behind in posting. This story is about yet another of my 11-12 year old friends. This boy was finally given the autism label just so that he could get school-based services. But in fact ... read on.
Keith
Keith is an 11 year old boy with developmental delays of uncertain origin. He was raised until the age of 4 in a home with alcohol and drug abuse as well as domestic violence. Keith’s head shows scars from serious head injuries from his early years. He was eventually removed from his birth home and provided a safe, loving home with relatives who became his legal parents. Once in school, Keith struggled in regular education classes. School Testing at the age of 9 years 6 months had shown that he was 2-4 years behind on visual motor, visual perception and motor coordination skills (Beery-Buktenica Test of Visual Motor Integration). He was provided extra help by a classroom aide, but did not qualify for supplemental services such as occupational therapy.
Assessment
When Keith walked in the door for his OT evaluation at age 11, he had the look of a puppy who has been mistreated. He walked slowly, with slouched shoulders and shuffled gait. When he spoke, his words were barely audible. Dried blood on his very short fingernails showed that he had the habit of biting his nails down into the skin. He demonstrated a poor pincer grasp, weak grip and poor strength. He was unable to lift a plastic chair to move it closer to the table. Keith’s mother said that he was unable to don shoes or socks or dress himself, and showed little initiative for play or social interactions.
When asked to jump on the trampoline, he sat in the middle and mumbled, “I can’t”. He was encouraged to try, and jumped 1” high, 10 times. Clinical observations showed that he had poor tone overall, poor strength, good reflexes, and poor coordination. An informal handwriting test showed poorly formed poorly spaced letters. The Sensory Profile indicated a definite difference from peers in the areas of auditory and vestibular processing.
Intervention
Keith’s first sessions were child-directed and sensory-based as a way of providing motivation. Within 2-3 sessions, Interactive Metronome (IM) was introduced. He was unable to identify a beat, and so hand-over-hand and patty cake methods were used exclusively for 4-6 sessions, and as-needed, thereafter. Keith was allowed to sit on a therapy ball. Although he bounced on the ball while clapping, making the task harder, it provided him with stimulation and he was better able to attend to the rhythms. Keith received IM 1-2 times per week for approximately 3 months mixed-in with sensory integration (primarily vestibular and proprioception) and ADL interventions.
Progress
Keith’s progress was dramatic. Within a few weeks, his mother told me, “The boy who came in here for the evaluation 2 months ago no longer exists.” Her son now begged her to go to the park to play. He attempted social interactions. He was attempting to dress, bathe and groom himself. During the fourth month of therapy, IM was still incorporated into therapy. Keith performed 200-500 repetitions prior to ADL and handwriting interventions to increase motivation for those tasks. He made tremendous progress with initiative, ADLs, sensory processing, social skills and confidence. Keith developed a good pincer grasp and was able to fully dress himself including buttoning a dress shirt. He still had difficulty with tying shoes. He had made very good progress in bathing and grooming, in that he could perform the tasks, but sometimes did an incomplete job. Keith’s sensory motor skills were noticeably improved. He gained an intuitive sense of what his body seemed to need and requested suitable activities both in the gym and at home. Often, those activities included vestibular and proprioceptive components and so he was learning to satisfy his sensory input needs, as well. The activity and play made him stronger, and his grip improved so that he could help move equipment in the gym. His confidence improved to the degree that he was able to initiate social interaction with other children in the clinic, and he relished playing with them.
Keith
Keith is an 11 year old boy with developmental delays of uncertain origin. He was raised until the age of 4 in a home with alcohol and drug abuse as well as domestic violence. Keith’s head shows scars from serious head injuries from his early years. He was eventually removed from his birth home and provided a safe, loving home with relatives who became his legal parents. Once in school, Keith struggled in regular education classes. School Testing at the age of 9 years 6 months had shown that he was 2-4 years behind on visual motor, visual perception and motor coordination skills (Beery-Buktenica Test of Visual Motor Integration). He was provided extra help by a classroom aide, but did not qualify for supplemental services such as occupational therapy.
Assessment
When Keith walked in the door for his OT evaluation at age 11, he had the look of a puppy who has been mistreated. He walked slowly, with slouched shoulders and shuffled gait. When he spoke, his words were barely audible. Dried blood on his very short fingernails showed that he had the habit of biting his nails down into the skin. He demonstrated a poor pincer grasp, weak grip and poor strength. He was unable to lift a plastic chair to move it closer to the table. Keith’s mother said that he was unable to don shoes or socks or dress himself, and showed little initiative for play or social interactions.
When asked to jump on the trampoline, he sat in the middle and mumbled, “I can’t”. He was encouraged to try, and jumped 1” high, 10 times. Clinical observations showed that he had poor tone overall, poor strength, good reflexes, and poor coordination. An informal handwriting test showed poorly formed poorly spaced letters. The Sensory Profile indicated a definite difference from peers in the areas of auditory and vestibular processing.
Intervention
Keith’s first sessions were child-directed and sensory-based as a way of providing motivation. Within 2-3 sessions, Interactive Metronome (IM) was introduced. He was unable to identify a beat, and so hand-over-hand and patty cake methods were used exclusively for 4-6 sessions, and as-needed, thereafter. Keith was allowed to sit on a therapy ball. Although he bounced on the ball while clapping, making the task harder, it provided him with stimulation and he was better able to attend to the rhythms. Keith received IM 1-2 times per week for approximately 3 months mixed-in with sensory integration (primarily vestibular and proprioception) and ADL interventions.
Progress
Keith’s progress was dramatic. Within a few weeks, his mother told me, “The boy who came in here for the evaluation 2 months ago no longer exists.” Her son now begged her to go to the park to play. He attempted social interactions. He was attempting to dress, bathe and groom himself. During the fourth month of therapy, IM was still incorporated into therapy. Keith performed 200-500 repetitions prior to ADL and handwriting interventions to increase motivation for those tasks. He made tremendous progress with initiative, ADLs, sensory processing, social skills and confidence. Keith developed a good pincer grasp and was able to fully dress himself including buttoning a dress shirt. He still had difficulty with tying shoes. He had made very good progress in bathing and grooming, in that he could perform the tasks, but sometimes did an incomplete job. Keith’s sensory motor skills were noticeably improved. He gained an intuitive sense of what his body seemed to need and requested suitable activities both in the gym and at home. Often, those activities included vestibular and proprioceptive components and so he was learning to satisfy his sensory input needs, as well. The activity and play made him stronger, and his grip improved so that he could help move equipment in the gym. His confidence improved to the degree that he was able to initiate social interaction with other children in the clinic, and he relished playing with them.
IM + Core:Tx Interventions
Mark
Mark is a 12 year old boy with high functioning autism who returned to occupational therapy after a break of several years. Although Mark was doing well in school, he was unable to fully dress himself or bathe himself. In terms of neuromuscular control, Mark had poor overall tone, poor postural control, and significant motor planning issues. He walked with a very wide gait (total deviation of 80 degrees), had poor handwriting, and lacked the ability to plan and execute movements with his arms and hands that would allow him to reach the top of his head and flex his fingers to wash his hair. In addition, he chewed his food in the front of his mouth and for this reason preferred a soft foods diet. Mark’s social skills were quite limited. He rarely looked at others while speaking and limited his conversations to single words.
Intervention
Given the range of problems Mark faced, it was decided that a course of Interactive Metronome (IM) would reduce the time in therapy. Mark did IM twice per week for 30 minute sessions. He started each session with a few minutes in the ball pit to help him relax and self-organize. He then did 10 minutes of IM, took a short break on a swing or trampoline and then a final 10 minutes of IM. As his skills improved (and he moved to phase 4 of the IM program), he did 20 minutes of IM and then practiced dressing skills or handwriting.
Progress with IM
The program of IM had profound effects on Mark. He developed a self-awareness and motivation that led to greater independence. First, he figured out how to regulate the shower temperature. Next, he tried to wash his hair on his own, although he still lacked the correct motor-planning for that task. He took an interest in outside activities and began to talk about what he did. He displayed a good sense of humor. He saw gains in motor planning and postural control. He learned to dress himself entirely with the exception of buttoning pants at the waist and tying shoes. He learned to chew with his whole mouth. His wide stance improved, so that his feet were better aligned by 5-10 degrees.
After 19,000 repetitions, therapy took a new direction. It was time for Mark to learn a variety of new skills through exercise and repetition. Mark was aware and motivated, but with his new sense of humor, he was also very playful. It was difficult to keep him on task to perform the more difficult work of exercising his body to make additional gains. For example, when asked to lay over a therapy ball to work on posture, he would fall off the ball and roll on the floor and giggle. When asked to pretend to wash his hair by moving his hands together on top of his head, he would pat the sides of his head with extended fingers, as if to say, “there, all done.”
Core:Tx
Core:Tx proved to be the solution for getting him to perform exercises correctly. Its game-like nature engaged him, and he paid attention to the instructions rather than acting-out with silly behaviors. On the first day he performed scaption (shoulder/rotator cuff) exercises. As he attempted to keep Core:Tx’s red ball within the square, he made smooth movements with his arms to the top of his head, using full range of motion, for the first time. He was proud of himself and after two sessions, he developed the motor planning to successfully wash his hair independently. He currently uses Core:Tx in both physical therapy and occupational therapy to address postural control, lower extremity motor planning and gait issues.
Mark is a 12 year old boy with high functioning autism who returned to occupational therapy after a break of several years. Although Mark was doing well in school, he was unable to fully dress himself or bathe himself. In terms of neuromuscular control, Mark had poor overall tone, poor postural control, and significant motor planning issues. He walked with a very wide gait (total deviation of 80 degrees), had poor handwriting, and lacked the ability to plan and execute movements with his arms and hands that would allow him to reach the top of his head and flex his fingers to wash his hair. In addition, he chewed his food in the front of his mouth and for this reason preferred a soft foods diet. Mark’s social skills were quite limited. He rarely looked at others while speaking and limited his conversations to single words.
Intervention
Given the range of problems Mark faced, it was decided that a course of Interactive Metronome (IM) would reduce the time in therapy. Mark did IM twice per week for 30 minute sessions. He started each session with a few minutes in the ball pit to help him relax and self-organize. He then did 10 minutes of IM, took a short break on a swing or trampoline and then a final 10 minutes of IM. As his skills improved (and he moved to phase 4 of the IM program), he did 20 minutes of IM and then practiced dressing skills or handwriting.
Progress with IM
The program of IM had profound effects on Mark. He developed a self-awareness and motivation that led to greater independence. First, he figured out how to regulate the shower temperature. Next, he tried to wash his hair on his own, although he still lacked the correct motor-planning for that task. He took an interest in outside activities and began to talk about what he did. He displayed a good sense of humor. He saw gains in motor planning and postural control. He learned to dress himself entirely with the exception of buttoning pants at the waist and tying shoes. He learned to chew with his whole mouth. His wide stance improved, so that his feet were better aligned by 5-10 degrees.
After 19,000 repetitions, therapy took a new direction. It was time for Mark to learn a variety of new skills through exercise and repetition. Mark was aware and motivated, but with his new sense of humor, he was also very playful. It was difficult to keep him on task to perform the more difficult work of exercising his body to make additional gains. For example, when asked to lay over a therapy ball to work on posture, he would fall off the ball and roll on the floor and giggle. When asked to pretend to wash his hair by moving his hands together on top of his head, he would pat the sides of his head with extended fingers, as if to say, “there, all done.”
Core:Tx
Core:Tx proved to be the solution for getting him to perform exercises correctly. Its game-like nature engaged him, and he paid attention to the instructions rather than acting-out with silly behaviors. On the first day he performed scaption (shoulder/rotator cuff) exercises. As he attempted to keep Core:Tx’s red ball within the square, he made smooth movements with his arms to the top of his head, using full range of motion, for the first time. He was proud of himself and after two sessions, he developed the motor planning to successfully wash his hair independently. He currently uses Core:Tx in both physical therapy and occupational therapy to address postural control, lower extremity motor planning and gait issues.
Muscle tone and Autism
I have a bunch of 11-12 year old boys with poor tone and goofy attitudes. How in the world do I get them to focus on doing exercises to help firm up muscles? They need those firm muscles for simple functional activities like lifting arms to wash their hair.
A new product showed up in my office a few months ago called Core:Tx. It's a computer-game based exrecise program with a strap-on wireless sensor that detects movement. The "player" has to perform an exercise (like leg squats) and match the speed and range shown on the computer monitor. The game encourages smooth movement along a full range of motion. It's cute, and it catches the attention of a 12 year old boy.
That said, using Core:Tx with a boy with autism is a daunting prospect. It's hard enough to engage children with autism without the additional burden of strapping on a monitor, teaching a "game", demonstrating exercises and getting compliance. As it turns out, I had recently done a program of Interactive Metronome (IM) with one particular lad, and so he was ripe to try this. IM alone did not give him the functional gains he needed. Core:Tx was just the right level of work and play to pull off a successful intervention. And it worked very quickly, too. I'm very pleased with the results. See the next entry for the story.
A new product showed up in my office a few months ago called Core:Tx. It's a computer-game based exrecise program with a strap-on wireless sensor that detects movement. The "player" has to perform an exercise (like leg squats) and match the speed and range shown on the computer monitor. The game encourages smooth movement along a full range of motion. It's cute, and it catches the attention of a 12 year old boy.
That said, using Core:Tx with a boy with autism is a daunting prospect. It's hard enough to engage children with autism without the additional burden of strapping on a monitor, teaching a "game", demonstrating exercises and getting compliance. As it turns out, I had recently done a program of Interactive Metronome (IM) with one particular lad, and so he was ripe to try this. IM alone did not give him the functional gains he needed. Core:Tx was just the right level of work and play to pull off a successful intervention. And it worked very quickly, too. I'm very pleased with the results. See the next entry for the story.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Another Blog
I am starting up and new blog and that will slow my activities on this blog. The new blog will cover some of the same territory, but be focused on new interventions, technologies and clients aged 12 - 99. The new blog is called Brain Tune-Ups - that's the name of my Ann Arbor clinic. The blog is at http://braintuneups.blogspot.com/
A big factor for the change is that a small flood destroyed all of my research articles on peds and autism. But the change would have come in any event, since I am shifting my practice into teens and adults away from children. The title of this blog just doesn't do justice to where my practice is heading. I will continue to work with clients whose main concerns are self regulation or the symptoms of autism and so I will continue to have material for this blog.
On the Brain Tune-Ups site, I will continue to write about Interactive Metronome, Therapeutic Listening, Samonas, stress reduction, etc. And I'll publish the results of the adult study there.
By the way, my clinic's website is http://www.braintune-ups.com/
A big factor for the change is that a small flood destroyed all of my research articles on peds and autism. But the change would have come in any event, since I am shifting my practice into teens and adults away from children. The title of this blog just doesn't do justice to where my practice is heading. I will continue to work with clients whose main concerns are self regulation or the symptoms of autism and so I will continue to have material for this blog.
On the Brain Tune-Ups site, I will continue to write about Interactive Metronome, Therapeutic Listening, Samonas, stress reduction, etc. And I'll publish the results of the adult study there.
By the way, my clinic's website is http://www.braintune-ups.com/
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Tyler's Case Study
Here is an Interactive Metronome case study that I wrote up for IM. Thought I'd reproduce it here.
Tyler is an 11 year old boy with high functioning autism who attends regular education and special education classes. Before his IM program, he displayed low tone, poor motor planning, and poor attention and organization skills. He also demonstrated poor overall motivation. Tyler could not tie his shoes. He had difficulty playing the typical games of children his age that involved motor planning, rules and social interaction. Tyler had language skills but engaged in very little communication. For example, he did not acknowledge his mother when she asked him what he wanted to eat or requested that he clean up his toys.
His mother’s stated goals for Tyler’s IM program were improved organization and motivation skills. Tyler’s personal goal was to be able to compete with family members when they played Wii. The IM long form pre-test indicated average to severely-below-average scores for Tyler. He was given a four-week, 12-session program with adaptations for low tone in his lower extremity (therapy ball), tempo modification and use of the visual mode. He began with 800 repetitions and by the twelfth session was able to maintain 1800 repetitions that included 30 minutes of continued focus.
Initially, Tyler showed poor motivation and tried to find ways to take frequent breaks. Introduction of a therapy ball during an early session increased his overall compliance. After 3 sessions, he independently taught himself in the space of one day to tie shoes. He also began to learn new gross motor skills in the gym. More important, he began to demonstrate a noticeable sense of pride in his accomplishments and to work diligently in the program. After two weeks, his mother said he was acquiring better focus, as well as improved attention, memory and sense of responsibility. He also beat his brother in a game of Wii. After three weeks, his mother said, “I was blown away. I asked him to pick some things up, and he said, ‘Sure, Mom, I’ll get it in a few minutes.’” She went on to say, “He had never done that before!” Tyler completed the program with above-average scores. Four months later, his gains including his newly-developed reciprocal communication skills remained intact and are growing.
Tyler is an 11 year old boy with high functioning autism who attends regular education and special education classes. Before his IM program, he displayed low tone, poor motor planning, and poor attention and organization skills. He also demonstrated poor overall motivation. Tyler could not tie his shoes. He had difficulty playing the typical games of children his age that involved motor planning, rules and social interaction. Tyler had language skills but engaged in very little communication. For example, he did not acknowledge his mother when she asked him what he wanted to eat or requested that he clean up his toys.
His mother’s stated goals for Tyler’s IM program were improved organization and motivation skills. Tyler’s personal goal was to be able to compete with family members when they played Wii. The IM long form pre-test indicated average to severely-below-average scores for Tyler. He was given a four-week, 12-session program with adaptations for low tone in his lower extremity (therapy ball), tempo modification and use of the visual mode. He began with 800 repetitions and by the twelfth session was able to maintain 1800 repetitions that included 30 minutes of continued focus.
Initially, Tyler showed poor motivation and tried to find ways to take frequent breaks. Introduction of a therapy ball during an early session increased his overall compliance. After 3 sessions, he independently taught himself in the space of one day to tie shoes. He also began to learn new gross motor skills in the gym. More important, he began to demonstrate a noticeable sense of pride in his accomplishments and to work diligently in the program. After two weeks, his mother said he was acquiring better focus, as well as improved attention, memory and sense of responsibility. He also beat his brother in a game of Wii. After three weeks, his mother said, “I was blown away. I asked him to pick some things up, and he said, ‘Sure, Mom, I’ll get it in a few minutes.’” She went on to say, “He had never done that before!” Tyler completed the program with above-average scores. Four months later, his gains including his newly-developed reciprocal communication skills remained intact and are growing.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Getting IM Training
A reader of this blog wrote and asked about getting IM Training. Here is some info for those who are thinking about getting started.
There are 2 modes of training: Interactive (alone) and Workshop (in a group). As usual, there are tradeoffs.
If you have access to the IM equipment, then doing the interactive training is a great option. For $225 (or so), you are sent an excellent training manual with 12 lessons, each 30-90 minutes in length, of hands-on training. Most people complete the training in 4-6 weeks. The beauty of doing this is that you will experience the effects of using the product 2-3 times per week for several weeks. The OTs in my clinic found that doing our own course of IM helped us to get our own gears in sync and allowed us to move forward with projects. (For me, it was my blog.)
The workshop is very vaulable for the instructor contact. (I'm sure I missed a lot by not attending the workshop!) and you learn how to facilitate IM in just 48 hours. (And of course, you can then do your own hands-on training later).
Be aware that the IM equipment costs over $3,000. For that price you get hardware (that hooks to your computer), software, headphones, and hand and foot triggers. In addition to the initial equipment cost, the company charges about $6-8/hr for use of the system. You buy blocks of time from IM so that you can treat your clients. In fact, the real cost for a client's session is much less than $6-8, because the IM clock runs only during active clapping.
By the way, the trainees who purchase the Interactive course are given enough minutes to complete the course.
There are 2 modes of training: Interactive (alone) and Workshop (in a group). As usual, there are tradeoffs.
If you have access to the IM equipment, then doing the interactive training is a great option. For $225 (or so), you are sent an excellent training manual with 12 lessons, each 30-90 minutes in length, of hands-on training. Most people complete the training in 4-6 weeks. The beauty of doing this is that you will experience the effects of using the product 2-3 times per week for several weeks. The OTs in my clinic found that doing our own course of IM helped us to get our own gears in sync and allowed us to move forward with projects. (For me, it was my blog.)
The workshop is very vaulable for the instructor contact. (I'm sure I missed a lot by not attending the workshop!) and you learn how to facilitate IM in just 48 hours. (And of course, you can then do your own hands-on training later).
Be aware that the IM equipment costs over $3,000. For that price you get hardware (that hooks to your computer), software, headphones, and hand and foot triggers. In addition to the initial equipment cost, the company charges about $6-8/hr for use of the system. You buy blocks of time from IM so that you can treat your clients. In fact, the real cost for a client's session is much less than $6-8, because the IM clock runs only during active clapping.
By the way, the trainees who purchase the Interactive course are given enough minutes to complete the course.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Interactive Metronome Research
I wrote earlier of being "blown away" by the capabilities of the Interactive Metronome™ (IM) product. The literature shows that IM increases mental fluency which in turn increases the efficiency (and skill level) of many brain and body functions including motor planning. (See the TickTockBrainTalk blog and the IM site, for much more on this!)
There has been substantial research done on IM for children. (The article cited below finds that IM "appears to facilitate a number of capacities, including attention, motor control, and selected academic skills in boys with ADHD.) There are a few studies on the effects of IM on adults in rehabilitation recovering from varied disabilities such as stroke, TBI and loss of limb. None of the studies I've seen address softer issues such as stress, organization, or well-being.
I have launched a small research project studying the effects of the IM protocol on parents of children with special needs. It's a convenience study being done at Building Bridges therapy Center, where I work. I am asking the question: Does IM help parents of children with special needs become better organized such that they are better able to accomplish their goals. And does this is turn help reduce their stress levels? These parents operate at a very high level of challege and stress (lots 0f OT journal articles have documented this).
I may also look at another factor -- SI. Since many of the children at my clinic have autism and sensory integration issues, as a result, I may assess parents for sensory integration issues using the Adult/Adolescent Sensory Profile. If indeed they do, I wonder if any symptoms lessen at the end of the study....and if not, perhaps, I could re-enlist them in another short study with a different intervention. H-m-mm.
Article
Shaffer, R. J., Jacokes, L. E., Cassily, J. E., Greenspan, S. L., Tuchman, R. E., & Stemmer, P. J., Jr. (2001). Effects of Interactive Metronome™ training on children with ADHD. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 55, 155-162.
Abstract
(This was copied from the IM site)
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a specific intervention, the Interactive MetronomeÒ, on selected aspects of motor and cognitive skills in a group of children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The study included 56 boys, age 6 to 12 years, pre-diagnosed as having ADHD who were pre-tested and randomly assigned to one of three matched groups. The 19 children receiving 15 hours of Interactive MetronomeÒ rhythmicity training exercises were compared with a group receiving no intervention and a group receiving training on selected computer video games.
A statistically significant pattern of improvement across 53 of 58 variables favoring the Interactive Metronomeâ treatment was found. Additionally, several statistically significant differences were found among 12 factors on performance in areas of attention, motor control, language processing, reading, and parental reports of improvements in regulation of aggressive behavior.
There has been substantial research done on IM for children. (The article cited below finds that IM "appears to facilitate a number of capacities, including attention, motor control, and selected academic skills in boys with ADHD.) There are a few studies on the effects of IM on adults in rehabilitation recovering from varied disabilities such as stroke, TBI and loss of limb. None of the studies I've seen address softer issues such as stress, organization, or well-being.
I have launched a small research project studying the effects of the IM protocol on parents of children with special needs. It's a convenience study being done at Building Bridges therapy Center, where I work. I am asking the question: Does IM help parents of children with special needs become better organized such that they are better able to accomplish their goals. And does this is turn help reduce their stress levels? These parents operate at a very high level of challege and stress (lots 0f OT journal articles have documented this).
I may also look at another factor -- SI. Since many of the children at my clinic have autism and sensory integration issues, as a result, I may assess parents for sensory integration issues using the Adult/Adolescent Sensory Profile. If indeed they do, I wonder if any symptoms lessen at the end of the study....and if not, perhaps, I could re-enlist them in another short study with a different intervention. H-m-mm.
Article
Shaffer, R. J., Jacokes, L. E., Cassily, J. E., Greenspan, S. L., Tuchman, R. E., & Stemmer, P. J., Jr. (2001). Effects of Interactive Metronome™ training on children with ADHD. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 55, 155-162.
Abstract
(This was copied from the IM site)
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a specific intervention, the Interactive MetronomeÒ, on selected aspects of motor and cognitive skills in a group of children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The study included 56 boys, age 6 to 12 years, pre-diagnosed as having ADHD who were pre-tested and randomly assigned to one of three matched groups. The 19 children receiving 15 hours of Interactive MetronomeÒ rhythmicity training exercises were compared with a group receiving no intervention and a group receiving training on selected computer video games.
A statistically significant pattern of improvement across 53 of 58 variables favoring the Interactive Metronomeâ treatment was found. Additionally, several statistically significant differences were found among 12 factors on performance in areas of attention, motor control, language processing, reading, and parental reports of improvements in regulation of aggressive behavior.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Tuning the Brain
I am blown away by the capability of the Interactive Metronome (IM) as a way of improving motor planning, attention and overall processing speed and capacity. I've been certified on this tool for just a few months, but have seen dramatic results in kids with autism. One boy with good verbal skills but little desire to communicate now responds to his mother, follows directions and even - at the age of 11 - taught himself to tie his shoes. Another boy struggling with coordination and oral praxis is now able to use gym equipment with ease and is successfuly learning to move his mouth to generate "f", "v" and "s". A third child has much improved handwriting.
There is a great deal of latitude for therapists, and I find that it works both as a modality and as an intense therapy.
There is a great deal of latitude for therapists, and I find that it works both as a modality and as an intense therapy.
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