Ask an Expert
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APRIL 2023 TOPIC: Chiropractic Care for Kids on the Spectrum
Dr. Emily Bobson, D.C.
Chiropractor Specializing in Family Chiropractic, Pregnancy & Pediatrics |
OUR EXPERT:
Dr. Emily Bobson, D.C., graduated from Life Chiropractic School in Marietta, Georgia in 2006, and, shortly afterward, opened her first chiropractic practice in Woodstock, NY. Today, she provides services in the Hudson Valley Region of New York. Her technique consists of a combination of Diversified, SOT, Activator, Thompson, Webster, Toggle Recoil, Gonstead, Network Spinal Analysis, Cox Flexion Distraction, Kinesiology, Muscle Testing, Sports Medicine and Extremities. She is focused on accommodating her clients’ individual needs. Her specialties include family chiropractic, pregnancy and pediatrics. Emily has also been extremely involved in her community, facilitating the opening of an alternative health clinic in Kingston, New York, and volunteering her time for years in order to educate and inform the public about the availability of diverse and non-invasive healing options. This passion for helping others and providing ways for everyone to have access to healing services led Emily to seek the establishment of a nonprofit that would have a mission to help her do just that - Infinite Equitable Healing Foundation. |
"As chiropractors, we are not fixing or treating anything because this is not about taking anything away or putting anything into the body. It is about getting the body to do what it already is designed to do as long as the conditions are optimal for the body to do it." ~ Dr. Emily Bobson, DC |
How long have you been treating kids on the spectrum?
Just to be clear, chiropractors don't 'treat' any spectrum disorders. We focus on the nervous system and helping it function better.
As a chiropractor in practice for over 15 years, I have always preferred to focus on family care. In the past five years, I specifically trained in and certified in pregnancy and pediatrics. I saw the need to go deeper in my education in the last five years. I got certified in the Webster technique, so I could help pregnant moms have easier births, and I was naturally seeing their babies after they gave birth. It was clear that the connection between difficult births and the best outcome for healthy babies depended on a well-functioning mom and ease in pregnancy. If there was stress during pregnancy and birth, there was a higher incidence of a child being born with neuro challenges. I saw the great benefits for babies birthed with ease from working with their mothers during pregnancy. Because I had helped the moms with so much success, they felt very comfortable bringing me their babies after birth to be assessed for a well-functioning nervous system. That was so rewarding, and there has been a growing need and call from parents with kids who were struggling and wanted options for their children that did not include drugs or surgery.
So, I started taking certifications to work with the neurodiverse population, including kids with autism. I've always worked with kids with autism, but the more I educated myself on this, the more I saw the importance of certifying and specializing in this type of chiropractic care. I am so pleased that I have more tools and the education to be able to help children on the spectrum and their families. In helping this community as well as women through pregnancy, I have confidence in the predictability of the outcome. I know I can help them live their lives with the most potential and ease in their system.
What are some of the results you've seen?
The results are nothing short of a miracle. I am always in awe of what the body can heal and regulate if given the chance.
The results that are most common and easy to achieve early on, and with the right protocols, are what we call soft signs, such as eating, sleeping, and pooping. If a baby isn't doing these things with ease, something is not working or regulating in the system. In early neurodevelopment, if something is off, these will be the things that show up first. Colic, not latching on the breast, tongue tie, gastric distress, not sleeping or pooping all are systems that have not matured yet and are having trouble coming online. Parents are told that these things are normal and that the babies will grow out of it, but neurologically, they grow into it, becoming submerged in the nervous system and causing lags with the next milestone.
Babies must grow in sequence, and if one thing is out of sequence, then there will be the next thing that will get stuck, and over time, you will notice issues with head and neck control, rolling over, crawling, walking, and talking. Future issues might include chronic ear infections, constant runny nose, and sluggish immune system, and then on to learning disabilities, sensitivity issues, social issues, OCD, depression, and anxiety disorders. This leads to dysregulated, chronically ill adults.
As chiropractors, we are not fixing or treating anything because this is not about taking anything away or putting anything into the body. It is about getting the body to do what it already is designed to do as long as the conditions are optimal for the body to do it. When there is too much stress in the body from outside forces, like a problematic birth, chemical exposure to toxins in utero, or a stressed-out mom while pregnant, the physiology of the nervous system is affected, and when that gets overloaded, everything gets affected. Chiropractors specialize in getting ease back into the nervous system, and when that is done specifically and consistently, the body will go into a state of ease and heal like it was designed to do.
Is there specific training for chiropractors to work with kids on the spectrum?
Yes, but it is optional because it is a burgeoning field. From my perspective now, in being explicitly educated in this specialty, I see the importance of having the specialized education. Getting the best results and outcomes possible is essential with a practitioner who has been explicitly trained to do this work. If you have a medical issue like cancer or a heart condition, any medical doctor can help you in a pinch. Still, if you need a procedure done and you want it to be effective with a good outcome, you would go to a specialist who has been doing chemotherapy or open heart surgery as their specialty, right?
What approaches can a chiropractor use to keep a child on the spectrum relaxed?
The most important thing any practitioner can do when working with babies, kids, and the neurodiverse population is to establish a comfortable presence and tone. What I mean when I say this is that if you are uncomfortable working with this population, [the child will feel that]. If you are relaxed and at ease, the child will be as well. This is primary. Once you have established a connection, you can build trust with both the child and parents. If the parents trust you, the children will, too. This is something that will deepen and evolve as care continues.
How does proper spine alignment help with cognitive function/awareness?
I look at the whole person through a neurological lens. That means I look at how the system functions in all its working parts and whether there is coordination between them.
The first thing formed in utero is the neural tube, which forms the spinal cord and the brain. After that, the rest of the organs and systems are formed in conjunction with and under the direction of the master controller, the nervous system. If the nervous system is in integrity, so are cognitive function and awareness. The spinal column houses the spinal cord, and the cord transmits a feedback loop to the brain for information going up and down the cord. When there is any type of stress or torsion in the cord from the malposition of structures housing the cord and brain, there is dysfunction or interruption of the information being exchanged between the two.
An excellent example of this is the most basic of functions: cognitive function and awareness being affected. Children and adults who are neurodiverse have a lot of stress in their system and are highly sensitive to stressors in the environment; so just being able to tune out the static in their brain and nervous system is extremely taxing to the system. It is hard to tune out and tune in to myriad environmental stressors, and they become overloaded. The symptoms we associate with spectrum disorders, like rocking, head banging, and repetitive motion, are an attempt to self-soothe and calm their nervous system. This applies to all people with a spine and nervous system, regardless of the disorder.
Are there autism-related disorders (associated conditions) that chiropractic care can help with (e.g., anxiety, OCD, gastrointestinal disorders, ADHD)?
All of these are disorders of the nervous system, and if there is stress in that system, there will be stress in all systems. It is the foundation of all systems being online and functioning correctly.
Does chiropractic care work for adults on the spectrum in a similar way, even if they haven't had treatment early in life?
The earlier in life, the better, but it is never too late. Although, the older you get, the longer it takes to get everything functioning properly. Optimally, it is best to affect neurology before it can lay tracks down. Like any learning, with brain development, there is an optimal time to have the most significant effect.