Comments on: Getting into the groove – can rhythm and vibration help people with autism?

By: Mary Ann Harrington

Mary Ann Harrington — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 04:11:54 +0000

Thank you for your response. I certainly agree that not one shoe fits all and all the mitigating circumstances need to be addressed. That said i still believe that you can slowly acclimate most children to accept more closeness and the earlier the better.

For example, there is a beautiful two year old girl I know who is thriving and ahead of schedule in her development.

When she was a baby, she fixated on lights and spinning objects, pointed her toes downward even before sh was walking, banged her head, refused to take her bottle unless she was facing away from her mother, did not seem to orientate toward sound or recognize her parents voice. She was more interested in dogs than people and it was difficult to get her to attend.

I believe but do not know that some persistent cuddling and encouraging her to take her bottle from her mother while facing in a quiet room with dimmed lights may have been very helpful. Turning off the TV and getting rid of the mechanical swing that she enjoyed set at high speed may also have had an impact. The process was done slowly. First, by just leaning over her crib and massaging her feet. You can be non intrusive but do not believe you should just give up at any age.

I worked with one young man, I hadn’t met until he was 17. He was so tactilely defensive, that he slept in his shoes for years. He would not allow anyone to cut his hair as it was too painful. I certainly could would not touch him, but I did encourage him to start with something simple like putting lotion on his own hands.

I found a strategy that I adapted from one of your books very helpful. You talked about tapping a girls wrist or something while she was eating. I found it very soothing to the kids to tap the alternately on each side of their body very calming and seemed to help them engage. Perhaps, it was because I was establishing an external rhythm for them.

Thank you again for all your marvelous insights. You have helped so many people look at autism from the inside out.

Mary Ann

By: donna

donna — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 07:58:24 +0000

many things interfere with that rhythm… Alexithymia, body agnosias, rapid cycling bipolar, allergies, immune dysfunction, dyspraxias… etc… and visual perceptual fragmentation and face blindness can make being held close terrifying, especially for solitary, vigilant personalities… so be careful of one size fits all… rythm is very powerful but can be adapted to be non-intrusive and socially respectful. Also those with amydala defects unable to perceive proximity could get the wrong social message from being held close too much. It’s important to think wholistically and very broadly and know all autismS are different fruit salads.

By: Mary Ann Harrington

Mary Ann Harrington — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 02:08:34 +0000

I think that rhythm is a very important and missing peace of the puzzle.
These kids seem to be missing an internal sense of rhythm. Hold them close and let them feel the rhythm of our body. I also feel that they are vibrating at a frequency not normally recognized or experienced by more normally integrated souls. Matching their rhythm and frequency of vibration to make a connection and then lowering yours can help them stay grounded. it is a form of entrainment that allows these open individuals to adapt to the prominent rhythm and begin to experience life through the sensory system of the more grounded person who serves as a catalyst.

This will only make sense to those who have had direct experience with the process. If you want more information, google Mary Ann Harrington and Autism