Disclaimer

This book, based upon our experiences and investigations, is about what we have tried or would try if our children had any of the problems we discuss in this book.

The practices described within have been useful for the patients, clients and students of the contributors. The suggestions in the chapters on the healing practices are based upon the contributors’ experiences. The information in this volume should not be construed as personal medical/psychological advice or instruction.

If your child or youth has a serious condition, get two Western Medicine or Western Psychological evaluations before you start. If the child has already been diagnosed, please get a second opinion–even if the cost seems high. Compare the two reports before deciding what to do next.
Learn about the practice(s) you are choosing. Pick practitioners carefully. Watch the child or youth’s reactions. Stop the practice if there is even a hint of a problem. Talk with the practitioner and with the heads of their professional associations. (You will find information about associations when you read about the practices). If a problem continues, see your pediatrician, family physician, psychologist, or therapist.

This book is meant for information only. Any information obtained from this volume is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure a psychological/medical condition. The editors and contributors shall have no liability for claims by, or damages of any kind whatsoever to, a purchaser of this book or any other person for a decision or action taken in reliance on the information contained in this volume. Such damages include, without limitation, direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages.

We are not responsible or liable in any way for any problems that develop as a result of using any of these practices or any advice given by their contributors. We do hope this information is helpful to you and the child or youth you are concerned about.

Preface

Evidence of the need for healing the earth and all the life upon it, surrounds us. Many children & youth, in particular, are suffering a great deal. With all the other struggles our world, our society and our families face, the needs of our children & youth are too often ignored or inadequately addressed. It is time to choose change and to learn new ways of supporting the young, who are – after all – our future.

At any given moment, far too many children & youth and their families are coping with difficulties of some kind. Some challenges are minor. Many are not. Most challenges can have long-term results if they are not adequately addressed - and the sooner the better.

Too often, children & youth who have suffered and do not receive the help they need, grow to be adults who struggle and are insensitive to the suffering they unconsciously create and tolerate. A cycle of suffering goes on and on.

It is time to stop this cycle. It is time to choose change and to investigate healing practices that have helped other children & youth and which we hope will help yours, too.

Throughout this book, we have used the word “parent(s)” to describe the role of the person(s) responsible for the upbringing of a child or youth, with or without legal custody.

Being a parent can be one of the most wonderful and most difficult life-long tasks anyone can undertake. Everyone starts out wanting to be a great parent. However, little training is given. Unhealed parental wounds can also cause problems. Reliable guidance is often difficult to obtain.

And so, many parents treat their children & youth more or less as they were treated themselves as kids. They do the best they can with the information they have at hand, and sometimes that information is not so good.

When parents are stressed, they may be unaware of the needs of their child or youth and they may unknowingly do wounding things they later regret. The effects of these unhealed and regretted actions can get passed on to future generations. We hope this book helps support parents in breaking family cycles of suffering.

Unfortunately, sometimes things happen to children & youth that parents cannot prevent. The task of parenting then becomes even more challenging when children & youth have problems. Accidents, illnesses, school and social difficulties, and other problems sometimes occur.

Happily for parents, there are now many healing practices that have helped other children & youth. We have presented some of these in Healing Practices To Help Kids Grow Up Easier. We hope this book helps parents take healing and protective actions.

The world is changing very rapidly. New information, healing practices, and social structures are developing to strengthen children & youth and the family unit itself. We hope this book helps parents support their children & youth in new ways for them, by investigating and choosing helpful practices.

Some of the material in this book may be difficult to absorb. Many forms of suffering are addressed. Old, unhealed memories of what happened in the past to either the children or youth or to the parents might be reawakened. Parents themselves may need support so they can keep getting and giving assistance for the challenged child or youth.

A happier childhood lasts a lifetime. We hope this book will help you help children & youth grow up easier.

Marie Mulligan/Rick Geggie

Introduction

• We hope this book is useful to you in helping the child or youth who is important to you.
• We believe that children and youth can be more relaxed, learn how to learn and live fuller lives into adulthood when they get assistance with their challenges as early as possible.
• The goal of this book is to provide vital information about healing practices that we have found helpful for children & youth during our careers in medicine and education.
• We want to help parents skillfully examine which healing practices show the most promise in helping their children & youth.

About This Book

Chapters on healing practices that have helped children & youth have been written by practitioners who are dedicated to helping kids grow up easier.

This book provides a straightforward process leading parents and caregivers to the most effective treatments for their child or youth’s challenges, hopefully helping to avoid years of trial and error.

Because no single book could provide all the information about all these healing practices, contributors have included the names of associations, books, articles, research papers and internet addresses so that you may compile as much information as you need to help you make decisions about what can help your child or youth.

Almost all chapters follow the same organization to make learning easier.

Problems that can hurt children and youth throughout their lives, if they do not receive assistance, are listed and linked to healing practices.

A long list of problems is given in the Problems and Healing Practices chapter. Beneath each problem we have listed the practices which may heal, help, protect, or ease the suffering of children and youth. The problems are listed in alphabetical order.

The information beneath each problem comes from the experience of the authors of the chapters on Healing Practices. You will see the information of what the practice helps at the beginning of each chapter.

We have listed these practices in alphabetical order and not in any order of importance or priority. You will have to decide how to use the information.

To make this an easy-to-read book, we have written and organized it as simply as possible.

This book is a work in progress. To save time and get the first edition out to you, we have left out many other healing practices that will be included in the second edition.

How To Use This Book

Carefully go over the lists of PROBLEMS AND HEALING PRACTICES. With each of the problems there is a list of practices that may heal, help, protect or ease your child or youth. Study the practices linked to your child or youth’s problems. Learn about the ones that interest you. This information comes from the practitioner/authors who wrote the chapters on the various healing practices. The information they give is from their experience.

Remember

• Children & youth grow and learn more fully when they get assistance so that they can feel safe, loved, appreciated, understood, relaxed, supported, and happy.
• It is important for you to remember that you are an expert when it comes to your children or youth’s well being. As an expert, you need to continually assemble as much information as possible in order to quickly act in the child’s best interests.
• It is important to address problems early because children & youth can develop learning and living habits that can limit their futures when such problems go unattended.
• Ideally, childhood should be harmonious, productive, satisfying, and happy.
• Children and youth need positive growth-enhancing experiences, not recurring patterns of pain and dissatisfaction.
• Effectiveness as adults is determined in large part by what happens to people during their formative years.
• There are many things to keep in mind when choosing a practitioner and some or many of the practices may be beyond your financial reach. Use your imagination. Find help. Go to family, friends, and networks of all sorts to find the financial support you need. Many practitioners will work with you on this difficulty.
• You may have a hunch that one problem is more important than others. You may find yourself drawn to some method for no reason that you understand. We encourage you to follow your intuition as well as your logic.
• If something sparks your curiosity, investigate it. In many cases, intuition or a gut reaction can be as important as your logical thoughts.
• Be careful and be open. Allow for your and your child or youth’s life to be better as soon as possible.

Expensive Yet Economical

Parents are often disturbed by what seems to be the high cost of many healing practices. What is often overlooked are the extremely high costs, both in money and anguish, of children & youth continuing to have unsolved problems throughout their lives – including adulthood. Keep in mind that the money, time and heart that you invest today could save you and your child or youth much more money, time and heartache in the future.

Choosing A Practitioner

• Find practitioners from professional associations, recommendations from friends, and any trusted professionals you know.
• Begin by contacting the practitioner and gathering information.
• Ask what training or other qualifications the practitioners have. Ask about their education, additional training, licenses, and certifications. If you have contacted a professional organization, see if the practitioner’s qualifications meet the standards for training and licensing for that profession.
• Ask about their experiences treating other children or youth similar to your child or youth in terms of age, gender, and problem.
• Ask if it is possible to have a brief consultation in person or by phone with the practitioners.This will give you a chance to speak with the practitioner directly. The consultation may or may not involve a charge.
• Ask if the practitioners believe their healing practice can effectively address your child or youth’s challenge and if there is any scientific research supporting its use.
• Ask about charges and payment options. Ask how much treatments cost.
• Ask about the hours appointments are offered.How long is the wait for an appointment?
• Consider whether this will be convenient for your schedule.
• Ask about office location. If you need a building with an elevator or a wheelchair ramp, ask about it.
• Ask what will be involved in the first visit or assessment.
• Observe how comfortable you and your child or youth feel during these first interactions. Once you have gathered the information, assess the answers and determine which practitioner was best able to respond to your questions and best suits your needs.
• To begin your search for a practitioner, check out the following website which contributed much of the information in this section: www.nccam.nih.gov/health/practioner/index.htm.

Cautions

• No single practice is effective for everyone all of the time.
• In choosing a method or practitioner you have to be discerning and careful without allowing your fears to rule your life or that of your child.
• You and your child or youth will probably have to experiment and investigate to find what works to solve a challenge and make growing up easier.
• In some cases using one method may lead to another until the problem is diminished or resolved.
• Choosing the right combination of healing practices can be helpful. There can be synergy between different healing practices—for example, osteopathy or another manual therapy in conjunction with Traditional Chinese Medicine or Aryuveda.
• Remember that some methods work better than others and that what works for one child or youth might not work for another. Each child or youth is unique, has different parents, different conceptions, different womb experiences, birth experiences, bodies, combinations of experiences, accidents, childhood illnesses, diet, and so on.

Additional Disclaimer

You and your child or youth deserve support in reducing suffering. The intention of this book is to assist you in learning about healing practices. If you or your child or youth are experiencing severe challenges, we strongly recommend that you seek out appropriate help from medical, psychological, psychotherapy or educational professionals. Please share the healing practices in this book with those professionals. Contact appropriate professionals immediately if you or your child or youth have any adverse reactions to any of the practices presented in this book.