Brushing technique-Wilbarger

[Guest guest]

Has anyone tried the brushing technique to help calm our kiddos. My son's OT gave me a little brush today with directions like how to use it and at what times but wanted to throw it out there for your opinions.

[Guest guest]

hi-

we do the Wilbarger brushing technique. Our OT introduced it to us in the

summer of 2009. My son is now 6.5 yrs old and we still do it. What a

difference it has made. I don't do it as frequently as I should. I think it is

a great idea to set a schedule of when to do it and then stick to it. It has a

profound calming effect on my son. (and just to clarify- we also do the joint

compressions following the brushing; which I believe is the Wilbarger

technique?) He is dx as having mild Apserger's/HFA; as well as ADHD, SPD and

anxiety.

I find that if I wait too long to do the brushing, then it is not effective at

all and actually aggrivates him. So the key is for me to do it well before he

gets agitated. We also let him chew some gum while we do the brushing. For

some reason- the gum chewing combined with the brushing is like magic!

I keep the brushes all over the house and one in my purse and one in the car.

>

> Has anyone tried the brushing technique to help calm our kiddos. My son's OT

> gave me a little brush today with directions like how to use it and at what

> times but wanted to throw it out there for your opinions.

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

My son (now 10) was first diagnosed at 17 months and the brushing made a HUGE

difference coupled with a weighted vest, OT, PT etc. I did the brushing

faithfully and it really did chill out his sensory system. At the time my son

wouldn't touch anything and despised anything on his hands. Anyway, it worked

wonders.

Now 's OT has asked us to start the program again. Obviously, with him

being 10 it is harder because I do not do it and I have to trust him to do it.

THAT has proved challenging.

I would highly recommend it! Stick with it even though it is a lot- I think

originally we were doing it every hour!

[Guest guest]

I did it faithfully for well over a year. That and a benik vest and OT weekly. My son made a lot of progress but school refused to do it, so when he started kindergarten he pretty much weaned off it. I had to fight with school for everythign int he beginning. Three years in and he has help now but it would be hard to go back and really I think they fight anything that they have to do every 2 hours and requires touching the child. My son coulddo it himself now but I have even gone back to doing it at home from time to time during periods of high stress and anxiety. He used to have a lot of tactile defensiveness and would lash out at people who barely touched him, and was also sensory seeking jumping off vey high surfaces and always bouncing on everything. It calmed much of that down and reduced his

hyperactivity as well.

From: Abatangelo <stephanie.abatangelo@...> Sent: Mon, March 28, 2011 9:22:32 PMSubject: ( ) Brushing technique-Wilbarger

Has anyone tried the brushing technique to help calm our kiddos. My son's OT gave me a little brush today with directions like how to use it and at what times but wanted to throw it out there for your opinions.