Posted: September 8, 2015
If you frequently read our blog, you may have seen us use the term ‘early intervention’ when discussing future success for children with Cerebral Palsy. Just as it sounds, early intervention is focused on making an impact on a child’s development to limit problems related to CP. This may seem to be an obvious goal for any child facing challenges, but very little awareness exists due to the complexity of Cerebral Palsy.
If you would like a more comprehensive overview of early intervention for children with Cerebral Palsy, be sure to download our free eBook!
That said, first, in what forms does early intervention come? In short, early intervention is specifically aimed at addressing the symptoms or challenges your child is demonstrating or facing at this time. For babies or toddlers, this can involve specific therapies to help them reach developmental milestones that may have been already missed or are on the horizon. Whether through stretching exercises, exploring orthopedic options, testing to determine limits, etc., early intervention can be the first step toward outlining future programs.
In total, early intervention is specifically aimed at core focuses involving your child’s ability to move, engage (interaction), understand or learn, handle scenarios on an emotional basis and to continue to develop. As such, therapy can come in a variety of forms. Ultimately, early intervention is aimed at identifying challenges and building exercises (mental and physical) that address them.
What can parents expect from early intervention programs? Unfortunately there is no sure-fire methodology or direction to point parents to for complete success. Instead, success should be based upon how much impact they have on the areas your child needs help in. Early intervention cannot guarantee a child with physical challenges can walk, but it can also be a groundbreaking factor in success involving walking, with or without assistive devices. The core focus of early intervention is to minimize the challenges you see in your child in the years to come; at its core, these efforts look to retrain the brain to solve problems caused by the brain injury resulting in Cerebral Palsy.
How do you access early intervention programs? Beyond having an open dialogue with your child’s school on what options exist currently, you can also contact us! Find out what programs may be available in your city, state, etc., while also finding out what you should be expecting from schools and other programs. Your child has the right to a quality education, whether through special education programs or through assistive technology. But they also should be enabled to find success physically, emotionally, socially and more.
Find out more about early intervention and how we can help by contacting us today. Call (800) 692-4453
(800) 692-4453 FREE or fill out our contact form to have a care team member call and find out more about your child’s unique needs and options available to help!
