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By Heyward Ewart, III, Ph.D.
This article was first published in the
May,2002 issue of e-touch, a massage newsletter and is American Massage Therapy Association. It may not be reprinted without
permission.
More than 20 years ago, I noticed an obscure little article
in an esoteric journal that discussed this subject-massage
and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). I
cannot find a reference to it, although I have searched everywhere,
and none of my colleagues have ever heard of it. If the author will come
forward, due reference and credit will be given. What I do know is that
the premise of that piece is very true.
In taking that small amount of information and adding my experience with
children through the years, I have come to believe that this condition is
physiological and not psychological. It has become a "garbage-can" diagnosis
overly used when an evaluator has not looked for causality, so that many
children with this label do not have this condition at all. Instead, some
are suffering from post- traumatic stress disorder as a result of child
abuse.
Through my research, though no exact cause exists, ADHD is thought to
stem from sensory deprivation or restriction of movement during the period
from infancy to about 3 years old. I have yet to find a case of ADHD where a
child has not either undergone some necessary medical procedure, or suffered
abuse resulting in one or more of the major senses being blocked or a
prolonged period of immobilization.
Interfering with the perceptive senses or movement produced
an "overcharged" central nervous system, whereby energy continues to
build until there is an outlet. The result is that movement and perceptual
stimulation are required in excess. If these are not supplied at frequent
intervals, the child becomes irritable, then angry and finally enraged.
Besides hyperactivity, the constellation of symptoms
includes being stubborn, having a "short fuse" when it comes
to temper, defiance, and a strong liking for very loud music
or other noise, as well as every form of physical
stimulation, including touch. Such would include very hot or very cold
showers, back rubs, and activities that stimulate any of the senses, such
as video games, sports and most any kind of exercise.
Some of the leading causes may be surgery during infancy
that requires strapping the baby down, orthopedic corrective devices,
such as bars, prolonged confinement to an incubator, and even a difficult
delivery, whereby the baby is trapped in the birth canal. Tubes in the
ears to correct hearing infections, procedures to the eyes, and
immobilization of any part of the body or the entire body are also
included.
Because understimulation may be a cause, and excess energy
is the result, I have found that the stimulation of massage
for children with ADHD is extremely effective. While
benefits have been seen in my practice for massaging young
kids with ADHD, research also suggests positive effects for
adolescents.
Well-known researcher Tiffany Field, executive director of
the Miami-based Touch Research Institutes (TRI), and her
team of researchers have uncovered positive findings of
massage on adolescents with ADHD. For the study, which was published
in the Spring 1998 issue of Adolescence magazine, the researchers selected
28 adolescents, 14 of whom received a 15-minute massage session for 10
consecutive school days, and 14 of whom received 15 minutes of relaxation
therapy for 10 consecutive school days. Assessment of the participants
revealed that those who received massage were happier, and teachers
noticed the positive change in these students.
In a more recent TRI study, in review, researchers selected children to
receive massage twice a week for a month to test the more long-term effect
of massage and ADHD. Results showed that students were more productive in
class, and their teachers rated them less hyperactive.
As far as a particular massage technique that has been effective for
ADHD, Karen Donahue, M.Ac., Lic.Ac., has found benefits of using traditional
Chinese medicine, including acupuncture, tai chi, qigong and tuina massage.
In her article entitled "The Treatment Of ADHA," Donahue writes, "Whether
the root cause is behavioral or neurological, TCM (traditional Chinese
medicine) looks at the body, mind and spirit as one interactive system. When
the body and mind are in harmony, the spirit is calm and the person is able
to perform to potential."
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, according to the American
Psychiatric Association, affects an estimated 3 to 5 percent of children,
and the few studies on massage and ADHD that exist suggest positive results,
which will only be strengthened with future research in this area.
~ Heyward Ewart, III, Ph.D., sought training in neuromuscular massage
after a 20-year career as a counselor, priest and finally a licensed
psychologist. He attended the Greenville, South Carolina, School of
Therapeutic Massage, where he graduated summa cum laude in 2001. With a
degree in neuropsychology, he presently works for The Liberty Hematology
Oncology Center in Sumter, South Carolina, where he specializes in pain
management for chemotherapy, sickle- cell and HIV patients, as well as
hyperactive children.
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