From Despair to Hope: A Parent’s Journey - Part 2
Published: 2 Apr 2025
I’ve been so moved by the response when we shared Part 1 of my journey as a parent last month. Thank you to everyone who wrote back to us, and to all of those who shared the story with other parents who are undergoing similar challenges. I hope that my experience can be a helpful guide to parents whose kids have developmental challenges. Here is Part 2. You can catch up on Part 1 here. - Hsiao
From a very early age K began a wide range of therapies to target all areas of development in an effort to narrow the gap of delay. Regular physical therapy sessions began along with occupational and speech therapy. We added aqua based therapy and tried to do as much movement and sensory activities as much as possible. As we continued to move forward with K’s therapies, it began to feel like we were trying to plug many holes in a dam with our fingers. Unfortunately the number of holes were beginning to increase and the situation was becoming increasingly more overwhelming and stressful. For every step forward we were making, it felt like we were taking two backwards.
As all of these factors began to accumulate, K was diagnosed with epilepsy. Her seizures were lengthy in time and locked up her airway which affected her breathing. The episodes were very often severe with the need of emergency medical services and the resulting inevitable stay in a hospital. The stress on K and the family became significant and we were on survival mode for years.
We desperately searched for answers. Doctor after doctor, specialist after specialist, and still we had no good viable options. Various combinations of seizure medications and dosages were explored. We were told to continue the status quo or go for invasive brain surgery. As parents we lived on a knife edge and felt helpless that we couldn’t do anything to improve the situation.
Our focus on K’s developmental delay was put on hold for the time being as we prioritised her immediate health issues. We knew it was time to stop focusing on patching the symptoms and really try to understand what was going on.
I began to research and read everything I could get my hands on by scouring research articles, websites, blog posts, forums and any other sources of information that I could find. There were two things that led to incredible and real change for K.
One, I began to look closer at the relation between the gut, the brain, and the nervous system. I was beginning to realise the importance of the gut, and the role it played in overall health. I zoomed in on increasing her absorption of nutrients while gently helping her system eliminate waste more efficiently. Her body improved dramatically resulting in reduced illnesses and better health. I also made an effort to rehaul what we were eating to improve K’s gut health, and give her body a fighting chance to improve her immune system and maybe begin to see lasting change happen for her.
Two, I stumbled on a random parent comment with the word, “MNRI” during an internet search in 2017. Leaving no stone unturned, I looked into it. The more I read about this “missing link”, the more I leaned into the idea of reflex integration to help the nervous system. Reading about peoples’ experiences with MNRI I was intrigued and excited to learn more. It appeared that MNRI as a modality tackled health and developmental challenges as a whole.
At the time, MNRI was not easily accessible and there were no MNRI practitioners where we lived. Thankfully the coordinator in Indonesia allowed our last minute registration and K attended the MNRI Family Conference in December 2017. This was the first time we experienced the power of MNRI in person.
K’s response to MNRI treatment after only four days at the family conference in Indonesia was nothing short of incredible. There was a visible change in her posture and how she carried herself. She stood more upright and was less impulsive. The growth of her receptive language and expressive speech accelerated in just those four days. She started asking more questions and had better awareness of her surroundings. She just seemed to be more comfortable in her own skin.
We noticed a decrease in her level of anxiety as well. Last, but certainly not least, her sleep quality improved significantly. She took less time to fall asleep and stayed asleep increasingly longer at night.
We began to tap into the expertise of MNRI Core Specialists from Vietnam and Australia during their visits to Singapore. We will be forever grateful to these individuals for this initial start which began our journey into the world of MNRI.
These two things - our journey into MNRI, and paying closer attention to K’s gut health - were what led to the improvements we were about to witness.
At Neural Connections, we focus on offering treatment and protocols to help integrate the reflexes - schedule a Discovery Call with us today to see if we can help.
