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Posts Tagged ‘mind training’

 

A child -busy studying

Everybody can be distracted or daydream at different times and in different situations, but when the distraction can be beyond a set social and medical criterion these distracted behaviors become excessive and could prove problematic. The medical- psychological term for these difficulties is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and some of the signs of this difficulty include:
  • Being easily distracted
  • Making “careless” mistakes
  • Struggling to follow instructions carefully and completely
  • Repeatedly losing things like toys, pencils, or anything you might need to complete a task

Psychiatrists   have identified that problem with attention, is often coupled with signs of hyperactivity such as:

  • Restlessness and fidgeting
  • Dashing about in situations when the child as expected to sit still and be quiet
  • Blurting out answers or interrupting others
  • Getting really frustrated if you have to wait in line or queue

The symptomatic types of signs associated with attention deficit lead to frequent wrong diagnosis of ADHD. Parents, teachers and doctors have to be keenly alert to whether signs are demonstrated across a number of situations, e.g.in school, at home, during extracurricular activities or if they are isolated to a specific subject area, which may indicate a much more specific problem.

In order to gain a formal diagnosis, psychiatrists/doctors will be looking for evidence that the problems were demonstrated early in life (before the age of 7).

Once a psychiatrist /doctor has this evidence, a full assessment, which often includes lots of different specialists, can start. However, arriving at a formal diagnosis for ADHD can sometimes be a longwinded and frustrating process. Also, because poor concentration often affects progress at school, problems can be compounded with the passing of time.

Once diagnosed, treating a child with ADHD can present a difficult choice: whether or not to   make use of medication. Other approaches include behavioral modification and management  program.

Symptomatic highlights:

Attention

  • Does your child struggle with attention and concentration?
  • Balance and Coordination Reading and Writing

It could be dyspraxia or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), a condition that affects around 1 in 30 of us. Boys are at least four times more likely to be affected than girls.

There seems to be some difficulty with the way the brain processes information – it affects planning of what you want to do and how you want to do it.

Often difficulties with coordination go hand-in hand with other issues, such as difficulty with reading, Attention and Organization Skills.

For children with coordination difficulties, actions like running, jumping, balancing and cycling can prove extremely challenging. For adults, this may have translated into difficulty with driving, household chores, cooking and even getting dressed.

The tell-tale signs can be spotted at two levels.

There may be problems with gross motor coordination skills, which may result in:

  • Poor balance
  • Difficulty learning to catch and throw
  • Difficulty learning to ride a bicycle
  • Difficulty climbing stairs
  • Difficulty learning to get dressed

There may also be problems with fine motor coordination skills, including difficulty with:

  • Delicate tasks like using cutlery
  • Doing up buttons and zips
  • Tying shoe laces or ties
  • Handwriting

Often, as time goes on and children get more practice, things may become easier. In some cases, physiotherapy or occupational therapy may be appropriate.

Of all the skills we learn as children, reading and writing are among the most difficult and important. They help us build our knowledge and gain an understanding of the world.

As we get older, our ability to take in and produce written information is considered to be a fundamental skill required for success. So it is not surprising that if reading and writing prove to be difficult skills to learn, it can be a problem for the child, for their parents and for teachers at school.

For children with learning difficulties, learning to read can be an exhausting and frustrating task that simply doesn’t get any easier. In many instances, these difficulties continue into adulthood and the difficulty is hidden or avoided rather than overcome.

Lots of people take the act of reading for granted. For them it is acquired effortlessly and soon becomes second nature. But the processes involved are anything but simple! When we look at some text, a lot of physical, neurological and mental processes have to work together in order for us to make sense of what is on the page.

Our eyes have to track the text in a precise movement; nerves in our eyes take information to the brain; the brain does some special processing to convert that into language; and then that information has to be converted again into meanings.

With a process this complex, there are plenty of things that can (and do) go wrong for some people. It is not that those people are lazy or stupid. In fact they might be trying MUCH harder than other people, but it is simply that their ability to process the information, and make things become automatic, is not as efficient. Learning through practice is consequently much slower than it should be. When children are learning to read, there are a number of different signs that they might be Struggling . Signs include:

  • Difficulty sounding out words and recognizing them out of context
  • Confusion between letters and the sounds they represent
  • Difficulty reading aloud
  • Reading without expression
  • Ignoring punctuation
  • Comprehension difficulties
  • Trouble remembering or summarizing what is read

Often people who have significant problems with reading and writing will be diagnosed with dyslexia. This is no reflection on intelligence or IQ (many are bright and creative people).

People tackle difficulties with reading and writing in a number of different ways. For many, the first option is more teaching around word sounds (phonological); for others it is sound-based or visual therapy. All these routes have their merits and their success stories.

  • Do you or your child have trouble with movement and coordination?
  • Do you or your child have trouble with reading and writing?

Many people, who have taken up the Special Mansik Pramarsh Programme, tell us that their ability to focus on the task in hand improves dramatically.

People who have struggled to run without tripping up, or have never been able to ride a bike, tell us that they are able to do these activities for the first time. For others, it is more about small improvements day after day, but the overall result is similar.

We have successfully worked with thousands of people who have symptoms associated with dyslexia, dyspraxia and ADHD. Those who have completed the Programme have reported outcomes which include:

  • Improved Concentration,
  • Better Coordination, Increased Self-Confidence,
  • More Motivation for Reading and Schoolwork,
  • Improvements in Reading and Spelling Scores,
  • Enhanced Social Skills And Greater Sporting Ability

Mansik Pramarsh   program deals with what some researchers believe may be the underlying cause of learning difficulties; poor cerebellar efficiency. Our program aims to stimulate the cerebellum to improve concentration, coordination, reading, writing and the processing of information, as well as make skills become more automatic.

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Do we really remember how often had we fallen when we learnt to crawl, walk and then run in our childhood? Most probably not because we had all along been  focusing on the organic growth of  our lives when we moved from infancy to childhood to young age. Each time we would fall  while learning to pedal a bicycle, we would come back with a determination to succeed this time and eventually we learnt the tricks. Remember we would then enjoy the same trick of pedaling our tiny bicycles with both our hands free from the handles of the bicycle. But what kept us going after each fall was the encouragement we would get from the protective hands of our parents or elder brothers and  sisters . Their pepping up always encouraged us to do better.

We now wonder as to where has this pep talk that could tell us to get up and get going vanished . Believe me it has not vanished anywhere. It  exists today also . Possibly today it  can be seen in the eyes of our young sons  and  daughters. Just look into their eyes and onto their confident faces when they see their parents fighting out the challenges of life with yet another strong determined mindset and  bounce back after having had  a  set back in life. The support system of doing better once again  can be found in the comforting words and gestures of the life partners and good friends when they tell you to forget the vagaries of life and try an alternative route that could take you to greater  glory  of success.

I once saw a convoy of ants moving in a very disciplined manner in a straight line to their hive. The ants were lead by the leader of the pack and they were all running to reach  the comfort of their  hive after a day’s hard work . They were clutching small tit bits into their tiny mouths, to be hidden away from the other predators. Out of sheer curiosity and to check whether I could disturb and dissuade the disciplined run of  ants’ convoy I  just sprinkled a few drops of water  on the floor . I had expected ants to give up going in the direction that they  had been following.I was sure  they would now   get lost as the straight line that they had been following behind each other had been disturbed. But to my utter dismay all  the ants instead of getting lost or dissuaded from their  path became more determined to reach their  destination. They would just take a detour away from the wet patch on the floor  and rejoin their  companions who had moved ahead  of them . A few of the ants even climbed the wall high up to avoid the water thrown by me on their route and after covering a good height will climb down to join the straight line of their friends moving forward.

Life beckons us to move ahead in the same way. Come highs or come lows the route to glory should never be abandoned .We must  find  a detour every time we come across the obstacles and continue   our journey to the destination.  There are enough support systems available who tell us to get up once again and get going. The caring hands of God the Almighty are always with us to protect us from any fall  that we might comprehend or be apprehensive of. Let us just get up and get going. Success is just round the corner……..may be just a step ahead.

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The concentration skills  are important in life . Whatever the station or the station , concentration  and focus   will be needed to understand, comprehend and take a decision. Parents of young children and often  working  adults themselves have been seeking our guidance on  developing the concentration and focus in their efforts.  We give  some  of the tips  that can  help  develop better concentration to people ion all stations in life.

1. Prioritize  your work :It helps when the priorities of the work can be donbased on its urgency and priority in life. the ABC analysis of the jobs to be done by oyu in a day’s time will help you set your priorities.

2. Pick up all those works that you have assigned  category A works as they will need your immediate and full attention.  Next in the priority will be category B works that will need full concentration and will have to be handled with not so much urgency.
3. Handle  one thing at a time:the concentration  builds up  by handling   one thing at a time . Thus giving  complete undivided attention  to the job in hand . Multitasking (doing many things simultaneously) causes distraction .

4.  Doing  the same thing  as if everything depends on it   :Call for and look at all details in totality so that no repetitions of the exercise are  called for later. Do not miss any thing.Observe   all details as if you   are gaining new insights  during the first time itself .

5. A few   minutes more  rule :Whenever   you feel like quitting in the   middle of a task – just say a few more minutes and work a couple of minutes more. This strategy will ,help  expand  and stretch the working   mind and build up mental  endurance. remember how sports persons   build up  their  stamina  and   mental endurance  when their muscles and body wants them to quit due to  tiredness.

6.  Writing down :use pen and paper to note down any deviations that come to mind promising yourself to take up these deviations later during your free times.

7. Reward yourself:   small rewards matter. promise your self  a good treat after you finish  the task in hand. The reward can be anything that makes you happy and relaxed – like having your favorite food,going out for a walk, meeting your best friend etc.

8. Be project specific :Before you start any work, be clear in your mind about the objective to be achieved by you. Be as precise as possible .the next assignment should be handled after the one in hand  has been   completed satisfactorily .

9.Use a concentration score sheet:Each time you find your mind wandering, make a check mark on the  score  sheet. doing this on consistent basis, will help reduce s distraction and increase   concentration.

10.  Break task into smaller parts:Breaking a  greater  task into smaller parts will make it seem less overbearing and help you look at  it with more positive mindset .

11. Concentration exercises:Concentration exercises help in training your mind to concentrate more and for longer periods of time.

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