Managing A Diagnosis That Starts With “Dys”

The prefix “dys” refers to faulty, bad, or difficult. From a neurological perspective, however, it means disorganization. At Brain Harmony we walk people right out of their “dys” diagnosis by calming the nervous system, and reorganizing their brains. The protocol we employ works across the board whether we’re talking about dyslexia, dysgraphia, dysautonomia, dyspraxia, or any other “dys” you can think of.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a condition starting with the prefix "dys" you're likely looking at some time of disorganization. Whether it be physical or mental, "dys" refers to something going awry. 

Luckily, if "dys" means disorganized, then the natural pathway out of the diagnosis is to get organized. Read on to learn how Brain Harmony works with "dys" diagnoses. 

What Does "Dys" Mean?

The prefix "dis" is commonly used in diagnosis, like dyslexia and dyspepsia, for instance. 

Although the root meaning of the prefix "dis" is bad, difficult, or faulty, at Brain Harmony, when we hear "dys" we think "disorganized."

From a physical perspective, "dys" is often used to describe a system in the body that isn't working properly. For example, dyspepsia and dysentery result from disturbances in your digestive system. 

However, when it comes to the central nervous system, "dys" almost always relates to disorganization in the brain. 

But here's the good news; if your diagnosis is due to a disorganized brain, then you know exactly what you need to do to treat it -- organize that brain. 

What Is Meant By A Disorganized Brain?

First, it's important to understand that most people have some level of disorganization in their neural pathways. It's not quite as scary as it sounds.

With that being said, working towards more neural organization is crucial for balanced emotional states, processing, learning, and motor skills. To understand what a disorganized brain looks like, let's first describe what an organized brain looks like. 

Your brain has several networks and functional systems that talk to each other. This includes different "areas" of the brain and different neurological pathways that light up together. Without getting too deep into the science, you can think of your brain as a highly efficient computer that knows exactly which program to run for every physical and mental activity in your body[*]. 

When firing on all cylinders, your brain's organizational system is seamless and allows you to process information from the outside world so you can respond appropriately. 

Unfortunately, many people today are either born with some level of neurological disorganization or develop it due to the many physical and emotional stressors in our environment. In a disorganized brain, those highly tuned circuits which allow you to process become tripped, and instead of acting as a seamless network, your brain's connections become faulty. 

This can show up in a number of ways, from motor issues to emotional or learning difficulties. 

Types of Diagnosis Starting With "Dys"

Some common diagnoses starting with "dys" include:

Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disorder characterized by difficulty with reading, phonetic decoding, spelling and negative behaviors associated with learning delays. Specifically, dyslexic people have issues reading fluently, either reading very slowly, making several mistakes as they read, or poor comprehension. It often goes undiagnosed with behavior issues until the individual is an adult. 

Brain imaging studies show that individuals with dyslexia have differences in areas of the brain involved in reading skills. Interestingly, research shows that due to your brain's neuroplasticity, brain activity in these areas can change with proper treatment protocols[*]. While the research says there is no cure for dyslexia, neuroplastic programs like ours re-organizes the brain so the individual no longer presents with those characteristics and no longer meets the diagnostic criteria. 

Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia or Apraxia is a poorly understood condition that makes regular motor movement patterns very difficult. It can impact coordination marked by clumsiness in otherwise healthy children. Apraxia of speech is a common condition where individuals have difficulty coordinating the motor movements of the mouth and tongue making speech incredibly difficult. Symptoms of dyspraxia can  include delays in speech, sitting or walking, difficulty jumping, balancing, or performing tasks that require coordination, like shoelace tying.

Dyspraxia may also impact mental/emotional skills like time management, social engagement, and dealing with emotions[*]. 

Dysautonomia

Dysautonomia is a disorder of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), affecting non-voluntary functions like heart rate, blood pressure, and sweating. Dysautonomia can show up as either overactivation of sympathetic or parasympathetic responses or failure of these systems. 

Put simply; dysautonomia happens when the nerves in your ANS don't communicate properly (AKA, they're disorganized).

People may experience dysautonomia acutely or in conjunction with another diagnosis[*].

Symptoms of dysautonomia may include fast or slow heart rate, visual disturbances, breathing issues, sexual dysfunction, issues with digestion, and more[*]. 

Dysgraphia 

Dysgraphia is a disorder in your ability to write. More specifically, it describes issues with transcription in either handwriting, typing, or spelling -- anything that allows you to produce writing. 

People with dysgraphia experience issues forming letters, writing grammatically correct sentences, spacing letters correctly, writing in a straight line, holding and controlling a writing tool, and writing clearly enough to read back later. Along with the neurological component, there is often a motor component dysgraphia as well. 

How Brain Harmony Works With "Dys' Diagnoses

At Brain Harmony, we see all kinds of "dys" diagnoses. Of all the clients we work with, our friends with a "dys" are one of our favorites because we know exactly what they need. We like to say we can walk them right out of that diagnosis with our eyes closed for one very good reason -- we know how to organize their brains. 

In fact, our five-step plan of care uses neurological organization as one of its primary pillars. 

So, how do we organize a disorganized brain? 

#1 Vagal Regulation

First, we begin with vagal regulation. 

One thing that almost everyone with neurological disorganization has in common is that their vagus nerve is in need of a tune-up. Your vagus nerve is highly involved in your parasympathetic nervous system response. If you're unfamiliar, your parasympathetic nervous system is in charge of the "rest and digest," or relaxation response of your central nervous system. 

With the stressors of today's world, most people have some type of dysregulation going on with their vagus nerve. Although you can't necessarily change the world around you, you sure can tune up your own physical and mental defenses against stress -- and that's where vagal tone comes in. 

By using programs like the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) and Alpha-Stim, we strengthen your vagus nerve and bring your mind and body into a state of peace and calm. This allows your brain to rest and pulls you out of an overactive sympathetic (fight or flight) mode. 

When you're in sympathetic mode, it's impossible to work on neurological organization because your entire system is fired up for survival. This is not the time to start rewiring and working on glitches in your neurological hardware -- this is time for vigilance. 

Therefore, by bringing you into a place of safety, we set the stage for the neurological organization to come. 

#2 Neurological Organization 

In our second step, we work directly on neurological organization by using listening systems like the iLs Focus Unit. This multisensory system provides input to your brain that helps to develop new pathways and reinforce existing ones that are working properly.

With the Focus Unit, therapeutic music is delivered via headphones along with bone conduction, providing auditory input to the brain and sensory input to the body. This guides the neurological organization process by feeding your brain what it needs to get itself back into balance. 

By addressing the root cause of your "dys" diagnosis, neurological organization does much more than just train you out of your motor or learning issues. We also pride ourselves on making each program individualized to meet your very unique needs. Everyone's neurological disorganization may look a little different, so we never use a "one size fits all" approach. 

#3 Reflex Integration

Our third step in treating "dys" diagnoses is reflex integration. Many people take a pause when we talk about reflex integration and neural pathways -- but they are very much intertwined. After all, reflexes are automatic movements developed in infancy that are meant to keep us safe and help us learn about the world around us. 

While neurological organization tools like the iLs Focus unit give us an inside-out approach to brain harmony, reflex integration gives us an outside-in approach. 

Just as many people are walking around with disorganized brains, many people are also walking around with unintegrated reflexes. This can show up as physical, emotional, or behavioral challenges. 

By helping you to integrate your reflexes, we can work on that disorganization that may have been reinforced neurologically by improper motor skills. Many friends find that reflex integration improves physical coordination, vision, hearing, speech focus, recall, behavior, and emotional regulation. 

Kerry's Brain Harmony Success Story

Kerry is a homeschool mom of eight children -- all of which have been diagnosed with mild to severe dyslexia. 

Since beginning her journey with Brain Harmony, she has seen immense progress in her children's reading levels, communication, attention and emotional regulation, and processing. In her words; "it has completely boosted everybody." 

Two of her children have gone up several grade levels in their learning, and her oldest son, who has auditory processing issues, has begun communicating more clearly. 

"We have tried so much over the years, and so many different programs, and this has made the biggest difference… it has made a huge difference in a short amount of time, so I would definitely highly recommend it." CLICK HERE FOR KERRY’S VIDEO

Here is a link to case study with pictures of written work and grades, before and after our program!

Here are case studies we did for apraxia of speech and Dyspraxia.

Could Brain Harmony Be Right For Your "Dys" Diagnosis?

If you or a family member has been diagnosed with a "dys" diagnosis, Brain Harmony can help you move through your current diagnosis and get you back into balance. Reach out today for a Free Consultation to learn more about our personalized approach and help you determine if Brain Harmony is for you.