Part 5
Balance
vs Uncontrolled positionning
We have covered in the previous articles the necessity of strengthen fascia in order to ‘spontaneously and without effort‘
- hold one’s head and torso
- promote energy and vitality
- create segmentation to move selectively
- weight-bear
Let’s talk today about balance.
Normal sitting is the position where the child is capable of maintaining equilibrium throughout an entire range of positions. In such a situation, if pushed off balance, he/she is able to counterbalance, regaining their original position, rather than falling as a unified block.
I invite you to try a few tests with your own child to understand what hinders him/her from developing balance.
While lying down on his/her back,
- Move his/her head from right to left
You will see that any attempt to move their head to the side causes the involvement of the shoulders in the movement. This means that head does not move independently from the thorax.
In the sitting position,
- Gently push your child with CP backwards,
you will see their legs will lift off the bench or the table. This means that legs do not move independently from the pelvis.
In the same position,
- Tilt him/her to the side,
you will see that their legs will move in the opposite direction. This means that lumbar spine, pelvis and legs are all attached to one another.
While still seated and facing you,
- Grab your child by the shoulders and gently twist their torso to one side and then rapidly let go…
you will see that he/she will rapidly ‘spring’ back into the initial position…showing poor division between the vertebrae translating into overall rigidity in the spine.
These are only a few restrictions depicting your child’s incapacity of adjusting to any external challenges to his/her initial position and are the manifestations of the weakness of the deep core tissues, also called fascia, and the necessity to proceed to their remodeling and strengthening before contemplating body control and equilibrium.
Training balance in these conditions is a utopian initiative.
Only fascia strengthening can free your child from the mono-block condition in which he/she is imprisoned and allow the development of true balance.