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Anna Bauereis and Brain Balance of
Austin offer non-medical solutions to help children with ADD/ADHD,
Tourette’s, dyslexia, Asperger’s and autism.
By Molly McManus, Photo by Elizabeth Shear
Survival mode. This is a circumstance many families find themselves
in when their child is battling an imbalance of the brain. These
imbalances manifest in a variety of ways, often-times labeled as
ADD/ADHD, Tourette’s, dyslexia, Asperger’s and autism. The day-to-day
can be difficult: A jacket drops to the floor and your daughter breaks
into an emotional episode; your son takes 20 minutes to tie his shoe,
making everyone late; you receive a phone call from your child’s school
reporting him or her as not meeting classroom requirements.
These scenarios are all too common, placing strain on the entire
family. Although there are theories as to why brain imbalances happen,
ultimately the cause is unimportant. It doesn’t matter how a child came
to have learning or social disabilities; what matters is how to help
overcome these imbalances. The Brain Balance Achievement Center of
Austin offers a solution. The center is part of an educational
franchise, with 54 locations nationwide.
The highly trained staff of teachers, sensory motor coaches and
nutritionists follow the research and teachings of Dr. Robert Melillo,
founder of the national Brain Balance program, providing a nonmedical,
comprehensive and individual treatment plan to help kids age four to 21
overcome brain disorders. Spanning more than a year, the
scientifically-based curriculum includes an extensive assessment to show
any imbalances in the brain, 12-weeks of intensive training,
nutritional counseling, follow-up evaluations to ensure treatment
continues to work and invaluable support along the way.
“I sit down with parents and educate them on what’s going on with
their child,” explains Anna Bauereis, center director and owner of the
Brain Balance Center of Austin. “I don’t sell this or push this on
parents. It is a commitment, and it’s hard.”
“One of my goals as an owner of Brain Balance is to support parents
in the uniqueness of their child,” Bauereis continues. “We walk
alongside parents and the schools to get rid of these imbalances and
prove the child can do it.”
During the 12-week intensive program, a child comes to the center
three times a week, working on the weakest parts of their brain. Parents
do brain exercises at home with their child and report back to Brain
Balance about breakthroughs.
Bauereis works with schools to offer an analysis of the student, to
assist with any problems in the classroom and to try to get teachers to
focus on weaknesses as well as strengths.
“Teachers promote the positives that somebody can do and what they
are good at—I’m tapping into what they are weak at,” explains Bauereis,
who knows that the only way to see improvement is to focus on these
weaknesses.
Bauereis offers guidance to parents, so when a child finishes the
program, new expectations are set in place. If a mother has been tying
her child’s shoe to save time and continues to exhibit this tendency,
the child will continue to not tie the shoe, knowing that his or her mom
will. Brain Balance retrains parents to stop these practices.
“Parents are just surviving,” she says with a knowing smile. “They
are just trying to get through the day-to-day. They have habits.”
Bauereis is all too familiar with survival mode and relates to these
parents. A mother of five and grandmother to seven, Bauereis went
through Brain Balance with her son prior to owning the center. He was 10
years old, had processing issues and couldn’t read. Bauereis witnessed
and celebrated her son and other children’s successes.
“I sat on the couch for six months, watching kids come and go. Kids
with dyslexia, Tourette’s…no longer,” she asserts. “I mean this stuff
was gone.”
But it’s no walk in the park. Parents must put their ego aside and be
okay knowing that although they might have done everything right as a
parent, it wasn’t right for the unique needs of their child. Bauereis
invites parents to partake in the program if they are open-minded and
willing to work with others to help make change. The in-depth approach
provides parents, children and schools the tools they need to be
successful individuals, without the help of medication. Brain Balance
offers a natural approach, fixing the issues once and for all.
Amazingly, 86 percent of children that are on medication and go
through Brain Balance are off the medication in three or four weeks.
Instead of suppressing undesirable behaviors, Brain Balance works
specifically in the area of the brain that is causing these behaviors,
addressing all underlying problems. One of the most difficult aspects
for parents at Brain Balance is the nutritional component.
In addition to vision therapy, dichotic listening and occupational
therapy, nutritional assessment and advice is presented. Nutrition is an
important factor in regulating the brain, as food can drastically react
with our processing capabilities. For many children with imbalances,
major dietary changes must be made. Bauereis recounts one of her
student’s who had a speech impediment. Within just a few sessions, the
child no longer battled this impediment.
“For 12 weeks [the student] had to eliminate dairy from his diet,”
Bauereis says. “In the 13th week, he could have milk. And he loved milk.
Within 24 hours, he needed speech therapy again.” “For my son, it was
peanuts. He would have a PB&J and two days later he was an emotional
basket case,” she says, explaining that behaviors effected by food
usually surface 24 to 48 hours later, and parents should monitor how
children respond with food.
Brain Balance takes treatment extremely seriously and wants families
to do the same. If you don’t follow the diet or show up for your
appointments, you are not welcomed back. It’s the only way a child will
fully conquer the imbalances within their brain. Bauereis and Brain
Balance are there to help any family who is willing to take the next
step, providing everything under one roof. The survival mode mentality
will melt away, the bigger picture taking hold: a happy, motivated and
well-rounded child, who no longer has to struggle.
Brain Balance Center of Austin, 3267 Bee Caves Road, Ste. 118, 512.328.7771.
Resources
Brain Balance recommends two books to help you better understand
what’s going on in your child’s brain and aid you on your journey.
Disconnected Kids: The Groundbreaking Brain Balance Program
for Children with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Other Neurological
Disorders, by Dr. Robert Melillo
Creator of the Brain Balance Achievement Centers, Dr. Robert Melillo
breaks down the science behind the Brain Balance program in this
informative book. Melillo is an internationally known lecturer, author,
educator, researcher and clinician in the areas of neurology,
rehabilitation, neuropsychology and neurobehavioral disorders in
children. Disconnected Kids is given in your initial visit, providing
you with the same assessment offered at Brain Balance, but according to
Bauereis, almost every parent comes back to the program, as trying to do
it all at home can be extremely difficult.
Reconnected Kids: Help Your Child Achieve Physical, Mental, and Emotional Balance, by Dr. Robert Melillo
Reconnected Kids is given to families when they are ready to move
forward with the Brain Balance program. The book discusses desirable and
undesirable behaviors happening for a child. According to a child’s
age, the book outlines what the child should be able to do in terms of
social, emotional, physical and academic behavior.
