Last time I wrote I talked about what martial arts does for your mental health, but this week I specifically want to focus on something else. I want to focus on my own experiences with martial arts, and, the way martial artshas helped those who may not be on the same level as most of us mentally. My little sister Maria was adopted, and, when she came to my family at the age of 5 1/2 she was so much farther behind than she is now. She has and yet doesnt have ADHD. She has to take the same medicine as a child who is ADHD for some of her focus issues, which, as I have mentioned in earlier blogs, is an issue that martial arts can improve greatly. She is currently taking Teakwondo with my siblings and I, and, has acheived a deputy belt, which is one belt away from black belt. This is a very big accomplishement, from the little girl who spoke almost no languge, understood almost none of her schoolwork, and had very little muscle, to the blooming, slowly getting smarter, sweet little girl she is now. Among the focus issues she has a few learning delays. That is all mostly irrelevant except for the fact that by focusing on her ADHD http://tomywahl.blogspot.com/2010/10/tips-for-parenting-child-with-adhd.html overlooks the deeper problem of her learning delays. This condition, of not focusing can be helped, where as, even though my parents and my whole family work so hard, her learning delays will probably always be there.
http://tomywahl.blogspot.com/2010/10/tips-for-parenting-child-with-adhd.html is right about how there should be a set rewards and cosequences program in the childs life(Paragraph 9 under 'Discipline, Rewards, and Consequences'). We have that same sort of system with Maria but I believe that http://tomywahl.blogspot.com/2010/10/tips-for-parenting-child-with-adhd.html is on more dubious ground when she says that major holidays and birthdays should never be completely taken away. That is the piont where you start to ask yourself "Should you treat every child as a different case?" The answer is yes. We have taken those steps before, and the thing is, that sometimes for the point of her punishment to really hit home, for her to say to herself "I was wrong", we have to do something really drastic. Whenever my little sister does something terribley wrong like cheat on a test or come home with a note from the teacher saying she did not act nicely that day, we talk to the Master at teakwondo and he will take her belt away. For another student this could bring their self esteem down or just make them mad, but for Maria, when she sees all of her fellow peers with belts on it really hits home that she has done something wrong.
I agree with http://tomywahl.blogspot.com/2010/10/tips-for-parenting-child-with-adhd.html because, when we first went to doctors to get advice on how best to help Maria, the doctors said that to help her overcome physical and mental challenges that martial arts, yoga, and swimming were the best options for her. She has excelled in swimming and is fairly good at teakwondo. I want to add that Maria has an enlarged cerebellum which means that she has amjor balance issues. Taking martial arts has greatly improved that and http://afterthebridge.blogspot.com/2007/05/neurocutaneous-syndromes-are-genetic.html (Paragraph 25) talks about how when this occurs balance, speech, and lack of muscle control are a few important things that go wrong. Maria does not have A-T but she does exhibit some of the symptons, though not all, which is why I wanted to shed some light on it. She has slurred speech but it gets better day by day as she struggles. She can read and write but unless she is totally focused it may seem that she struggles greatly. She has some lack of muscle control but compared to when she first came home, when we called her turtle for a while because she had such a lack of lower body muscles that when she fell on her back it was hard for her to get back up, and now she can run and jump and swim as well as any other kid. If you have ever read a story called the "Scarlet Ibis", you will know that Maria is sort of like my "Doodle" in the way that I always push her hard to be better because I want her to fit in. You know, be like everyone else.
All in all martial arts has helped her to improve so much and Im very grateful for it, but, sometimes remember that although martial arts looks cool in movies it also helps many people day by day overcome their "inner and outer demons".
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