Amir Tyebally
We chose to put Amir on the sensory stimulation program. This program is based on the concept dating back to the 1930's developed by Dr. Temple Fay, a neuro-surgeon. This is a program whereby the hurt child must be given the opportunity to begin to learn about balance, coordination and mobility in order to give them an opportunity of retraining their own central nervous systems.

Dr. Fay discovered that all children develop along identical lines, completing several specific stages on their journey to functional maturity. Responsibility for each stage lies with a different level of the brain and if any one of these levels is damaged then the functions associated with this level are impaired and any further progress will be inhibited.

Thus, the principal behind the sensory stimulation program is to provide fresh stimuli to which ever brain level that may be impaired to encourage functional improvements.

The program is based on the fact that our brains have an enormous built-in redundancy factor and few of us use more than 10% of our brain capacity. The stimulation program aims to utilise some of the dormant neurons; in effect, to teach them how to perform the functions of those millions of neurons that have been destroyed and to provide the hurt child with a real future.

To encourage functional improvements of the brain, the child must be given five types of stimuli: sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell. In order to increase central nervous system transmission, the stimulus must be increased in terms of its frequency, intensity and duration. This simply means that one has to stimulate the child often enough (frequency), the stimuli must be strong enough (intensity) and long enough (duration). A comprehensive list of stimulation exercises is carried out to develop six main functions in the child: vision, audio, touch, mobility, language and manual competence.

In addition to developing the six main functions, the program also attempts to enhance the physical environment of the brain to encourage better neurological organisation. Amir has been on this program for two years and has made tremendous progress. I know this home program will continue to enhance Amir's development.
Fezia Tyebally, Mother of Amir
Malaysia

Ashleigh Collins
Ashleigh was diagnosed "developmentally delayed" at nine months. She went to many doctors, neurologists and pediatricians and was told she would not develop mentally beyond one year and would never walk. At this stage, Ashleigh did not like to be touched, wouldn't laugh or smile, could not roll over, was unable to chew or swallow lumpy food, became very agitated and was generally a very unhappy baby with very little recognition of her surrounding. She was an extremely bad sleeper, never sleeping a full night. She suffered badly with constipation and ear and nose infections, and due to her very weak immune system spent a lot of time in hospital.

We did not want to accept the situation, and by chance, we heard about the Institute for the Achievement of Human Potential. Upon contact, we met Mr Tim Timmermans, who was confident he could help Ashleigh, but to what extent, he could not predict. When we started on the program created by Mr. Timmermans, Asleigh could just sit up and bum shuffle along the floor and was just over two years old.

The program was very hard at first (organising the household, etc.), but once in a routine we managed. Huge commitment is required, focusing on the 'patterning'. Many people feel they cannot do it, but it is possible. I achieved it while also managing to look after my two other children (aged three and one).

After six weeks on the program, Ashleigh's bowel movements where normal due to vitamins prescribed. Within months she could open her hands and touched many things, and her health improved she became much happier. By 12 months on the program she could roll over, crawl on her tummy, hold her own bottle and smile. The patterning was carried out seven days a week and with the help of many friends was not a great burden.

Our local newspaper did an article on Ashleigh - calling for volunteers - the response was wonderful. Ashleigh continued to improve and hospital visits have become very rare now. Today, after four years on the program, my very special daughter can walk and run, say various words, comprehend almost everything spoken to her and has started normal school.

I cannot praise the efforts of the Institute enough. They provided a lifeline to us and gave our family a 'miracle'. Wthout their help our daughter would be in a wheelchair staring into space. In retrospect, life over this period has been very hard but the rewards and love are worth every bit of it.

I would recommend the program to anyone with a disabled child. Although it may seem radical, we have the proof that it works. Remember, dedication and family commitment is a must, but the rewards are beyond measure.
Leanne Collins
New South Wales, Australia

Kristophe
3 Year old Kristopher had a fall from his tricycle resulting in a severe " Brain Injury". Due to the extent of the injury, Pediatric Trauma Specialist gave little hope for Kristopher's recovery and if by change he did survive, he would merely be in a persistive "Vegetable State".

These gloomy predictions aside, we as his family began to search for "NEW WAYS" to help in Kristopher's recovery. The search lead to the AIAHP/BRAIN--NET program.

Six years of hard work on the program by Kristopher and our family resulted in a Happy Thriving Boy who makes improvements even today.

The AIAHP/BRAIN--NET Development Program teaches parents and family members how to enhance their child development designed to meet the unique needs of each individual child..

The specialized therapy techniques that we as a family practised at home with Kristopher included, Physical, Spatial, Tactile, Auditory, Visual and Intellectual development.

We Highly Recommend the AIAHP/BRAIN-NET Therapy.

Kristopher's Family U.S.A.

Rik
Dear Tim & Chad, Fezia, Judy and Val,

Here is something we want to share with all of you. Last night I was helping Rik with his home work. Normally he has to copy numbers, letters, words, sentences written on top of the page. Yesterday there was just an instruction on each page - write numbers with words 1-10, write names of 10 fruits.

I read out the instructions and touched his hand - He still needs this for a steady hand. I don't guide him to write. He wrote 1, then as I was about to spell out One he went ahead and wrote One without any prompting capital O and small n and e.

Next I said now 2 and like that it went on to 10. We than started on fruits,after the numbers. He then wrote Apple, Banana, Grapes and Orange. I was not surprised since he had been taught these in school. But then he wrote Papaya, Lemon,Cherry, Melon, all correctly. We have never explicitly taught him these. But as part of the program has seen flashcards.

Then I started testing him, he wrote Scool(school), Sirt (shirt), Pant, Water, Rice, Ritwik and the shock came when he wrote our names Sumantra & Deepa correctly.

I know this will make you as happy as we were and all of you have contributed a great deal to make this happen. Our grateful thanks.

Deepa & Sumantra.
Mum and Dad of a Autistic boy on program from INDIA

Shai

At the age of two, my son Shai was diagnosed with global developmental delay and severe language disability. He had not spoken and hearing tests had shown his hearing was normal.

When we asked the specialists at the Tumbatim Clinic in Sydney and later the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, what they meant by their diagnosis, the response was bleak. The doctors told us that Shai would probably never talk at all and be severely behind his peers. They recommended signing which we did not do.

After various other tests and therapies including Tomatis Inner Ear Therapy, Occupational Therapy and speech therapy, which seemed to do little for him, we heard about a centre in Australia which runs a program based on the therapy devised by Glenn Doman in the USA.

Shai was 4 ½ years old at that time and had not yet spoken. He made loud, screeching noises and was very “hyper”. He could be fixated for hours on Lego or trains and he often had obsessive compulsive and repetitive behaviours.

The development program consisted of intensive physical and intellectually stimulating exercises: patterning, creeping, crawling, rolling, climbing, spinning, plus masking and flash cards of words (about 3000 words) and later ‘bits” of intellectual information (about 1000 “bits”). After 18 months of crawling and creeping, Shai progressed to walking and then running.

Shai did the program every day from Monday to Friday. He had a reward system of points which, when added up, earned him both weekly awards (a video or computer game, an outing) and also quite substantial rewards for doing the program (riding an elephant, swimming with dolphins, visiting Lego Windsor).

Shai said his first word “tractor” at 5 years of age, about 6 months after starting the program. We did the program intensely for 2 ½ years then reduced this to a “maintenance program” of 8 km jogging per day and intellectual “bits” and word flash-cards until Shai was 10 years old. Before doing the program, Shai’s left arm drooped down alongside his body and his gait was “wooden”. He now walks beautifully. (He also did the “Fast Forword” listening program from the Scientific Learning Corporation in the USA in this period).

At 10 ½ Shai was also diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum. His speech was still difficult to understand and he had about 400 words. At 15 1/2, Shai talks a lot and his grammar and syntax is now understood clearly by others. He reads at about the level of a 9 year old. He plays baseball, tennis, basketball, golf and soccer. He also swims and skis well. His development over the last 5 years is due to excellent special schooling at MUSEC, Macquarie University (for 18 months) and then the Warrah Steiner Special School at Dural in NSW (for 3 years).

I truly believe that the development program provided the foundation for Shai’s later development and enabled him to achieve his “human potential”. He is still intellectually disabled but is a great kid! His current topics of interest are world affairs, global warming, prevention of malaria in Africa, and girls!

by Arahni Sont, mother of Shai