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Bowen Therapy for children
'Gently Does It'
A new treatment is helping to improve life for eight-year-old Simon, who has cerebral palsy. Could other children benefit too? Health correspondent Carol Burns reports:
There is no magical cure that can take away the effects of Simon's cerebral palsy, but a new treatment is making small steps to improving his quality of life, making him more independent through better balance, co-ordination and strength.
The eight-year-old, from Mountsorrel, is one of an increasing number of people turning to Bowen therapy for help.
Bowen therapy uses a series of gentle movements at specific points along the body to alter tension in the muscle and create an impulse of energy.
This in turn stimulates and encourages the body to heal itself by releasing tensions, strains and blockages.
Supporters of the therapy liken it to plucking a guitar string at one point, which then reverberates along its whole length.
Invented in Australia more than 30 years ago, it has been gathering popularity in the UK for the last 10 years - and now a pilot scheme has been set up in Leicestershire for children.
"Some people think nothing has happened. It's only when they get home and start to see changes over the next 24 or 48 hours", says practitioner Wendy Evans, who is also a trained physiotherapist.
"They are often quite subtle and small changes, but to these children, it really matters."
For young Simon, the treatments have helped strengthen his right wrist, making him two-handed for the first time.
This has made a massive difference to his life and increased his independence. He can eat, he can dress himself and he is more steady on his feet as a result of it.
It has also helped improve his ankles and general overall balance.
Mum Sally said: "It might not sound much, but to Simon and me, it has made quite a big difference.
He's more flexible on wrists and ankles, he can sit up an still lift his arms up.
He can do things tha before, he would have to hold onto the stool for.
His speech has improves as well."
The practitioners don't charge to treat children, but are hoping that, through their pilot scheme, they can demonstrate Bowen therapy's success and secure funding from elsewhere to continue to help youngsters like Simon.
Nobody is quite sure how or why the therapy works. It may be linked to pressure points used for acupuncture.
"It's not a miracle cure," says practitioner Catherine Vivian, a former chiropractor, keen not to raise hopes too high.
"However, we want to raise awareness of what it can do. If it's having these effects, it would be wonderful if there was some kind of funding to help these children."
Children with disabilities are being sought to take part in a pilot study into the treatment.
For more information about the Leicester Children's Bowen clinic, click here.