What is a Swingle Clinic?

Nate and I are currently spending two weeks in Vancouver while he attends appointments at the Swingle Clinic.  As my awesome friend Phoebe asked, "What is a Swingle Clinic?".... I got thinking that the more people I can tell about this clinic, the more people might possibly be helped!  So here goes!

We were introduced to the Swingle Clinic last spring by a friend who had taken her child to Vancouver to have treatments.  I googled the clinic and once I read about Dr. Swingle's history and training, I was sold!  We made appointments for October 2016 and next thing I knew, we were on our way!

We arrive at the Clinic and the first step for Nate is a 19 point brain map.  The brain map identifies areas of the brain where the brainwaves are not functioning at optimal levels.  The technician, Stef, attaches 19 monitors to Nate's head through a special cap.  Once these are attached, we can see his brainwaves on the screen.  Stef leads Nate through a series of exercises where he keeps his eyes open, closes his eyes, or performs a task, such as a math problem.  Once the testing is done, the data is analyzed and we meet with Dr. Swingle.

Dr. Swingle is an elderly gentleman dressed in slacks, a button-up shirt, and suspenders.  His office is decorated with certificates in psychology, biofeedback, and neurology, and many others.  We instantly feel at home, as he jokes around with Nate.  He proceeds to look at the numbers and describe Nate to me as if he has known him as long as I have.  It's incredible, really.

As it turns out, Nate has certain areas of the brain where the waves are not at optimal levels (as we all do).  Some of the characteristics of his measured levels are his unwillingness to let things go, his predisposition to depression, his difficulty with reading, writing, and spelling, and his inability to regulate his emotional responses.  We also learn, that although it is just a label, Nate also has Attention Deficit Disorder.  Dr. Swingle has treatments designed to help bring the brainwaves closer to their ideal levels.  And that's what we are here for!

The next step for Nate is to see a technician.  And here is where I wouldn't have believed how powerful the brain is if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes!  Nate is attached to some monitors and sits in front of a screen.  The technician monitors Nate's brainwaves while he plays a game.  But he does not play this game with his hands.... he is literally playing it with his brain!  He likes the game that simulates Pacman the best.  Here's the kicker... Nate's brainwaves must be at certain thresholds in order for his Pacman to move.  When it moves, he hears an audio response.  As such, his brain is rewarded in two ways!  It's quite mind-blowing!  This process is called Biofeedback for the Brain.

We spend two weeks in Vancouver and Nate attends three appointments a day.  By the last day, we know everyone at the clinic and Nate has some favorite technicians.  The people involved with this clinic are phenomenal!  And so is Nate - he's reached level 60+ in the pacman game!  He's exhausted and we are both ready to head home and leave rainy Vancouver behind us!

Almost immediately upon returning home, we notice that Nate is still quick to have emotional reactions, but he has an almost as quick realization of his reaction.  He quickly apologizes for reacting in anger.  And he does this every time!  We have realized that even though his brain has changed, he has some behaviors that need to be dealt with.  This we can work on!  In addition to what we notice, his teachers notice that he can more easily deal with tough situations without shutting down.  This is HUGE for Nate.  Our family notices that he is talking a lot more and he has a lot of fun things to say!  Matt and I notice a definite willingness to read small bits of writing all on his own!  And his reading has improved!  All very positive changes for our big guy and the rest of the family!

All of this is justification to attend the clinic again, so here we are back in Vancouver!  Dr. Swingle has indicated that nothing is "going sideways on us", which I think means we are seeing good progress.  Something new has emerged as well - Nate has what Dr. Swingle calls the "Artist's Signature".  This means he has the ability to visually see things through.  He strongly feels that Nate's artistic ability has not "shone" because it hasn't had a chance to being that Nate's anxiety levels have been so high.  I'm looking forward to seeing this in the future as his other learning areas become easier for him.  He is currently working hard on reading (his least favorite thing to do).

I figured that while we are here, I've got my own work to do!  Yesterday I had a brain map done (a five point brain map for me) and I learned a lot!  Turns out I have a trauma marker, likely a very old one.  I don't, of course, know what this trauma was, but I could probably nail it down to one of two things that I'm not ready to blog about just yet.  In addition, I have markers for stress, difficulty sleeping, short term and visual memory problems, obsessions and perfectionism.  My Alpha, Beta, and Theta waves should look like this:

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But they actually look like this:

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Interesting, isn't it?

Yesterday I began treatments to increase the Alpha waves at the back of my brain and release the emotional trauma stored there.  Last night I bawled like a baby at a silly movie.  Today I am just plain exhausted.  Plus it is rainy and gloomy here, which doesn't help.

In my adventures with the clinic, I have met some really awesome people in the waiting room.  Kerry at the office remembers me because I am "the one that talks to everyone".  I'm not sure what she's getting at here.  ;-)

Some of the stories I've heard are incredible.  I spoke to a man about my age who was in a workplace accident and was hit in the head by a piece of steel.  He suffered endless migraine headaches to the point where he physically could not function.  He was not active in his role as husband and father and spent his life on the couch.  He lost all physical strength and couldn't so much as pick something up.  He was considering taking his own life when someone told him about the Swingle Clinic.  As of the time we spoke, he was physically stronger and was only experiencing about one migraine headache a week.  He was given his life back and was incredibly grateful.

I also met a lady who had experienced physical and emotional abuse her entire life.  She felt completely worthless and was taking large doses of anti-depressants to function.  She was in her sixties.  After receiving treatments, she told me it was the first time in her life that she felt self-love.  She was working on reducing her anti-depressants dosages and living happily without contemplating suicide on a daily basis.

I share these stories because they impacted me and made me see the versatility of what biofeedback for the brain can treat.  Dr. Swingle treats everything from anxiety and depression to head trauma to neurological conditions, such as autism.  It is not a cure, by any means.  However, we are grateful because in a time where we needed help and we didn't know where else to turn, the Swingle Clinic was introduced to us.  We have seen changes in Nate that I don't think we could have accomplished any other way.  Nate may "hate" coming here for the hard work it brings, but I hope that someday he will thank us!  As one of the doctors said.... "I will throw anything and everything at my child in hopes that it will work.  About 70% of it probably will.  The other 30% probably won't and maybe it's simply crazy.  But at least we tried everything".