by Dr. Victoria L. Welch, D.C.
A mother entered into my office for a routine chiropractic adjustment. She had brought her 13 month old daughter along with her and she was very well behaved during the appointment. I had performed a chiropractic check-up on her daughter a few weeks after birth because the birth process can be physically stressful on an infant. At that time, she had some inward turning of her feet, but nothing concerning. I addressed the feet with some gentle stretching that day, and she had not been treated since.
When I inquired how the daughter had been since that initial visit, her mother informed me that she had shown absolutely no interest in standing. She was strong in crawling and had hit all other developmental markers for her age. An infant should be able to stand with support between 6.5 and 9 months and should be able to pull themselves to a standing position by 8-10 months (1). Although all children develop at different rates, I asked the mother if she would like me to assess her daughter’s feet using P-DTR® techniques. She readily agreed.
Using her mother as a surrogate and P-DTR® muscle testing and assessment techniques, it was determined that the daughter had a dysfunction in the crude touch receptors in the bottom of her feet. These receptors travel to the brain along a pain, or nociceptive, pathway. The brain is wired to avoid movements that are perceived as painful. Additionally, there were dysfunctional receptors in the muscles of the feet and calf which would allow the ankle to relax enough to stand flat footed. Within a few minutes, corrections were made and the mother left the office with very few expectations, but grateful for the help.
Within one hour I received a video message from the mother of her daughter. She was standing! She was not assisted, and did not have to pull herself up; she was transitioning from the ground to a standing position. This movement is a precursor to walking and is almost exactly where she should have been developmentally (1). Needless to say her mother was very happy and the daughter seemed pleased to start keeping up with her 3 year old sister.
P-DTR® corrections within infant, toddler, and child populations are very powerful. The neurologic system is very forgiving at this age because it is undergoing so much rapid development. P-DTR® corrections are also very quick to take hold and do not typically revert unless there is trauma or outside triggers. At DPPS, it is our pleasure to help kids grow, develop, and achieve the highest level of physical and emotional wellness possible.
1. The Denver Developmental Assessment (Denver II)
