The 3-day seminar led by the Newells and their team was a crash course in neurodevelopment which dovetailed beautifully with recent data around the science of neuroplasticity. They use detailed anatomical and developmental neural network maps in the brain to evaluate where along the timeline of brain development your child suffered injury, causing a dysfunctional pathway for that particular network resulting in downstream consequences. They design a personalized plan for each child based on the particular sequence of neural dysfunctions and help strengthen the network from the origin of the dysfunction rather than fixing the symptom that is revealing itself.

It is a complete multi-modal brain health approach: optimizing nutrition and fuel for neuro-regeneration, using physiology of breathwork to enhance oxygenation of brain tissue, incorporating body and energy work to repattern pathways, creating a unique sensory stimulation program, and returning to basic motor and reflex pathways such as crawling to develop a strong foundation for the most effective brain development. As parents, we are not just shown an action plan which is extremely empowering, but we are given hope, support, and community.

We saw significant gains after working on the program with our son for 6 months. Both his neurologist and neurosurgeon have been blown away by his progress. The program helps your child adapt and become more resilient, not just get “band aid solutions” that don’t promote his or her potentiality and evolution. Now I have applied aspects that I’ve learned from the program with my other children, myself, and even my patients. I am excited to use this book as a resource in my office and share it with my community.

I left the conference feeling contagiously overjoyed at how attainable and do-able the steps to healing can be. Complexity was exchanged for plain and simple truths, demonstrations, testimonies, and results. Yet a sense of awe was maintained at how intricately the brain was designed. Simple ways to experience the magnificent. It was like being given a road map with milestones and beacons to follow through steep mountain paths.

The Family Hope Center team has trodden and carved out these paths over years of research, experience, and training. Their pioneering walk has made the path now possible for everyday parents to walk – every day in their own shoes, in their own homes. And the paths bring thousands to new places and heights and viewpoints.

As I sat in the conference, like being on a mountain top – my eyes were gently opened to realize how God has given us all we need for healing – the air we breathe, the water, the food, the ground under our feet, and the love for our children, and it took my breath away. I will never be the same. And I am ever grateful that the Family Hope Center took me to the precipice; where I did not want to be challenged and with a safe guardrail of evidence and science opened my eyes to look over the edge at new frontiers of hope.

For my wife, Renee, and I, our journey began with a son who had developmental delays and social challenges in a spectrum disorder. We noted within the first couple of years that although our son was developing physically, he had severe difficulty interacting with others in normal social environments (preschool, church, and other social gatherings). We had our son evaluated several times. We were encouraged by both his teachers and conventional medical providers to put him on medication for ADHD, but never elected to do so. Instead, we were looking for alternatives to help him succeed. Therefore, when one of my colleagues at the Pentagon informed me of the work that Matthew and Carol were doing with their three children, I was cautiously intrigued. He shared the impacts that they were seeing in their children’s progress, which was a personal perspective that I could see firsthand.

Renee and I chose to go to a three-day parent training conference to research the actual methodology being implemented at the Family Hope Center. Employing a very holistic approach, Matthew and Carol demonstrated the observable impacts they have seen over nearly forty years of clinical experience. During our time there, I studied all the material that was provided and researched as much medical literature as I could obtain on neuroplasticity and brain healing. Although I still did not fully understand all the underlying physiology of the healing that they were observing, Renee and I decided to partner with Matthew and Carol and the team at the Family Hope Center to see what impact it would have with our son and family because I was convinced that sufficient evidence existed in literature and in the early research Matthew and Carol were completing.

We did have to make some changes in our life to integrate the holistic approach to obtain improvement for our son. The biggest changes were in our schedule (time management and calendar planning) and our diet. The whole family made some adjustments. However, the results were unquestionable. Our son’s improvements in his physical abilities, social interactions, and application of cognitive learning were immense. I was unsure how my son would be able to survive in the world with the deficits we were seeing, but now we are confident that he will be able not only to survive but to thrive in the world around him.

As the fields of neurocognitive research, neural development, and brain healing continue to develop, it is exciting to see pioneers that continue to partner with families and to see clinical impacts in the lives of young men and women. Both as a physician and a father, I am thrilled to witness this work being published. It is imperative these perspectives on healing be shared.

This book will begin to provide insights into the application of the principles that Renee and I have used to see the improvements in our home. These clinically proven results based on this fresh approach will positively impact more families, providing hope!

Our son was essentially blind at six months of age, and in “visual crisis” as a result of his brain surgery and cranial nerve eye injury. His neurological level on the chart was 1.55. Fast forward to today, his neurological level is 25.90 and his vision is his biggest strength.

Understanding the chart allowed us to help him make tremendous progress. We knew what we could do to help him reach the next developmental level. And more importantly, we knew why we had to do it with such frequency, intensity, and duration. It absolutely motivated us and encouraged us to continue even when progress seemed slow.

We utilized the chart to evaluate our older daughter who was heading towards the diagnosis of ADHD. She would run off while at the zoo and was simply a flight risk who couldn’t sit still long enough to color a picture at age four. By “going back” and addressing areas she didn’t progress through developmentally, we were able to help her “move forward.”  The chart helped guide us so we could change the course of her educational experience. She now enjoys sitting to do crafts, artwork, and worksheets, and her kindergarten teacher reports she is a pleasure to have in class.

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I can seldom remember a time when she was as thrilled as this. At first, I was wary of this new program. I was worried that it wouldn’t work out, or that it would fail, as many others had, but after all this time, my expectations have been shattered by the results we have gained from these changes.

We started the diet almost right away and saw changes just as quickly. My younger brother seemed happier and more friendly. I began to feel less afraid of him and realized that it was the first time I saw the real him. And my sister gradually started to allow me to bond with her. It was like they had mental relief and could just be themselves. The diet isn’t easy, and we now do home-cooked meals every day. I have even discovered new foods that I love. The extra work we’ve all put in has been worth it. We’re healthier and happier now, and my siblings’ personalities are at last revealing themselves to us.

The program itself is much more rigorous. We all have to do our share to make things work, and by the end of most days we feel exhausted, but it is worth it. My sister can speak and read. And my brother is showing more progress than we ever thought he would. I spend about an hour out of my day helping my mom with the program, and now know how to creep, crawl, do reflex bags, and other parts of the program with my siblings. My mom doesn’t have to feel the weight of it all on her own. My dad and I are doing what we can in between work and school. Even my grandparents help! I know just how hard my family works and feel very appreciative of them.

I’ve become confident in my ability to help, and I feel so proud of my younger siblings, and even feel a connection with them that used to be nearly nonexistent. I feel safer in my own home, and know that while things aren’t perfect, my brother and sister are on their way to healing. My brother is no longer as aggressive as he once was, and instead is now very gentle and sweet. My sister has stopped shutting me and everyone else out and has finally become like a true sister to me.

I have gained far more empathy for those different from me because of this experience and program, and most importantly, my parents seem much happier and healthier than they have in a long time. Thanks to the Family Hope Center, we have once again become a family.

I wanted to go to the movies or church without having an emergency exit plan. I wanted my son to have the internal motivation to do things for himself and others, and not constantly have to bribe him with screen time or treats. I wanted hm to learn to ride a bike, tie his shoes, bathe himself, create stories, respect people’s things, and engage with his family.

After nine years of conventional therapies, none of those goals were achieved. The unmanageable cost for these therapies and the lack of results were debilitating.

[My son’s] behaviors of erratic sleep, impulsiveness, self-injurious behaviors, and indifference to any discipline were creating resentment within our family. The countless meltdowns, the self-biting, the repetitive screeching, and our inability to do things as a family were all depleting our desire to try. We knew more was possible; we just had no idea how to achieve it.

But by the grace of God, we attended the Family Hope Center Parent Training Course. By the third and final day of the course, my husband and I had a renewed sense of purpose. We started to learn how to be part of the solution, instead of part of the problem.

For the last five years we have been implementing the comprehensive neurological approach designed by the FHC team. We as a family have witness neuroplasticity and continue to see that growth is possible, no matter the age!

We as a family have the clarity of discernment and we are no longer fearful. We know our power. We know the brain grows when a family rallies behind the one struggling and stands united in implementing an evidence-based, systematic approach in a loving home.

[Our son] is now sixteen years old and at the brain development of an eight- or nine-year-old. He is independently bathing, riding a bike, tying his shoes, writing and reading, balancing a checkbook, doing chores, running, playing sports, and so much more.

[He] has taught us about love, forgiveness, and service.

Allow your child to lead you. Be the change they need to thrive! Be strengthened and supported by the Family Hope Center team as you do the work and reap the rewards.

God bless you all.

Beginning the program was the start of many fights with [my son]. The first being the diet. There was a lot of yelling and pushback about the “horrid-tasking food.” Every chance he got, he would “cheat” by eating junk. Mostly, all we could accomplish during the first eight months was creeping and crawling, and not nearly the recommended distances.

We did our best with where we were. We kept going. [My son] needed me.

Even with all the fighting, and the struggle to get all the pieces of the program done, we started seeing progress after about six months. There would be long stretches of time without obvious progress, and then a switch would flip.

We carried a heavy burden of guilt for not helping [my son] sooner, for not seeing his needs, and for not being able to do all the [recommended] program. Yet, we kept at it. Going back for follow-up visits was crucial for keeping us on track. I needed to be reminded of the brain healing program we were doing. The staff also encouraged me because they could see progress where I was blind to it. They told me I was doing hard work and that [my son] was worth it.

Today, [my son] is nearing the end of the program, and he is motivated to do it on his own. He is almost eighteen years old and craves his vegetables, often turning down foods on his own and seeking veggies even when we travel.

Without the concerted effort of getting him organized, [my son] wouldn’t be driving, working, or graduating high school. I’m not worried about him ending up in jail because he exploded at the wrong time. He has friends and will be able to self-regulate in the stresses of life. His anxiety is gone, he has a bright future, and he’s a delight.

The [knowledge of the] program is a gift. The results are priceless.

I did her six-month reevaluation recently, and at first, I didn’t expect there’d be much more improvement, but when I’d finished, I was in awe! Her “neurological age” has caught up with her chronological nine years of age completely, and she is at 99 percent degree of function!

Last year we were told that her challenges were due to her “wiring” and that we could do nothing about it. We were told “She needs to learn to cope with it.”

Today, a year later, all those challenges are a thing of the past. She again is the happy, flourishing girl we had lost during the last few years. And our family has completely healed.

None of this would have been possible if it wasn’t for Matthew and Carol. I would not have known about the Family Hope Center if it wasn’t for one other mom and the Brain Child Fund’s information session last year. I am eternally grateful to our Lord for bringing us to you, so that our daughter could be healed.

Because of this, I have been spreading this good news as far and wide as possible, so that more children and their families can heal. Thank you for doing what you do with so much drive and enthusiasm! Thank you for empowering us as parents to be the necessary “assistive devices” to our children in their lives.

I had read about using the keto diet for epilepsy, but as a single mom who was already juggling quite a lot, I was daunted by the prospect of measuring and weighing food. Instead of putting [my son] on a strict ketogenic diet, we worked with the Family Hope Center team to reduce grains and sugar, both of which increase his tremor and can trigger seizures.

By looking more closely at [my son’s] diet and what we were eating, I was able to find ways to make easy substitutions and ensure he was getting the right nutrients and right fats to support his development. The team helped me work smarter, not harder.

By making simple changes in both our diets, we were able to see pretty remarkable changes in [my son] very quickly. His muscle tone is significantly better and he’s now beginning to walk independently. His tremor is almost gone and now he only has seizures when he’s sick.

[My son] is now able to engage with toys and other children more meaningfully. It’s amazing to watch him interact more with the world around him. I love watching him notice new things. His “neurological age” doubled from our first session to our second session at Family Hope Center, and honestly, I was doing less work with him than I had been before!

While I was already fortunate enough to know how important whole foods are, the Family Hope Center helped me isolate the ways that I could fine-tune the hard work I was doing. What has been incredible is the difference in both of us. [My son] and I both have more energy and focus and continue to feel better and better. Good food really is the best form of medicine, and when done right, it can heal the whole family!

A psychologist evaluated our daughter and thought [that although] she had a normal IQ, she demonstrated challenging negative behaviors, and needed therapeutic support aimed at restructuring thoughts of anxiety. Before starting the Family Hope Center’s program, a psychiatrist [also] evaluated our daughter and confirmed that she had anxiety and recommended that she be medicated.

My husband and I decided to attend the FHC parent training conference in Philadelphia to help our daughter. We found out that her “neurological age” was five years old, and that [much of] the gap was [related to] her food intolerance.

We implemented the FHC program, and after six months our daughter reached the level of her peers. We decided to continue the program. Seven months later, her “neurological age” increased by almost a year. By the end of eighteen months, when our daughter was eight and a half, her neurological age had reached eight as well.

She is now a leader, an excellent student, and a sports lover. Thanks to the Family Hope Center program, she is healthy, successful, and happy.

Burnout can still happen to us, even in this dynamic, though we try our best to prevent it. We find taking a day off once a week or even a day when we just need to organize other parts of our lives allows us to have a much clearer focus for the days ahead.

Lastly, it is most important for mom and dad to be a team. When something isn’t working, like many things in a relationship, communication is our key to resolving it.

As a human, as a mom, and as a special ed teacher, my brain was exploding with new information. Do you mean we can grow the brain, that you know how to do it, and that you know how to get to it? You are going to teach us and mentor us through it, too?

We came home infused with hope and a new resolve to save our child and to change the world.

We had been beaten down with the realization of having a child “like this” mixed with all the practicality of appointments and abrupt schedule changes. Seizures every five minutes. Dispensing the medicine to stop the seizures. Trying to feed the eight-pound, eight-month-old child who sleeps too long because of the seizure medicine. Pumping breast milk. Feeding the milk through a feeding tube in the baby’s nose that comes out when the baby throws up, and then trying to decide to give more medicine because she might have thrown it up. All of this sloppily stirred with the words of well-meaning doctors, who said, “this is pretty much what you’re gonna have,” sprinkled heavily with therapist visits. Meanwhile deadlines for the other children’s school and activities were falling through the cracks, and a marriage and home were needing nurturing too.

Coming home every six months with a designed program for our child looked like a huge undertaking, but we had an official, comprehensive, “let’s get out of this mess” plan, and we were going somewhere!

Having a program designed carefully for our daughter was and is such a gift. Sitting in a non-medical-looking office with professionals that asked questions like, “Is there anything else you want to tell me about your daughter?” was such a new idea for us who had been at countless appointments, where our daughter’s name was on a chart with numbers and diagnosis but who was barely really the focus of things. Who asks questions like that? How come we are not rushing through an appointment? What a blessing!

We were given a program that would take hours to accomplish. What else were we to do? Let her just sit there in her chair looking cute but nothing else? We had a chance to help our child. Our daughter was blind, couldn’t hear and couldn’t feel. We were all game. We sat the kids down and had a mini-neurology seminar and went to town. For Tori to learn how to hear, we had to tell the boys to “scare the baby like this” with pots and pans. For Tori to see we had to make Tori’s pupils dilate and constrict and shine the light in her eyes “like this.” For Tori to feel we had to brush her little body “like this.”

We had plenty of seasons that worked and some that didn’t. Times we had to rally the community to come help (three faithful volunteers coming through our doors two times a day), and times when the home was too busy and needed a stretch where we did all the work in the home with the ones closest to us.

Mother Theresa said, “If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.”  It has been such a blessing to have the charge to come home and love our family. Our family is stronger because of Tori’s struggles. The ability to understand Tori’s brain and help her gave us a chance to enjoy the gift of our daughter in new ways.

We’ve been receiving the care and attention of the Family Hope Center for Tori for twelve years now. Support, care, direction, partnership, wisdom, knowledge, and the drive to learn more every time is a trademark of the Family Hope Center and Matthew and Carol’s team.

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