James' Success Story:
Intellectual & Developmental Delay
Student Information
Name: James*
*actual name replaced
Gender: Male
Age: 13
Diagnosis: Learning Delay
Evaluation Dates: 2011, 2018, and 2019
Initial Functional Challenges: James entered Jacob's Ladder exhibiting frequent dysregulation in the form of uncontrollable laughter, along with frequent bouts of non-compliant behavior. He displayed difficulty with retaining symbols/words.
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James' Individualized Plan
Based on James' evaluation, we created an individualized model of care to help James develop a better-connected brain and reach the following emotional-behavioral goals.
Goal #1
Social Problems: James utilizes perspective-taking in peer relationships
Behaviors Measured Daily
1. Allows others to control 50% of the conversation
2. Actively listens
3. Adheres to role as a student
Goal #2
Thought Problems: James establishes a working understanding of perseverative (insistently repetitive) thoughts as related to present-minded thinking
Behaviors Measured Daily
1. Able to move past topic of high interest
2. Stays on appropriate topic
3. Utilizes reset tool when “locked” in thought process
Goal #3
Attention Problems: James is able to maintain socio-emotional homeostasis in the presence of social distractors
Behaviors Measured Daily
1. Maintains internal rather than external focus during cognitive endeavors
2. Maintains mind-body connection to avoid emotional outbursts in yellow zone moments
3. Give concerted effort in less preferred tasks
James' Functional Gains
As James developed the proper connections between areas in his brain, he experienced tremendous gains in his emotional, behavioral, and relational functioning.
Starting at Jacob's Ladder In 2011
1. Frequent dysregulation in the form of uncontrollable laughter
2. Frequent bouts of non-compliance
3. Difficulty with retaining the name of visual symbols and identifying words
Re-Evaluation In 2019
1. Demonstrates overall maturity and flexibility within social interactions
2. Commits to tasks and follows through on expectations
3. Increase in overall academic performance
How James' Brain Changed In 14 Months
By utilizing a QEEG brain map, we were able to identify and measure where communication flow was lacking in James' brain (hypo coherence) or where communication flow was locked and/or was overly-used in James' brain (hyper coherence).
We identified James' top 10 hypo coherent connections and top 10 hyper coherent connections. Based on the regions of the brain that were struggling to communicate, it became clear why he was experiencing the observed functional challenges.
Over 14 months, James implemented specific activities in his individualized model of care to normalize these connections. Below is an example of two connection improvements.
Example #1 of James' Brain Improvement
Communication flow between James' Prefrontal Areas was lacking by -4.95 standard deviations from a normalized connection.
Through James' individualized model of care, activities were implemented that improved his communication flow to -1.86 standard deviations from a normalized connection.
Prefrontal Area (Right)
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Deductive reasoning
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Inhibition of actions
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Working memory
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Mirror neurons
Prefrontal Area (Right)
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Deductive reasoning
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Inhibition of actions
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Working memory
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Mirror neurons
Example #2 of James' Brain Improvement
Communication flow between James' Primary Motor Cortex and Parahippocampal Gyrus was locked and/or overly-used by +3.76 standard deviations from a normalized connection.
Through James' individualized model of care, activities were implemented that improved his communication flow to +2.37 standard deviations from a normalized connection.
Primary Motor Cortex (Right)
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Sequences of muscle movement
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Voluntary breathing
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Complex body actions and internal representation of movements
Parahippocampal Gyrus (Right)
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Short term working memory
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Recognition and encoding of visual scenes and images
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Modulation of emotion