The trampoline – an important part of the therapy of children at Karin Dom
Karin Dom Varna is a provider of quality services for children with special needs and their families. Our continuous striving to improve the field of social services, motivated us to the establish a Training Center that trains professionals from all around the country and from abroad. Through the Training Centre we are able to disseminate our good practices in the work with children with special needs, and share our knoledge of the innovative and effective techniques we apply in our work.
“Rebound exercise (exercise with bouncing) is the most effective form of exercise, designed by man.“ Quote by a NASA research, 1981.
Karin Dom is familiar with the multiple benefits of the trampoline therapy in the work with children with special needs. In 2013, Karin Dom Varna received a specialized trampoline, thanks to the generous donation of the ladies from SG Expressbank, who donated the funds, gathered for March 8th, to the Karin Dom program. Interlogistica took part and provided the transportation of the trampoline that came from Manchester, England, straight to Karin Dom’s garden in Varna.
Since then we have been using the trampoline as part of the therapy of 15 children with special needs, per week. For some of the children, the therapy is life-asserting. Sometimes, the trampoline is a basic movement for children with cerebral palsy or children with other diagnosis and multiple disabilities. The movement “invokes” the coughing reflex, clearing the lungs and protecting the children against bedridden pneumonia, it increases the respiratory capacity of the lungs, it stimulates the orthostatic reaction (for example, the children learn how to keep their heads straight), it strengthens the muscles of the body, it invokes tactile, vestibular and proprioceptive stimulation. The therapy on a trampoline is also used on children with ASD, sensory delays, children with problematic behavior and communication. Jumping on a trampoline is fun and it makes children “glow”. When used properly, the trampoline is a unique way to correct the unacceptable behavior as well as to become a motivating tool for communication.
The effect and results of the trampoline work at Karin Dom, motivated our Training Team to spread it as a good practice among other professionals in the field of social service. On November 12-14th, 2014, a training was held on the topic of “Therapeutic use of the trampoline”, that drew professionals from the country and abroad.
With a poster presentation, we introduced the therapeutic use and benefits of the trampoline at Karin Dom, at the “National Conference in Child Neurology, Psychiatry and Psychology of Development”, held between October 23-25, 2014 and organized by the Bulgarian Society of Child Neurology, Psychiatry and Developmental Psychology, Bulgarian Bulgarian Neuromuscular Diseases Society, Bulgarian Society Against Epilepsy, Bulgarian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology. You can see the poster HERE (only available in Bulgarian).
As ambassadors of new methods for therapy for children with special needs, our trainers introduced the trampoline therapy and its benefits on 8 more trainings for the past 2014.
More on the trampoline therapy and how it was brought to Karin Dom, you can read on our website HERE.
